President Ma Ying-jeou met on the morning of October 13 with a delegation from the US National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG). In addition to extending a cordial welcome, the president also updated the group on the government's efforts and achievements in promoting ROC-US relations, crime prevention, and cross-strait relations.
In remarks, President Ma commented that the NAAG was founded over 100 years ago, and that it is an extremely important organization in America's judicial community. Most states elect their attorney general, who is charged with promoting criminal and other legal policies as set forth by their respective state governments, and shoulders other important administrative duties. In addition, many attorney generals have gone on to become US senators, and even president. This, the president said, highlights the fact that the developmental potential of attorney generals is not limited strictly to judicial affairs.
The president stated that the NAAG has long maintained close ties with Taiwan, and each year invites the ROC's minister of justice and chief prosecutors to attend its annual summer meeting, and also invites prosecutors from Taiwan to attend its International Fellows Program. The president commented that when he served as minister of justice, he was invited to attend the organization's annual summer meeting in 1994 in San Antonio, Texas, adding that the event left a deep impression on him.
Commenting on ROC-US ties, the president stated that since he took office in 2008 there have been many positive developments in bilateral cooperation, and mutual trust has been restored at the highest levels of government. Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and current Secretary of State John Kerry have commented on bilateral relations in a positive light, saying that Taiwan is "an important security and economic partner" of the US. In May of this year Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Susan Thornton, in an address at the Brookings Institution, also stressed how good Taiwan-US relations are and referred to Taiwan as a vital partner of the US in East Asia. In addition, in November of 2012 the US included the ROC in its Visa Waiver Program. Among the 38 nations admitted to the program, the president added, Taiwan is the only one that has no diplomatic ties with the US. This is an achievement that the public can really feel, said the president.
On the global cooperation front, President Ma mentioned that the ROC last year responded to the Ebola outbreak in Africa by donating 100,000 sets of personal protective equipment (PPE) and one million sets of PPE for health workers providing clinical care. We also contributed US$1 million to the US CDC Foundation as part of a joint response to combat the outbreak. In addition, the ROC and the US in December of 2012 began cooperating to promote the Pacific Islands Leadership Program. In April of last year, US Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy came to the ROC for the launching of the International Environmental Partnership. All of these examples show that bilateral relations are now the best they have ever been in the 36 years since the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) was passed, the president stated.
President Ma then mentioned that the ROC's efforts in the fight against human trafficking have won international affirmation; for six consecutive years, from 2010 to 2015, Taiwan has been ranked by the US Department of State among first-tier countries. The president also stated that the ROC's public safety is much improved. He pointed out that in 2007, the year before he took office, about 490,000 criminal offenses were known to the police nationwide, but that dropped to about 300,000 offenses last year. In 2014, the clearance rate rose from 75% in 2007 to 86%. That means since 2007, the number of criminal offenses known to the police fell by 40%, while the clearance rate rose by 11.5%.
The president stated that although Taiwan's population and number of motor vehicles have increased by over two million and eight million, respectively, compared to 20 years ago, the number of crimes has dropped, and the number of traffic accidents and deaths caused by drunk driving have also declined by over 30%.
As for the ROC's achievements in fighting crime across national borders, the president stated that since the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement was implemented in June of 2009, the number of fraud cases and losses resulting from those scams have fallen sharply. Statistics indicate that losses caused by scams dropped from NT$18.6 billion in 2006 to NT$3.3 billion in 2014, an 82% reduction, which is also an outstanding achievement.
Discussing relations between Taiwan and mainland China, the president stated that over the past seven years the ROC government has handled cross-strait relations based on important principle, so under the framework of the ROC Constitution the government has maintained the status quo, defined as "no unification, no independence, and no use of force" in the Taiwan Strait, while also promoting the peaceful development of cross-strait ties under the 1992 Consensus, whereby each side acknowledges the existence of "one China" but maintains its own interpretation of what that means. Based on that principle, "mainland China has been more willing to improve relations with us, and keeps expanding the areas in which we cooperate," the president said. As an example, he noted that the heads of the agencies on each side responsible for cross-strait affairs have held formal discussions five times since 2013, referring to each other using their official titles. President Ma also mentioned that those officials will hold their sixth round of discussions on October 14, signifying that cross-strait relations have moved from conflict and confrontation toward reconciliation and cooperation.
Mentioning the ROC's achievements in improving cross-strait relations, the president pointed out that during the August 23 Artillery War of 1958 in Kinmen, the Communist Chinese army suddenly began an intense bombardment of Kinmen. Over 470,000 shells fell on the island in a bombing campaign that shocked the people of the ROC and the world. The incident lasted for 44 days. Today, Kinmen is not being bombarded by artillery shells. Instead, it's a destination for mainland Chinese tourists, who have already visited hundreds of thousands of times. While in Kinmen, mainland visitors purchase kitchen knives, many of which are refashioned from the casings from artillery shells that landed on the island in the past. This reflects the enormous change in cross-strait relations in recent years and let the international community know that the ROC is a peace-loving country. President Ma then expressed hope that the East China Sea and the South China Sea will become seas of peace and cooperation like the Taiwan Strait.
In closing, the president said he hoped the delegation members would take advantage of this visit to understand Taiwan's unique position in the international environment, and will help enhance bilateral cooperation in the judicial field.
The delegation was led by NAAG President Marty Jackley.