KMT-CCP Peace Agreement Presents Limitless Possibilities

KMT-CCP Peace Agreement Presents Limitless Possibilities
China Times editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China)
A Translation
August 14, 2013

Summary: On the 8th of this month, Want Want China Times Media Group Chairman and founder Tsai Eng-meng made a proposal during the "Cross-Strait Peace Wealth Creation Forum." Tsai proposed that the KMT and CCP sign a peace agreement. His proposal is consistent with scholarly research. Peace is a process that proceeds from small to large, from easy to difficult, from near to far. Everyone ought to give this fact serious consideration.

Full text below:

On the 8th of this month, Want Want China Times Media Group Chairman and founder Tsai Eng-meng made a proposal during the "Cross-Strait Peace Wealth Creation Forum." He urged Taipei and Beijing to sign a peace agreement. But realizing differences of opinion persisted on Taiwan, he urged the Kuomintang and the Communist Party to take the initiative of signing a peace agreement first. Only peace can build trust and create wealth. Opposition parties on Taiwan can catch up later. If such constructive and creative ideas can be implemented, the possibilities for cross-Strait relations are limitless.

Tsai made his proposal because he believes peace is an overarching value. A peace agreement would mean that the Chinese Civil War has officially ended. ARATS Vice Chairman Zheng Lizhong, who was present, considered it an excellent suggestion. MAC Vice Chairman Chang Hsien-yao also agreed with Tsai's proposal. The KMT said it would be happy to see the parties discuss cross-strait peace. Great achievements must begin with humility. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Achieving anything requires a process. As long as the parties are willing to listen, nothing ought to be ruled out.

As early as April 2005, during the first Lian Hu meeting, the KMT and CCP expressed the desire to sign a peace agreement. The KMT returned to power in 2008. Mainland President Hu Jintao seized the opportunity to improve bilateral relations. On December 31, he announced his six point policy for Taiwan. Once again, Beijing raised the issue of a cross-strait peace agreement. The Mainland demonstrated considerable goodwill and a willingness to cooperate.

In May 2008, President Ma Ying-jeou took office. Based on the 1992 consensus, he proposed a cross-strait provisional framework. He called for no [immediate] reunification, no independence, and no use of force. He unilaterally adopted a series of measures to improve relations with the Mainland. In January 2012, the Taiwan Region of the Republic of China held a presidential election. President Ma Ying-jeou was re-elected. During the election campaign, President Ma reiterated his vision for a "golden decade." In it he proposed the conditional deliberation and negoatiation of a cross-strait peace agreement. His proposal attracted considerable attention.

Consider a peace agreement between the two sides, such as Tsai's proposed agreement between the the KMT and CCP. Skeptics may say that the KMT and CCP can laugh away their past difference like brothers. Relations between the two may be harmonious. Cross-strait relations may not be what they once were. But the KMT and the CCP do not have the final say. One ought not create a tangled web and make things more complicated than they need to be. Consider the matter in a more positive light. This could be a gradual solution to the problem, a way to realize peace. How can anyone object?

Scholars researching the matter say a peace agreement requires complex advance negotiations. It requires preliminary and interim agreements. It requires broad agreement over the framework. It requires attention to implementation. The peace agreement would be subdivided into structure and content. The protocol would be subdivided into procedure, substance, and structure. A peace agreement should also address past grieveances, provide security guarantees, promote reconciliation, establish trust, and normalize relations. Each process is complex. Obviously the peace agreement must include different phases and different content. It is an ongoing process. Put simply, peace cannot be achieved overnight.

The results of research show the following. One. There can be no peace without compromise. Two. Peace must be a consensus reached by a majority.  They must see it as just. Three. Peace must bring benefits. Four. The benefits of peace must be socially acceptable. Five. A society must be determined to achieve peace. Six. Peace today is no guarantee of peace tomorrow. But benign interaction can help protect a fragile peace. Seven. Peace often requires third party support. This support is often merely a formality. Eight. The longer the ceasefire, the more difficult it is to persuade the disputants to enter the peace process. The temporary state has become a fact of life. Nine. The more people involved in the peace process, the more robust the peace. Ten. The more communication and cooperation between different social strata, the more enduring the peace.

This does not mean that meeting all the conditions will guarantee peace. Nor does it mean that one or two missing conditions make peace impossible. Both sides may seek peace. They may not rule out a peace agreement. But they may lack mutual trust. They may be too self-centered. They may assume they are on the right side of history. They may consider only their own case. Self-restraint may be perceived as weakness. Self-protection may be perceived as provocation. The other side's words and deeds may make a just peace impossible. One side may refuse to make concesssions to deny the other side the satisfaction of winning. One sie may demand concessions but refuse to reciprocate. Any hope for peace may be lost in the process.

Tsai has proposed that the KMT and CCP sign a peace agreement. His proposal is consistent with scholarly research. Peace is a process that proceeds from small to large, from easy to difficult, from near to far. Everyone ought to give this fact serious consideration.

中時電子報 新聞
中國時報 　2013.08.14
社論－國共和平協議 讓兩岸有無限可能
本報訊

    　本月8日，旺旺中時媒体集團董事長、旺報創辦人蔡衍明於「兩岸和平創富論壇」呼籲，兩岸簽署和平協議，但是由於台灣內部意見分歧，所以他率先主張，由國民黨與共產黨先行簽署，因為只有和平才能建立互信、創造財富，而將來台灣其他的在野黨也可跟進。我們認為，這種建設性的思維和創造性的構想如果能夠付諸實施，未來的兩岸關係將有更大的空間和無限的可能。

    　蔡創辦人之所以出此倡議，是因為篤信和平才是最高的價值，協議的簽署將象徵國共內戰的正式結束。對此，與會的大陸海協會常務副會長鄭立中表示建議很好，而陸委會副主委張顯耀也說非常認同此議，給予尊重，國民黨方面則說樂見各方討論有關兩岸和平的相關建言。當然登高自卑、行遠由邇，凡事都要有一個發展、醞釀的過程，只要相關各方願意傾聽，不排除嘗試都是好事。

    　其實，早在2005年4月，國共雙方就曾於第一次的連胡會中，正式表達了關於兩岸研議、簽署和平協議的願景；2008年國民黨重掌政權之後，為了把握改善雙方關係的契機，當時的大陸國家主席胡錦濤也於當年12月31日發表對台政策的六點最新主張，北京再次提到兩岸和平協議的問題，中國大陸也展現相當程度的誠意與配合。

    　2008年5月，在馬英九總統主政之下，台北在九二共識的基礎上，主張兩岸不統、不獨、不武，提出兩岸暫行架構的概念，主動採取一系列政策，進一步改善和中國大陸之間的關係。2012年1月，中華民國台灣地區進行總統大選，馬英九總統獲選連任。選前，馬總統曾在黃金十年願景中再次提到，在滿足某些特定條件情況下，研議未來推動洽簽兩岸和平協議一事，引發各界關注。

    　不過，此時大家談的還是兩岸之間的和平協議，如今蔡創辦人所主張的則是國共之間的和平協議；持懷疑態度的人或謂，國共兩黨今天已經兄弟一笑泯恩仇，彼此關係已水乳交融，而且兩岸關係也今非昔比，並非國共兩黨能夠說了就算，實無必要再治絲益棼，把事情搞得更為複雜。但若從正面的角度來看，這確實不失為一個逐步解決問題的辦法，落實和平、簽署協議總不會有人反對吧？

    　其實，根據相關學者的專業研究，簽署和平協議所涉事端相當複雜，其中有談判前的協議，中程或初期的協議、廣泛或架構性的協議，以及如何執行協議等等。另外，若就和平協議的本身來說，又可細分為協議的結構與內容、協議的組成，其中包括程序性、實質性和結構性部分。至於建構和平協議的步驟則還應包括對過去的不公不義的糾正、安全保證、互惠和解、互信建立及關係正常化等等，每一個過程都相當的複雜。顯然，和平協議不但有不同的階段和組成內容，而且還會是一個發展的過程，簡單的說，和平不可能一蹴而成。

    　研究結果還顯示出，第一，沒有和平是不經妥協的；第二，和平必須是社會大多數成員的共識，被社會各界視為公正的；第三，和平必須能夠帶來好處；第四，和平所帶來的利益必須能夠讓社會接受；第五，要達成和平必須要有決心和意願；第六，和平雖然不保證未來的互動，但良性的互動有助於維護脆弱的和平；第七，和平通常必須受到第三者所支持，即使這種支持有時只是形式上的；第八，停火期間越長，爭議雙方越難進入和平協議，因為這種暫時的狀態已經成為一種穩定的生活方式；第九，越多人參與的和平過程，這種和平越為堅固；第十，社會上不同階層越多的溝通與合作，將使得和平越為穩固。

    　當然，在實務上這既不意味滿足上述所有條件就能維持和平，也不表示缺乏其中的一或二項就無法實現和平。反過來看，我們也發現，過去有太多的例子證明，雖然鬥爭雙方都表示有意追求和平，不排斥和平協議，但由於缺乏互信，彼此都出於本位思考，認為自己站在歷史正確的一方，只看到有利於己的一面；而自我克制又可能被對方視為軟弱，加強自衛的結果又被對方視為挑釁，由於對方的所做所為，所以不能給對方公正的和平，為了不能讓對方有獲勝的感覺，所以堅不讓步，只要求對方讓步，而沒有適當的回饋等等，終於導致和平無望。

    　如今，蔡衍明創辦人正式提出國共簽署和平協議的主張，與學術研究的結果相當吻合，這正是一個由小而大、由易而難、從近到遠的漸進發展過程，值得各界進一步嚴肅加以思考。