While Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves plans to visit Taiwan this summer, he is mindful of potential threats to the Southeast Asian nation from a big neighbour.
Gonsalves said he does not dispute the advancement of the Chinese civilization on mainland China under the leadership of what is known as the People’s Republic of China. Nevertheless, he acknowledges the extraordinary development of Taiwan, which, as the Republic of China, is a legitimate political expression of Chinese civilization at the state level.
“While mainland China speaks of one-China policy in terms of one state and sees Taiwan as part of them, our government sees one Chinese civilization, and you can have more than one legitimate political expression organized as a state of that civilization”.
“The principles of interference and non-interference and the territorial integrity and the question of non-aggression and the peaceful settlement of disputes, all these principles are vital for maintaining the integrity of the political expression of the Chinese civilization known as the Republic of China on Taiwan”.
According to Gonsalves, for St Vincent, which has had close diplomatic relations with Taiwan since 1980, we need to bolster the relationship with visits by key political figures and in the case of St Vincent, the prime minister.
“I’ve been to Taiwan on ten occasions, and the one which will take place hopefully in August, God willing, this is a relationship which is to be refreshed when there are unseemly threats.”
“We have to add our voice; wherever there are any disputes across the Taiwan Strait, the rights of the people of Taiwan have to be respected, the integrity of the country has to be respected, and there has to be a peaceful settlement of any difficulties that there may be between the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of China”.
Hegemonic Hypocrisy
On Thursday, 28 April, the Prime Minister of St Vincent wrote to the head of the World Health Organization to discuss Taiwan being an observer or participating in this year’s World Health Assembly.
“To participate meaningfully in the particular capacity or that particular status”, Gonsalves said.
“During the presidency of President Ma, they had that status, but Mainland China mobilized and pulled the plug at the WHA simply because the new government was talking more and more about an autonomous, separate entity known as the Republic of China and Taiwan. In the case of President Ma, he was more muted on that subject”.
In an interview on Star FM, Gonsalves asked: What is happening? I can only join WHA if I bow to China’s wishes”? That kind of hegemony should not exist in international bodies, Gonsalves asserted.
“Taiwan is a member of the WTO; well, it’s not there as the ROC but as the territory of Taiwan and the islands around Taiwan which are part of the ROC. The world functions pretty well with them there at the WTO. So it’s okay to deal with money and trade but not with health, not with civil aviation to be part of the International Civil Aviation Organization, or indeed to be part of international policing to be part of Interpol. Do you see the double standards and the hypocrisy?”
St Vincent and the Grenadines will continue to speak out about these issues, Prime Minister Gonsalves said.
St Vincent Holds No Anti China Stance
“I am not taking an anti-People’s Republic of China position; notice how my position is clear. I’m talking about the right of the Republic of China on Taiwan to participate in these bodies; I’m not saying that the People’s Republic of China shouldn’t participate”.
“I have profound respect and regard for the Chinese civilization and the importance of the various political expressions of that civilization, whether it’s in the form of the PRC or the form of the ROC, whether it is the People’s Republic of China or the Republic of China”.
Gonsalves said no one will insult his intelligence with hegemonic language.
“We stand for certain things, whether in our hemisphere or the hemispheric area of Asia, East Asia, Africa, Western Europe or Eastern Europe. We apply the principles embedded in the charter of the United Nations”.
The St Vincent Prime Minister said we want peace, prosperity, and security for all, not just some.
