One the eve of the Chinese Lantern Festival, President and Madame Lee Teng-hui this evening host a banquet for foreign ambassadors and representatives stationed in the Republic of China as well as their spouses at the Chiehshou Hall inside the Presidential Building.
A total of 90 foreign guests are invited to the banquet. Vice President and Madame Lien Chan and other ROC high-ranking officials are also on the invitation list. A concert is held after the banquet for entertainment.
President Lee tells his guests in his remarks before the banquet that, by getting together with the diplomatic corps, he hopes to further the foreign dignitaries' understanding of his philosophy for governing the nation and of the ROC's developmental status. And he wishes all the distinguished guests a happy new year.
The full text of President Lee's speech is as follows:
Vice President and Mrs. Lien, Secretary-General and Mrs. Huang, Minister and Mrs. Chang, Honorable Ambassadors, Representatives and Spouses, Ladies and
Gentlemen:
I am delighted to have been able to invite each distinguished ambassador, and representative, and their spouses to share this year's Yuan-hsiao Festival with us. This festival, probably better known to you as the "Lantern Festival," is an extremely important holiday for Chinese people. In an agricultural society, activities celebrating the lunar new year continue from New Year's Eve through the Lantern Festival. Family members return home and village members enjoy good times together to celebrate the bounty of the previous year, thank the gods for the blessings they have bestowed, and renew the working spirit. It is also a time to pray for good farming weather, peace for the nation and people, the health and happiness of each and everyone, as well as the well-being of every family. After the Lantern Festival, everyone puts aside their disposition for merrymaking, and goes on with their work. The most important celebratory activity for the Lantern Festival is making and carrying lanterns. Today we have prepared some exquisite lanterns to present to our guests. Since the lantern is a symbol of brightness, we light shining lanterns to pray for a bright future in the new year.
I remember that the former dean of the diplomatic corps, Mr. Miguel Angel Solano Lopez once suggested that I get together more often with you in order to further your understanding of my philosophy for governing the nation and of the ROC's developmental status. The diplomatic corps held a banquet when I and Vice President Lien Chan were elected to our respective offices. Thus, today's banquet was arranged to thank you all for your warm congratulations then and to provide an opportunity to talk with you about the developmental direction for the Republic of China and the objectives for which we shall strive during the new year.
Last year was a year of diligence for the 21.4 million people of the Republic of China on Taiwan, but also a bountiful year. The ROC adroitly concluded its first direct election of a national president and vice president in all of Chinese history despite Peking's campaign of invective and military intimidation, and became internationally recognized as a genuinely democratic nation. In the spirit of democracy through consultation, a National Development Conference (NDC) was successfully held. It forged a consensus among members of three different political parties as well as social figures, drafting a blueprint for national development into the next century, and opening up a bright future for the Republic of China.
During this new year, the ROC will devote itself to carrying out constitutional reform, the Asia-Pacific Regional Operations Center (APROC) plan, and "spiritual reengineering." Constitutional reform will be completed this year according to the 22 points of agreement reached by the NDC on this topic, to clarify the ROC system of constitutional governance and ensure political stability. Meanwhile, reasonable modifications will be made to the governmental structure to raise administrative efficiency. These agreements on reform have been misconstrued by Peking as "establishing Taiwan independence." This is a malicious misrepresentation that is designed to mislead the public. In fact, these reforms are totally intended to improve the functioning of the governmental structure and raise national competitiveness. I believe that soon each of you will see a cleaner, more capable and efficient government.
The second objective is to carry out the APROC plan which has been on the drawing board for quite a while. This year concrete steps will be taken to realize each part of the plan. On the topic of economic development, the NDC drafted 134 countermeasures which will all be implemented to accelerate the liberalization and globalization of our national economy. Investment obstacles shall be eliminated to provide a better climate for industrial investment and development.
The third objective is "spiritual reengineering." In addition to constitutional reform and economic development, we must carry out spiritual reengineering in education, culture and at every level of society, and continue to promote this important reform process to raise the quality of spiritual life for the public and attain the objective of social purification, jointly building a society with balanced development of spiritual culture and material civilization.
The NDC also discussed the topic of cross-strait relations, reaching 36 points of agreement. The most important among these was the fundamental consensus reached on two items. The first was to base development of cross-strait relations on safeguarding the survival and development of the ROC and the security and welfare of the 21.4 million ROC citizens in the Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu area. The second was that as a sovereign nation, the ROC must actively pursue foreign relations and secure a higher international profile for its survival and development. Taiwan is not a part of the "People's Republic of China," and it opposes applying the "one country, two systems" scheme to cross-strait issues.
Today, we are delighted to have been able to invite you all to share this Lantern Festival banquet with us, and are very grateful for the long-term support you have shown the Republic of China. We shall continue to strengthen our friendship and cooperation with each country and hope that each nation will continue to affirm and support our efforts to actively participate in international activities and contribute to the global community.
Finally, let us raise our glasses and offer a toast that each of us enjoy a happy new year, that each country be blessed with a glorious future, and that the world be peaceful and prosperous. Thank you.