Taipei, Nov. 11 (CNA) President Chen Shui-bian said Tuesday he is hopeful that Taiwan will hold a referendum on a new constitution on the Dec. 10 World Human Rights Day in 2006 and that the new constitution is put into practice May 20, 2008, when the Republic of China's 12th-term president will be inaugurated.
Chen made the remarks while meeting with a delegation from the Brookings Institution, a noted U.S. think tank. The delegation arrived in Taipei Monday to attend an international seminar on nationalism, democratic development and East Asian security.
He stressed to his guests that he is pushing for a new constitution rather than simply further amendments to the existing one. "What we want is the enactment of a new constitution, not amendments to our existing one, " Chen said, adding that more than two-thirds of the provisions in the ROC Constitution need to be amended and that the new constitution must be subject to a referendum.
In the process of promoting a new constitution, Chen said, his administration will endeavor to achieve a "strategic equilibrium" and avoid jeopardizing, affecting or hurting U.S. interests.
Over the past decade, Chen went on, the ROC Constitution has been revised six times. "But nobody is satisfied with those amendments because they are shabby and incoherent. We hope to write a new one to complete our constitutional reforms once and for all. We want to determine the version and content of our new constitution through a referendum, " Chen explained.
He further said his description of the cross-Taiwan Strait relationship as "one country on each side, " as well as his advocacy of referendums and a new constitution, are integral parts of Taiwan's constitutional reforms and have nothing to do with his "four noes plus one" pledge presented in his inaugural speech. "Neither should these appeals be simplistically interpreted as a political debate on 'unification versus independence,'" Chen added.
Saying that the right to referendum is a basic human right and a universal value, Chen said the 23 million people of Taiwan should enjoy the right to referendum just as other people around the world.
Chen said the existing Constitution which was written in 1946 and implemented in 1947, no longer meets Taiwan's needs. "We need a new constitution that fits our present reality and consolidates our young democracy," he added.
Praising the United States as Taiwan's best friend, Chen said a democratic, stable, secure and prosperous Taiwan is in the best interest of the United States. "While promoting constitutional reforms, we'll make every possible effort to avoid affecting or endangering U.S., Asian and global interests," Chen said.
During the meeting, Chen also reaffirmed the ROC government's firm support for the U.S.-led war on terrorism and humanitarian aid to war-torn countries.
Touching on North Korea's nuclear arms program, Chen said Taiwan supports a nuclear-free Korean peninsula and that the North Korean issue should be resolved through peaceful dialogue among all relevant parties.
Chen's guests included Brookings Institution President Strobe Talbott, who once served as U.S. deputy secretary of state, as well as John Thornton, the institute's chairman of the board. The delegation also included former American Institute in Taiwan Chairman Richard Bush.