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Taiwan votes for president
2008-03-21
Taiwan went to the polls on Saturday to elect a president who could usher in a new era in relations with China in one of the hottest potential flashpoints in Asia. Taiwan's more than 17 million voters will choose a successor to President Chen Shui-bian, an anti-China firebrand who steps down in May and who has repeatedly angered Beijing with his pro-independence rhetoric. China has claimed self-ruled Taiwan as its territory since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949 when defeated Nationalist forces fled there and has pledged to bring the island under its rule, by force if necessary. Frank Hsieh's ruling Democratic Progressive Party favors formal independence while Nationalist Party candidate Ma Ying-jeou, who leads in opinion polls, wants eventual reunification once China embraces democracy. A result is expected in the late evening. The election has drawn keen international attention, with the United States, Russia, Britain and China expressing disapproval of a referendum on U.N. membership, to be held alongside the vote, which they believe could upset the delicate balance across the Taiwan Strait. Two U.S. aircraft carriers have been sent to the Taiwan region for training exercises during the vote. China fired missiles into the Taiwan Strait in 1996, trying to intimidate voters during an election. The United States switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, recognizing "one China," but remains the island's biggest ally. However, Taiwan's faltering economy is the number one issue with voters, analysts have said. "Domestic issues, such as the economy and corruption, are bigger than China or foreign policy," said Ralph Cossa, president of the U.S.-based think tank Pacific Forum CSIS. "But from the U.S. perspective, it's a probably win-win since neither candidate seems as likely as the current administration to deliberately antagonize Beijing." The two candidates have toughened their stances on China following Beijing's crackdown in Tibet, but to help the domestic economy, both advocate more direct flights, tourism and investment opportunities between Taiwan and China. Ma advocates a common market with China. "I'd like to see us become the Switzerland of the east, not the Cuba of the east," he told a campaign rally late on Friday. Hsieh says that could cause Taiwan to be flooded by Chinese laborers and shoddy products, and the island may end up suffering the same fate as Tibet. "When you look at Tibet, do you feel scared or not?" Hsieh's vice-presidential candidate, Su Tseng-chang, yelled to supporters on Friday. On the campaign trail, both camps have marshaled tens of thousands of people at noisy rallies up and down the island. Both have trotted out groups of attractive young women to get attention and have run television commercials that play on voter fears such as China or a government fractured by bickering. Yet voters are smarter, more practical and more fatigued than ever by politicking, analysts say. "We know that people have already made up their minds," said Lin Jih-wen, a research fellow at Academia Sinica in Taipei. The polls close at 0800 GMT, and ballots will be tallied shortly thereafter. (Additional reporting by Roger Tung)
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