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---"Focused Coverage Informed Perspectives"---Tue, Oct 7, 1997 edition

Summit News preparations continue as various sides press their agendas

Also in this edition . . . 1: China gets touchy over VP's 'private' affairs 2: Zhao Ziyang's movements restricted even further 3: another report on Three Gorges: culture and people 4: survey of urbanite tastes and views on US 5: Fengshui in Germany and South Africa 6: Russia calls for stronger ties with Taiwan 7: Formose Plastic's Chairman Wang receives high Order and talks about government's role ahead 8: Taiwan's anti-violence bill enters third draft 9: council warns chip makers of costs of safety problems 10: Dryers of America inspected after reports of bug in Hong Kong product 11: Hong Government issues 1997 Progress Report

correction: yesterday's edition erroneously stated that Iceland is the only Scandinavian country where Taipei has an unofficial representative office. In fact Iceland is the only Scandinavian country where Taipei does not have an office.

SUMMIT NEWS

Summit: ( A Dark Tint for Jiang ) Jim Hoagland writes for the Washington Post on hair-dye, tint and appearances for China's leaders on the run-up to the summit. . . . Clinton will be asked to swallow a lot of fudge, he says. Summit: protests set for Jiang's visit ( Protesters plan tough time for Jiang on visit ) As the US government will roll out the red carpet and fire the 21 guns for President Jiang, a number of groups have planned to express their dissatisfaction with his government by protesting in front of the White House during his visit there on October 29. The South China Morning Post reports: "The protest coalition, which is keeping details of its plans under wraps until it announces them closer to Mr Jiang's visit, includes Amnesty International, the Robert F. Kennedy Centre for Human Rights, the International Campaign for Tibet and several Taiwanese groups including the opposition Democratic Progressive Party's US office." Official in the US government are worried, reports the paper, that the protests could upstage any positive developments in Sino-US relations. Local and federal authorities have already issued permits to the groups to protest in Lafayette Square, the paper notes. Nuclear issues: ( US nuclear mastermind in Beijing ) Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Robert Einhorn, the administration's head of atomic issues, is in Beijing, reports the South China Morning Post. Mr Einhorn's visit is apparently designed to pave the way for Us exports of nuclear technology to China. Such exports have been crippled by US concerns that China would re-export the technology to Iran and Pakistan. Reunification: ( Jiang to head talks on Taiwan strategy ) President Jiang will convene a new forum next month to 'thrash out the "next major initiative" on reunification,' reports the South China Morning Post. The paper writes,Jiang will wait until the end of the summit with the United States in order to gauge the US's reaction to the Taiwan question. An anonymous source quoted by the paper has said policy think-tanks are considering reformulating the 'One country Two Systems' formula in order to provide Taiwan with more 'autonomy' than it currently affords to Hong Kong. An example was to permit Taiwan some level of independence in foreign affairs after re-unification. Jiang would like to come to some kind of closure to the issue by 2001, the year in which his term in office 'expires.' Apparently strategists are confident China can 'persuade' the US 'to make some commitment towards reining in the "pro-independence movement" in Taiwan,' the paper reports. So, who are these unnamed sources. . . .

CHINA

Lien Chan:, China gets touchy over VP's 'private' affairs ( 07 Oct. '97 - DAILY NEWS FROM ICELAND ) The Daily News in Iceland notes that Vice President Lien Chan arrived flanked by reporters yesterday. The trip has been billed as a 'private one', but that did not stop the Chinese Foreign Ministry from summoning Iceland's Ambassador to China Hjálmar W. Hanesson and admonishing his country for interfering in China's domestic affairs. Meanwhile, back in Iceland: "Both Prime Minister Davíd Oddsson and Foreign Minister Halldór Ásgrímsson have expressed surprise over the harsh Chinese reaction and reiterated that receiving a private visitor from Taiwan in no way changes Iceland's foreign policy of formally recognizing the Beijing government as the legal ruler of China." ( Cold shoulder for Icelandic businessman ) In Beijing the government called off a planned meeting with Icelandic businessmen. 06 Oct. '97 - DAILY NEWS FROM ICELAND also has a brief mention of Lien's arrival. Zhao Ziyang: movements restricted even further ( Disgraced Zhao Denied Visitors, Golf -- Sources ) Disgraced party chief Zhao Ziyang, under house arrest since the 1989 Tiananmen disaster, apparently has had his movements curtailed even more. Sources quoted in a Reuters dispatch and South China Morning Post article confirm reports that the authorities have cut Zhao's weekly golf game from his schedule to punish him for urging the government to re-consider its verdict on the Tiananmen protests. The government has officially label the 1989 uprisings as counter-revolutionary acts, but during the recent party congress Zhao and his supporters circulated a letter raised the issue. According to the papers, by prematurely raising the issue "Zhao Ziyang has pre-empted Jiang Zemin who was keeping the 'Tiananmen' card in case of an emergency. The timing too was an embarrassment to the president, who used the event to instill his 'administration' in its own right. Wei Jingsheng: ( Beijing Says Dissident Wei Jingsheng Winning Nobel Peace Prize "Unimaginable" ) Dissident Wei jingsheng has been nominated for a Nobel peace prize, but the Chinese government thinks it would be 'unimaginable' for the prize to be awarded to a person whom the government considers a felon. The question on people's minds, however, is whether the government will release any of its political prisoners on the eve of the Jiang-Clinton summit later this month. . . . Three Gorges: ( Pace hots up to make way for dam ) Another article in today's "SMP" related a story from Xinhua concerning the resettlement of people living in the flood zone of the Three Gorges Dam project. The reports states that the government has intensified its efforts to move and preserve cultural artifacts in danger of being submerged "Xinhua news agency said at least five counties and 19 townships would be submerged by May. Zigui, home village of ancient poet Quyuan, will be the first to be submerged. The settlement goes back at least 1,000 years." "A total 828 sites which have been identified for their historical value will be submerged after the dam is filled. They include ancient temples, inscriptions and burial sites of historical figures." The article provides no clear picture as to how many sites have been saved and how many will not be saved. Some have urged the government to commit more funds and resources to preserving ancient and indigenous artifacts from the river valley. Many sites are home to cultures and peoples whose relics do not fit so neatly into the main currents of Chinese culture. Survey: ( Most Chinese See U.S. as Competitive Partner - Survey ) Inside China has a small report on an opinion survey published Monday which reveals something about how the United States is viewed by urbanities in China. "The survey of 1,500 people in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai and southern Guangzhou showed 27.1 percent regarded the United States as a friend of China. However, 47.2 percent of those surveyed regarded the United States as a competitive partner and 13 percent described relations as hostile. " "These survey results showed that most Chinese regarded China and the United States as neither friends nor enemies and that most Chinese urban residents were very sensitive to any moves by Washington to take a hard line against China, it said." No mention of who conducted or commissioned the survey is made in the article, and one wonders for what ends it was devised. Fengshui: ( Ancient science of space and alignment ) We have an article from the Mail & Guardian in South Africa. "Feng shui seems to be a New Age fad, but it was the cornerstone of the development of Chinese science, medicine and architecture, writes Lorraine Pace." The article discusses how ideas from Feng shui have garnered a strong following in Germany and elsewhere.

TAIWAN DESK

Russia: delegation arrives in Taipei (Sources: Central Daily News and China News ) Former Russian First Vice Premier Oleg Lobov said Sunday that Russia's parliament is working on an act to govern its relations with Taiwan. He said the legislation could be completed within six months. Lobov made the remarks as he arrived at the head of a six-member delegation in Taipei to celebrate Double Ten National Day. Bilateral trade between Taiwan and Russia has grown to US$2 billion in 1997. Lobov said both sides should increase exchanges in the areas of economics, culture and sports. He is also hoping that the two nations can cooperate in the aviation industry. Business: Formose Plastic's Chairman Wang receives high Order and talks about government's role ahead In order to recognize his great contribution to Taiwan's industrial development, President Lee Teng-hui conferred the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon on Formosa Plastics Group (FPG) Chairman Wang Yung-ching yesterday. Lee personally decorated Wang, 80, and extolled him for his down-to-earth working style and contributions to society and the nation. The tycoon said he owes much to the country. He credited his business success to Taiwan's strong economic development over the past four decades. "Taiwan has tried to develop from scratch to prosperity in a relative short period of time mainly because of the government's wise leadership plus the diligence of our people," Wang said. He continued to say that Taiwan's industry is now at a critical juncture in its transformation and requires the government's assistance to upgrade its technological level. He pointed out that only high technology will help maintain growth and enable us to survive the ever-increasing global competition. Wang said current economic problems do not lie with workers, but with the leadership or managerial-level positions. He went on to say that the greatest bottleneck faced by many local enterprises is that their management staff lacks vision and a down-to-earth working style. In addition to developing high-tech industries, Wang said the government should not ignore the upgrading of conventional steel, shipbuilding, machinery and other related industries. "My observation is that both high-tech and traditional industries should brace for increased competition and liberalization pressure following Taiwan's entry to the World Trade Organization," the China News reported. See also: http://www.chinatimes.com/papers/ctimes/focus/86100707.htm, http://www.chinatimes.com/papers/ctimes/focus/86100708.htm, and http://www.chinatimes.com/papers/ctimes/focus/86100710.htm Society: anti-violence bill in third draft form ( Sources: Central Daily News, China News ) Lawmakers and officials from several government agencies discussed a draft of a new anti-violence bill designed to stem rising rates of domestic violence, the China News reported today. Three standing committees in the legislature the Judiciary Committee, the Home and Border Affairs Committee and the Education Committee - met with several Cabinet officials to screen the draft law. Apart from legally defining 'domestic violence' the 60-page document details regulations designed to protect victims and establish guidelines for handling child custody and other related issues. Lawmakers have met numerous times with social organizations and government agencies over the past several years, and the third draft of the bill was completed last week. It is being endorsed by 36 lawmakers. A final version will await approval by the Ministry of the Interior and the National Police Administration, reports the paper. Trade: foreign trade perform strongly in third quarter (Sources: Central Daily News, China News, Associated Daily News, Economic Daily News) The Ministry of Finance said yesterday that Taiwan's foreign trade performed strongly in the third quarter of this year, with growth in both exports and imports in September. According to statistics released by the ministry today, Taiwan's exports amounted to over US$10.3 billion in September, up eight percent from the previous month, while imports reached about US$9.6 billion, up more than 20 percent. The ministry predicted exports in the fourth quarter will perform well, based on increasing orders and an average seven percent rise in exports in the third quarter of 1997 in comparison with the year earlier level. High technology: council warns chip makers of costs of safety problems Safety practices in the microchip industry need to be improved, otherwise the industry could expose itself to NT$200 billion in losses from fires over the next decade, the Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) warned today. The last major fire at the Hsinchu Science-based Industrial Park occurred nearly one year ago in Winbond Corporation's third fabrication area. The fire caused NT$8.1 billion worth of damage and the semiconductor manufacturer sustained a net loss of NT$60 million after receiving payment for insurance claims. According to news sources, the company that stands to lose the most from the recent fires is the United Microelectronics Corps. (UMC), the world's second largest foundry and the owner of a 38.67 stake in United Integrated Circuit Corp. (UICC). Analysts said if it cannot meet delivery deadlines, its clients may be forced to order instead from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Macronix and Winbond. According to a UMC source, however, UICC's output of 5,000 eight-inch wafers per month can be made up for by another subsidiary, the United Semiconductor Corp. See also: http://www.chinatimes.com/papers/ctimes/economy/86100705.htm Ice cream: Dryers of America inspected after reports of bug in Hong Kong product Hong Kong's Health Administration recently discovered that Dreyer's imported "Cookies and Cream," as well as its ice cream bars, were contaminated by listeria monocytogenes, a bacteria which can cause a disease characteristic of fever, meningitis and encephalitis. Prompted by the report, the Department of Health recently examined samples of Dreyer's products and found that the products were not infected by the bacteria. However, Dreyer's in Taiwan announced yesterday a recall of all such products available in the island's convenience stores, retail shops and its 22 chain stores. Media: Asia Wall Street Journal to publish in Taipei (China News) The Asian Wall Street Journal announced yesterday that the paper has established a publishing office in Taipei and will begin printing before the end of the year. Because timely information has become increasingly important to Taiwanese companies involved in regional and international business, William Adamopoulos, managing director of the Asian Wall Street Journal, said readers would receive their copies of the paper during morning business hours. He said establishing a printing site in Taipei would assist the goal of developing Taiwan as an Asia-Pacific regional operation center. He hoped to increase its circulation to 5,000-6,000 copies with local printing. See also: http://www.chinatimes.com/papers/ctimes/ent/86100704.htm

HONG KONG

Press report: ( 1997 Progress Report ) The Hong Kong government has released its 1997 Progress Report in which it states that 94 percent of its 830 pledges for the year were met. Flags: ( Pro-Taiwan groups agree not to fly flags ) A pro-Taiwan group has agreed not to waive the Taiwan flag on Double Ten Festival this Friday, reports the South China Morning Post. The report comes on the heals of yesterday's concerning the intent of a local labour group to fly Taiwan's blue. "We are under the sovereignty of the People's Republic of China. That is the political reality and you have to face it. The thing is, we can continue to celebrate the Double-Tenth Festival which is something important to us, said Susie Chiang, Kwang Hwa Information and Culture Centre director. The paper reports the agreement was reached by "Paul Yip Kwok-wah, special adviser to Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa, and the de facto Taiwanese representative, Cheng An-kuo."

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