Presidential Secretary-General Yu Shyi-kun explained President Chen Shui-bian's ideas on the constitutional reform today.
Secretary-General Yu first mentioned that the ad hoc National Assembly is presently meeting at the Sun Yat-sen Hall on Yangmingshan on the first phase constitutional reform. He said tomorrow is the final day and the most crucial day. President Chen has been advocating strongly all kinds of reforms and the constitutional reform is the most important one. Concerning the constitutional reform, the president had pushed for the introduction of plebiscite in the past, raising doubts by some people who considered it as a national disaster. But now the call for integrating the referendum in the constitution has become a mainstream public opinion, and by tomorrow we can expect the passage of the first phase constitutional reform after the combined efforts launched by the president, the public sector, the government and political parties.
The secretary-general said that the president had mentioned again and again in his major statements that the principal targets of the second phase constitutional reform are aimed at raising government efficiency, upgrading national competitiveness, deepening democracy and at the same time hoping that protection will be given to human rights and the weaker groups.
Concerning the substances of the constitutional reform, the constitution we have now was adopted in 1947 in China. The country's situation is very different from that time as Taiwan is now facing many problems in the implementation of the constitution. Among the major problems are: 1. Do we need a three-branch government system or a five-branch one? 2. Do we need a "presidential system" or a "cabinet system?" 3. Though the important sections of the first phase constitutional reform are expected to win passage tomorrow, other matching changes in the parliamentary reform are still called for. 4. Whether the Taiwan Provincial Government should be abolished. 5. Other civic rights (whether to lower the voting age to 18), military service (whether to adopt an obligatory service or a voluntary service), labor rights, environment rights should be integrated into the constitution. In addition, whether the aborigines chapter should be specially listed in the constitution. All these issues needed to be discussed in the future. The president hopes that the second phase constitutional reform will cover comprehensively all these issues to let the country sustain and develop continuously after its successful passage.
The secretary-general added that the greatest significance of tomorrow's constitutional reform is to unite the constitution with public's opinion. This is something that had never happened in the past. Everyone knows that the Declaration of Independence of the United States cited that "Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the consent of the governed." This statement was made under the principle of the people's rights. Regardless of whether the constitution was adopted in 1947 or during the six constitutional amendments in the past ten years, the government has never obtained the consent from the people. It was all done by representation. This time it was achieved through referendum, which is the first time that the constitution and public opinion are brought together, making the event very significant.
The secretary-general said that after the passage of the first phase constitutional reform tomorrow, the government hopes to proceed with the launching of the second phase reform as soon as possible.
As to how to proceed with this endeavor, the president said that the future constitutional reform will not be a reform called for by an individual or a single political party. Rather, it is a work to be participated by all the people, reaching out from the bottom to the top. In such consideration, the future constitutional reform will be made after listening to the views and opinions from all sectors, including the government and opposition parties. What is most important after all, is to return the power to the people.
Over concrete measures to promote the launch of the second phase constitutional reform, the secretary-general said the Presidential Office hopes the establishment of a relevant agency to push for it at the earliest time the better. However, the government still hopes that every political party and each sector of the society could take part in it. We will also respect the timing at which they think is suitable and will consider their expectations and demands. As whether to set up a "constitutional reform committee" directly or set up a preparatory unit in the initial period following the pattern of the Economic Development Advisory Conference by pooling representatives from all sectors, is a decision we have yet to make. Over the question of whether President Chen will serve as the convenor or the chairman of the constitutional reform committee, since this committee is aimed at inviting representatives from all sectors of the society to participate, their views and opinions must be respected. Basically, if a consensus is reached, we don't rule out the possibility that President Chen will take over the role as convenor of the committee.
Commenting about the timetable of constitutional reform, the secretary- general said that President Chen hopes that the new president, new parliament and new government in 2008 could see the new constitution. He hopes that Taiwan will then have a suitable, useful and fitting constitution. Therefore, all the efforts for the constitutional reform will be directed to meet this timetable.