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---"Focused Coverage Informed Perspectives"---Mon, Sep 29, 1997 edition

Provisional Legislature passes controversial bill reconfiguration designed to reduce power of political parties

Also in this edition . . . 1: massive starvation reported by refugees from North Korea 2: China commits funds for development of hinterland 3: Taiwan's DPP concludes party congress 4: worries over Taiwan Rail 5: Confucius turns 2,547 6: central bank adjustment foreseen

(Tue, Sep 30, 1997) We rebuilt last night's edition, replacing the word 'ration' with 'ratio' throughout the article on Taiwan's Central Bank. Sorry for any confusion this has caused. . . .

HONG KONG

Hong Kong: Provisional Legislature passes controversial bill, setting stage for next May's election ( Pro-China Forum Sharply Limits Who May Vote in Hong Kong ) ( Hong Kong Lawmakers Pass Controversial Election Law ) The Hong Kong provisional legislature passed the government's Legislative Council Ordinance which will reduce the number of voters from two-million to two-hundred thousand, as voting by 'functional constituency' will now be conducted by corporations themselves, not individuals. As the New York Times reports the bill is designed to weaken the force of political parties "by insuring that even candidates who do not win a majority of the votes can still secure seats in the legislature." "Under the new law, 30 of 60 seats in the legislature will be returned by 30 business and professional groups known as 'functional constituencies,' which effectively means voting by companies," reports Inside China. The vote came Sunday morning after a final 18-hour marathon session and weeks of debate from supporters and detractors of the controversial bill. Elections are scheduled for May, and with the bill in place pro-Beijing groups are reportedly in its favour. As the paper explains, in addition to the functional constituencies "Another one-third of the seats will be returned by proportional representation, and the remaining 10 will be elected by an 800-member college of pro-China groups." ( 'Rotten bill' no election deterrent for Democrats ) Those groups which will be disadvantaged by the new scheme include the Democratic Party headed by Mr Martin Lee. According to the South China Morning Post, Mr Lee said, "The provisional legislature has shown conclusively what you get when you do not have that system of checks and balances and elected representatives accountable to the people; audacious rule twisting and gerrymandering of an already bad electoral bill." ( Two weeks to sort out law change snags ) But if Mr Lee is determined for his party to stand in the next election, Secretary for Constitutional Affairs Michael Suen Ming-yeung has said that now with 21 functional constituencies defined by the bill, these groupings should not be changed arbitrarily. Mr Suen was apparently referring to the last-minute amendment put through by the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong. "It expands the social welfare constituency to include groups such as kaifong associations who are not group members of the 200-strong Hong Kong Council of Social Service," the South China Morning Post explains. Saying that Hong Kongers needed 'order and certainty' in their lives, he cautioned against acting like 'children' and changing the rules 'easily'. According to the paper, "Mr Suen said some Western countries did not understand the unique background of functional elections, and the 'ultimate goal' was universal suffrage." In any case, he said it would take at least two weeks to determine whether the amendment will have undo affects in registering voters and administering the elections. If so, it was suggested that the government would ask the legislature to rework the current expanded definition of the social welfare constituency into something more to its liking. See also: "SCA's press statement on passage of Legislative Council Bill" put out by the Hong Kong government. "The passage of the Legislative Council Bill in the Provisional Legislative Council (PLC) marks an important step in the election of the first SAR legislature as a legal framework for the electoral arrangements is now in place," the statement begins. NPC: ( Democrats Name Three for China Parliament Poll ) The Democratic Party has named its three candidates for seats in China's National Congress. The three are Anthony Cheung, Albert Ho and James To, reports Reuters. The announcement comes on the same day the party was stung by a newly passed act which disadvantages the party in standing for elections in May. As Reuters reports, in its bid to influence policy in China the party aims to spread its 'views on democracy, human rights and the rule of law,' the party's vice-chairman Yeung Sum told reporters.

NORTH KOREA

Famine: ( 'Million dead' in Korea famine ) Refugees fleeing to China have estimated upwards to a million people have starved in North Korea and the government is prepared to accept massive human losses, reports the South China Morning Post.

CHINA

Defence Conversion: government announces commitment to closing regional disparities; southwest to benefit from capital projects ( SCMP Internet Edition ) Transfer of military technology and conversion of defence factories are continuing in southwestern China, reports the South China Morning Post. Zhang Junjiu, president of the China National Ordnance Industrial Corporation, predicted steady gains for the defence sector as it moves to civilian and consumer-oriented manufacturing. Mr Zhang also said, competitive companies would relocate to the vibrant coastal areas away from the remote hinterland where the government first located them in the 1960s and 1970s. At the time they figured prominently in a 'third-front' strategy to establish a credible military-industrial complex away from immediate threats of invasion by the United States and the Soviet Union. Costly and inefficient factories were established, including ones for steel and chemicals, and they still can be seen ensconced in the mountains of southwest China. In urban areas like Chongqing, the industries have been restructuring since the 1980s, improving their operations and bottom lines, and factoring out technologies for civilian application. In more remote places, even though the rationals for being located in the obscurity of a mountain pass, miles from supply and transportation nodes, has been obscured by the tangible effects of the growing market economy, conversion and growth are less easily grasped even for those who would reach for it. These prime symbols of strength and self-reliance have always been sink-holes of resources and capital, yet the irony is only too noticeable when the government has little to doll out. Without more money there will likely be collapse, and with it would go the government's political and moral power. ( $746b scheme to cut regional wealth gap ) It is in this context that we may partially understand the government's announcement today of a massive infusion of development monies for the southwestern region and poor hinterland. Hoping to close the gap with the vibrant coastal provinces, the government will invest 800 billion yuan "in more than 200 key projects," a number which represents "42 per cent of the total approved for major projects in the country," reports the South China Morning Post. The government has set 2010 as the year to achieve this goal. Relics: ( Li emphasizes protection of relics ) The China Daily reports, "The unique treasure of China's cultural relics should be protected under a system based on a socialist market economy, so that these relics can play a greater role in the country's modernization drive, Premier Li Peng said in Beijing. . . ." Socialism: ( Jiang urges joint wisdom for socialism ) President Jiang Zemin made his pitch for a joint effort with China's various ethnic groups to build socialism with Chinese characteristics, reports the China Daily.

TAIWAN DESK

Politics: DPP concludes 7th National Congress ( China Times ) (Subscription) (Chinese BIG 5) The opposition Democratic Progressive Party's 7th National Congress yesterday concluded at Taichung's World Trade Center after an emotionally charged meeting marked by quarrels. The two-day congress was held in Taichung in an attempt to boost the party's standing in central Taiwan ahead of year-end elections for county chiefs and mayors. "We are a democratic party," declared DPP Chairman Hsu Hsin-liang before the congress came to a close. "We cannot have commands flowing down from the top and we cannot possibly be free from controversies." The congress' highlights included approval of a plebiscite system for changing major party policies and the abandonment of a planned expansion of the DPP chairman's powers. After congress delegates voted Saturday against a proposal to expand the chairman's powers, yesterday they gave unanimous consent to holding party-wide plebiscites on revisions to the party's Charter and policy platform. The proposal, authored by Ilan County-elected law-maker Chen Ding-nan, enabled party members to challenge major policies or seek amendments to the party's Charter by collecting signatures of at least five percent of DPP members on a petition. A plebiscite must be held among the DPP's full membership within 45 days after the party's Central Executive Committee receives the petition to either approve or reject the proposal. Chen, who the DPP had rallied behind in 1994 in a failed bid for provincial governor, said the new system would "put into practice the principle of popular sovereignty and the spirit of inner-party democracy." But Chen criticized the DPP's leadership for what he called its misguided predictions of election success based on the DPP's recent cooperation with the ruling Kuomintang in achieving constitutional reforms. "If we just rely on the party central's transformation to win the year-end elections and end up losing big, the grass-root activists will stage a recall ballot against DPP leaders by year's end," Chen said. Taiwan Provincial Government (TPG): worries over future of Taiwan Rail (The China Post , Sept. 29, 1997) As the China Post reports,Taiwan High Speed Rail Consortium offered a winning bid of NT$337 million to construct the nation's high-speed railway ; but as that project moves to the fast track, the prospects for Taiwan Rail remain 'glum.' The paper reports, "Last week, Department of Audit, Control yuan, established under the TPG, reported that losses run up by Taiwan Railways have been escalating over the last three fiscal years between 1994 and 1996, making an aggregate loss of NT$38.6 billion." The company faces a debt of NT$47.5 million, or 32 percent of its total assets, the paper writes. The railway faces huge payroll and pension obligations. "Taiwan Railways' staff salaries totaled NT$17.1 billion in fiscal year 1996, about 90.52 percent of its total sales the same year. In the mean time, its total pensions have increased by 25 percent to NT$4.81 billion on a yearly basis." The paper also notes concerns made by Chen Teh-pei, director of Taiwan Railway Administration. Mr Chen voiced concerns about future recruiting problems the provincial government-run railway will face, during a question-and-answer session in the provincial assembly last week. "If the planned high-speed rail's automation is not much different than that of Taiwan Railways, Chen predicts that half of its some 18,000 employees may flow to the high-speed rail when it starts service in 2003." The paper also reports that Chen Wu-cheng, director of TPG's Department of Transportation, predicted the high-speed railway will actually help Taiwan Rail to return to profitability. "He also said that Taiwan Railways will also earn a considerable income from short-distance passengers if a clear segmentation is developed in the market. Taiwan Railways plans to lure more short-distance passengers by running more electric commuter trains in urban areas in central and southern Taiwan starting in October." Teacher's Day: state marks birthday of Confucius with ritual and speech ( Central News Agency ) President Lee Teng-hui presided over a ceremony held at the Presidential Office on Sunday in commemoration of the 2,547th anniversary of the birth of Confucius. Hundreds of central and local government officials, including Vice President Lien Chan, attended the ceremony to commemorate the birth anniversary of the great Chinese sage. On the occasion, Professor Shen Ching-sung of National Chengchi University delivered a speech on the modern interpretation of Confucian thought, calling for more attention to the importance of ethnical education in modern society. Early in the morning, a traditional Chinese ritual was held at the Confucius Temple in Taipei to mark the anniversary of the sage's birth, with Deputy Taipei Mayor Pai Hsiu-hsiung officiating. Interior Minister Yeh Chin-feng also attended the rite on behalf of President Lee. Yeh was the first ROC female politician to represent the country's head of state to burn incense at the annual ritual in honor of Confucius. Survey: corruption and organized crime hinder investment ( China Times ) ( China Times ) (Subscription) (Chinese BIG 5) "Money-linked politics and organized crime" is the top non-economic factor affecting domestic willingness to invest, according to a recent opinion survey of local business executives. The Chinese National Federation of Industries (CNFI), one of Taiwan's largest trade associations, sent 378 questionnaires to its members early this month in an attempt to understand local business people's views on the domestic political and economic climate following the inauguration of Premier Vincent Siew's new Cabinet. The federation received 86 valid replies, or 22.8 percent of the total. Survey results found that "money politics and organized crime" is the most serious non-economic factor to discourage local industry executives from investing at home (85 percent). Other non-economic considerations cited by the respondents include the parliament's legislative efficiency and general legal regulations (82 percent); domestic political stability (76 percent); the government's administrative efficiency (73 percent); and relations across the Taiwan Strait (53 percent). Foreign labor: government set to allow Nicaraguan workers into country (The China Post, Sept. 29, 1997) The ROC government will sign an agreement with Nicaragua in November to permit 5,000 workers from the Central American nation into Taiwan, the Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) confirmed today. The organization refused to comment on whether similar plans with other nations were in the works, calling the information a "diplomatic secret," reports the China Post. The paper also cites a government report which counts the number of foreign laborers in Taiwan to be 244,000 at the end of June. "The number of Thai laborers ranks the highest, with 138,000 working in Taiwan. The Philippines comes in second with 93,000, followed by Indonesia and Malaysia, with 13,000 and 1,000, respectively." Business: another readjustment of reserve ratio predicted ( Bridge News, Sept. 29, 1997) According to an article in the Bridge News, analysts expect Taiwan's Central Bank to complete another round of cuts in reserve ratios against deposits. The bank cut the ratio last Wednesday. The paper quotes Yang Ya-hwei, director of the Taiwan Economy Division at the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research in Taipei: "Reducing required reserve ratios is part of a general trend in Taiwan toward greater liberalization and internationalization." CBC Deputy Governor Jia-deng Shea at the press conference Wednesday when the CBC's decision was disclosed did not rule out additional adjustments to the reserve rations this year, reports the paper.

EDUCATION

Geography: "A Geography of Chinese Peoples" is a curriculum unit written by Indiana University graduate student and designed for middle- and high-school teachers. A bibliography is included. Library: ( OLI Hong Kong develops HK$40m electronic library ) OT Asia reports about computers and information technology in the region. A news report from August reveals a plan by Hong Kong's Open Learning Institute to establish an on-line library system in the territory. "The electronic library is aimed at providing more than 20,000 OLI students with a more convenient learning facility to support their studies." The publication is subscription-based.

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