Towards Coherent Policies on Taiwan

Remarks by Hon. David Kilgour,
Member of Parliament for Edmonton - Mill Woods - Beaumont
Room 200 West Block, House of Commons, Ottawa

February 17, 2005

Good  Evening.

You’ve just heard several members of our own recent delegation to Taiwan speaking about one of the world’s best democratic and economic success stories. Taiwan is really what China should be.

Having been in Ukraine as an election observer just weeks before, I offered President Chen Shui-bian an orange scarf bought in Kiev's Independence Square, where the new President Viktor Yuschenko thanked Orange Revolution supporters for playing a key part in ensuring free and fair run-off elections.

President Chen expressed his commitment to bridging political rifts to foster more cooperative relations with other parties. In his words, "For the benefit of domestic politics, the welfare of the people, harmony among ethnic groups and cross-strait stability, we feel that there is nothing that can't be achieved in cooperation between the governing and the opposition parties."

In this spirit of reconciliation and improved political relations, I’d like to close this part of the program by offering some personal suggestions on what would constitute a more coherent Canadian policy towards Taiwan:

Within days of taking office as prime minister in 1968, Pierre Trudeau issued a statement which read in part, “…Our aim will be to recognize the People’s Republic of China government as soon as possible and to enable the government to occupy the seat of China in the UN, taking into account that there is a separate government in Taiwan.”

Two years earlier, Paul Martin Sr. told the UN General Assembly that “Canada has never recommended a two-China policy. We have recommended a policy of ‘One China, one   Taiwan.’ ”

Taiwan today—whose per capita income has grown in fifty years from about 150 $ US to 15 000 $ – is a success story for human rights, economic prosperity and peace in the world.

My suggestions for changes in Canada’s policies towards Taiwan would include six initiatives:

(1) Canada should vote in favour of Observer Status for Taiwan at the WHO

            ▪Taiwan was recently allowed a seat on the WTO and is a full member of the Asian       Development Bank and APEC.

            ▪In 2003, both Houses of the Canadian Parliament passed resolutions—by an   overwhelming majority in the House—calling on our government to support this goal.             Bizarrely, a representative from our executive branch voted against Taiwan’s WHO bid I     n May of 2004, while Japan and the US both voted in favour.

(2)  Canada should permit high-level visits from Taiwan

            ▪Canada and Taiwan are now both steadfast supporters and      practitioners of human rights,     the rule of law and fair and free democratic elections. Thus, Canada should grant visas        for unofficial visits to Canada by its President and other senior officials of Taiwan to          recognize the burgeoning relationship of our peoples.

            ▪ Furthermore, last August, all three opposition House Leaders jointly appealed to our   Foreign Minister to allow such visits.

            ▪Canada should similarly send high-level officials to Taiwan.

  (3)   Canada should support increased security in East Asia

            ▪ Why not urge the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan both to agree to disarmament,         with China withdrawing all 707 missiles in the coastal provinces across the Taiwan Strait.

            ▪In order to maintain military balance in the region, Canada should urge the European     Union (EU) Member States not to lift the embargo on arms sales to China.

            ▪Canada should speak more out more vigorously against China’s so-called Anti-           Secession Law, which is intended to incite Chinese nationalism against Taiwanese,           intimidate Taiwan nationals and prevent them from exercising democratic rights. If      passed, this legislation would unilaterally escalate tensions and threaten the peace and     stability of the Asia-Pacific region, if not the whole world.

 (4) Canada should sign a Free Trade Agreement with Taiwan

            ▪Taiwan was Canada’s 12^th largest trading partner in 2003 with total bilateral trade        totalling over $5 billion.

            ▪Taiwan’s total exports in 2003 were the 14^th largest in the world          (US$130.6 billion).

            ▪Taiwan’s total imports in 2003 were the 16^th largest in the world          (US$112.6 billion).

            ▪Taiwan is 5^th in the world and 3^rd in Asia (after Japan and         Singapore) for the best place     to conduct business (Business Environment Risk Index, 2003)

            ▪Canada-Taiwan economic conditions are mutually        complementary: Canada, with our         cutting edge technologies, and Taiwan its abundant venture capital a well as excellent            manufacturing and marketing capabilities.

(5) Canada should apply visitor visa exemption for Taiwanese citizens

▪ Currently, Taiwan is Canada’s 7^th largest source of foreign tourists.  The Taiwanese make over seven million overseas trips annually, and yet only 150,000 of them come to Canada each year. Taiwanese tourists have considerable purchasing power and are rarely involved in illegal immigration or criminal activities while abroad.

▪Citizens of South Korea, Japan, and Hong Kong do not require visas to visit Canada.

▪Canadians have not required visas to visit Taiwan since 1994.

6) Canada should negotiate an agreement on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters

            ▪ The lack of formal diplomatic relations between Taiwan and Canada, and Taiwan’s     special international circumstances prevent Taiwan from participating in international             organizations like the International Criminal Police (INTERPOL) and prevent effective       judicial assistance between Taiwan and Canada. Currently, the only cooperation between           our two countries involves the notification of lost passports and exchanges of information            on fugitive criminals.

            ▪ A mutual legal assistance agreement between the US and Taiwan was formally signed in March of 2002, and has been working effectively since then, although there is no             diplomatic relationship between the two countries.

Taiwan is a huge success story in terms of the measures and values that truly matter in this world today. Taiwan’s peaceful evolution into a vibrant and thriving democratic society is not only significant to Taiwanese, but is key to the stability of the whole region—it is a major contributor to peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region and the rest of the world.

For this reason, it is crucial that Canada continue to strengthen its relationship with Taiwan, rooted in our shared values of democracy, peace and respect for human rights.

Thank you.