Taipei, Aug. 26 (CNA) Republic of China President Chen Shui-bian said Monday that security, democracy and the economy are three main foundations for ensuring peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region.
The president made the remarks while addressing the opening ceremony of the 2002 Asia-Pacific Democratic Cooperation Forum being held at the Grand Hotel in Taipei from Aug. 26-27.
The president said that the Asia-Pacific region has become an important element in the international anti-terrorism campaign since the terrorist attacks on the United States last Sept. 11. He added that the campaign not only requires cooperation and efforts among the Asia-Pacific countries, stability and security in the region, and democratic consolidation and expansion in the region, but it also requires proper attention being paid to the region's economic cooperation and development.
President Chen said that he is glad to share the experience of the ROC's democratic development and push jointly with the participants of the forum for cooperation among the Asia-Pacific countries.
Twenty-five overseas scholars, opinion leaders and top-notch strategists from 11 countries around the region, including Frank Kramer, former U.S. assistant secretary of defense; James Steinberg, vice president of the Brookings Institute and deputy national security advisor to former U.S. President Bill Clinton; Krishna Bose, chairman of the external relations committee of the Indian Parliament; as well as Taiwanese experts are participating in the two-day forum.
Noting that democratic consolidation and development are major trends of the 21st century, the president said that Asian countries have accelerated their democratization over the past ten years, indicating that the peaceful transformation of certain Asian countries' democracy has drawn attention from the rest of the world.
He indicated that although most of the Asia-Pacific countries have chosen a democratic system, there are still fourteen countries in the region that still have not, while four of the world's five remaining communist regimes are located in the Asia-Pacific region. The president said this demonstrates that Asian countries still have to make efforts in their democratization.
The president also indicated that the consolidation and expansion of democracy in the Asia-Pacific region will promote the region's peace and development, adding that they will also become the stable foundations of the universal values of freedom and democracy.
While emphasizing Taiwan's will to cooperate with advanced democratic countries, the president said that Taiwan would like to make contributions to safeguard newly emerged democracies in Asia as well as promote democratization in Asia, particularly in mainland China.
He added that the ROC will actively work to strengthen the foundation of cooperation with democratic countries in the Asia-Pacific region by creating an "Asian democratic alliance" in order to jointly establish a democratic community in the region.
He also emphasized that "democracy and peace complement each other" because democratic countries cannot go to war without first building a domestic consensus or without abiding by international law.
The president also said that Taiwan will create a civil society and contribute to the consolidation of international democratic society by deepening the island's democratization, upgrading the level of its human rights to level of advanced countries, as well as pursuing political harmony and constructive competition among its political parties.
He pledged therefore that "Taiwan is willing to support the development and progress of democracy in the world in order to contribute to the safeguarding of world peace and of security in the Asia-Pacific region in particular."
During the meeting, the participants will discuss issues pertaining to the development of democracy in the Asia-Pacific region, including its interaction with economic prosperity and regional security, and how to establish a lasting mechanism for regional democratic cooperation.
The participants will also pay courtesy calls to President Chen, the Government Information Office and the Mainland Affairs Council on Aug. 28 in order to have a better understanding of Taiwan's democratic achievements.