President Chen Shui-bian on September 5 met with a delegation of Democratic Party of Japan parliamentarians, led by House of Representatives Member Nagashima Akihisa. The president expressed his welcome and appreciation to the group, saying he was delighted to have another opportunity to meet with them.
The guests are in Taiwan at the invitation of the World Taiwanese Congress and will deliver addresses to the general assembly on September 7. He said he has no doubt that the participation by the guests will make the event all the more meaningful. The president also congratulated the Democratic Party of Japan on its strong showing in Upper House elections. The Democratic Party of Japan has vaulted to become the largest party represented in the House of Councilors. He also asked the visitors to forward his best wishes and congratulations on behalf of the people and government of the ROC (Taiwan) to Ichiro Ozawa, the leader of the Democratic Party of Japan, Kan Naoto, the deputy leader, and Hatoyama Yukio, the secretary general of the DPJ.
The president said that House of Representatives Member Nagashima in April of this year queried Foreign Secretary Taro Aso about the judgment rendered in the Kokaryo incident. He said that the Kokaryo dormitory was not diplomatic property and he expressed his hope that an improvement in relations between Japan and China would not come at the expense of the interests of Taiwan. He also said that Japan should consider drafting and promulgating a Taiwan relations act in order to increase relations between the two countries. In response, the foreign minister publicly said that the Kokaryo dormitory in fact was not diplomatic property and that Japan's interpretation of the ruling by the court is entirely different from that of China's. Furthermore, when answering questions in the legislature, the foreign minister merely expressed the stance that Japan understands and respects China's opinion that Taiwan is a part of the People's Republic of China.
The guests expressed their gratitude to President Chen for taking time out of his busy schedule to meet with them. They also lauded President Chen for his prominent contributions since taking office to strengthening democracy on Taiwan and to promoting peace in the Taiwan Strait. The guests said that the DPJ members in the House of Representatives place great emphasis on ensuring security in the Asia-Pacific. In addition, many have advocated strengthening bilateral relations on the basis that Taiwan and Japan share a common fate. They said they will continue to work in the future to realize better ties between the two nations.
Joining House of Representatives Member Nagashima Akihisa were Members Tamura Kenji and Ryu Hirofumi. The group was accompanied to the Presidential Building by Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Chang Siao-yue. Also in attendance was Deputy Secretary-General to the President Chen Chi-mai.