Politics
Taiwan's Tacky Tactics In Tarawa
Politician admits receiving US$80,000
The games that Taiwan and China play in competing for recognition by Pacific Islands governments have had some light thrown on them by documents surfacing from Kiribati. The documents and an account by a go-between, Tarawa resident Brian Orme, of how he delivered "bags of cash" from Taiwanese officials to recipient Kiribati politicians reveal how Taiwan buys the loyalty of governments from its enemy, China.
The Chinese claim that Taiwan, an island off the coast of mainland China, is historically Chinese territory. Taiwan's claims to be independent are ignored by most other governments for fear of angering the Chinese.
- ADVERTISEMENT -
 |
|
|
Kiribati's newly elected government, led by President Anote Tong, quickly agreed to the opening of a Taiwanese embassy at Tarawa. China in retaliation closed its embassy there, abandoned aid projects since taken over by Taiwan, and removed a satellite tracking station it had operated at Tarawa.
President Tong in a lengthy response to questions from Islands Business, agreed that he and his party raised funds from sources inside and outside Kiribati to fund his presidential campaign.
He was adamant that he did not receive money from Taiwan on the condition that he established diplomatic relations with it if he was elected. The president's brother, Dr Harry Tong, who also had hoped to be elected president, confirmed the validity of documents and facsimile transmissions showing that Taiwan funded his electioneering.
While the Taiwanese trade office in Suva (an unofficial embassy since Fiji was intimidated by China against recognising Taiwan) dismissed as "ridiculously untrue" accounts of Taiwan's financial intervention in Kiribati's elections, Dr Tong confirmed that in the course of nine months, from September 2002 to June 2003, Taiwan, through its Suva representative, Fu-Tien Liu, gave him cash totalling US$80,000. He did not handle or receive the money personally. The cash was managed by his campaign manager, an Irishman now naturalised Kiribati citizen, Brian Orme.
At the first exchange, Orme was told there were "no strings attached." But by June 2003, on the eve of the second and final presidential elections in Kiribati, Taiwan through Liu, insisted that Dr Tong signed a memorandum of understanding first before receiving his third and what was to be the final cash payment.
"Recognising the importance of the development of mutual friendship and cooperation between Taiwan and Kiribati and based on the principle of equality, sovereignty and mutual benefit," reads the introduction of a memorandum of understanding (MOU), a copy of which was given to Islands Business by Orme.
It reads: "If the Honourable Dr Harry Tong or his party's candidate wins the presidential election which is scheduled to take place on July 4, 2003 or other designated date, he will ensure the Government of the Republic of Kiribati implements this Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and establish full diplomatic relations with Taiwan/ROC at the shortest time possible after the presidential inauguration of the newly elected President of Kiribati."
The MOU said once diplomatic relations were established, Taiwan would supply aid for key sectors of Kiribati's economy including education and health as well as fisheries, and encourage Taiwanese investment in the country.
Orme said the MOU was to have been signed by Taiwan's Foreign Affairs Minister, Dr Eugene Y.H. Chien. It was dated June 15, 2003, 19 days before the presidential election in which Dr Tong was a candidate.
A cover note was faxed to Orme's Tarawa home which was hand-written and addressed to "Brian" (Orme) and said: "Pls erase the fax number and unwanted words at the edge of the documents, make it neat, before our friend signs it. Thank you. When you receive it. Fax response to me!" The note was signed: "Liu."
Shown the documents at his Suva office, Liu said the note and associated allegations were untrue. "My government prohibits such practices of giving money, it's totally against our policy," Liu told Islands Business. "This is wishful thinking on the part of some people. It's ridiculous."
When Orme and Dr Tong visited the Islands Business office in Suva last December, Orme declined to disclose how much had been allegedly received from Liu, although the amount was "substantial.
"I would rather reveal that in a commission of inquiry," he said. Contacted by telephone at his South Tarawa home after the Liu interview, Orme stood by his claims and finally disclosed the amount of money paid by Taiwan towards Dr Tong's election campaign.
Money was handed to him in "bags full of cash," in United States currency. It was one of the main reasons why Dr Tong did very well in the February 2003 election, the presidential election that followed, the second round of the general election, and the presidential election of July, 2003. Orme said the F$30,000 received paid for a full-colour glossy pamphlet on Dr Tong's manifesto.
Most of the money, Orme said, was for Dr Tong's electioneering, boat travels and chartering an aircraft. Cash handover was received in September 2002, between March and April 2003, and in June 2003. Orme said Taiwan paid for his airfares to Fiji. His meetings with Liu, according to Orme, began in April 2002 when he visited Taiwan's Trade Office in Suva to find a partner for a seafood business venture.
He had talked to Liu about Kiribati politics and elections scheduled for February 2003. "When Liu learnt that I was a friend of Dr Harry, he expressed interest in meeting him," Orme said.
That meeting took place at the Sheraton Fiji in August 2002, with Taiwan paying the travel expenses of Orme and Dr Tong. They met Liu's vice minister of foreign affairs, his director of consul affairs and Liu himself. The Taiwanese were at Nadi for the post-Forum dialogue following the Pacific Islands Forum leaders meeting in Suva earlier that week.
"The Taiwanese wanted to know from Harry his policies and manifesto in the forthcoming elections," recalled Orme. "They were also interested in the satellite tracking system the Chinese have in South Tarawa, which they said, were being used for military purposes."
Prior to being contacted by the Taiwanese, Dr Tong, as opposition leader, had asked the Kiribati maneaba ni maungatabu (parliament) to establish an inquiry into what he said was Taiwan's interference in Kiribati's affairs. The motion for the inquiry was defeated when all but one of the five MPs nominated to head the inquiry withdrew their names. Orme said no receipts had been asked for the money received from Taiwan.
Taiwan paid for five trips to Suva and on three occasions Liu handed him "bags of money." Orme said that around June 2003 rumours began circulating in Tarawa that Taiwan had also paid money to another presidential candidate.
He had asked Liu about this, and was given a denial. Orme said the kind of money received by Dr Tong's younger brother, now president, and the speed at which diplomatic relations were established with Taiwan once he became president, made him and Dr Tong wonder whether Taipei also had a deal with the younger Tong.
Dr Tong thought a parliamentary commission of inquiry into the matter was needed. But when the motion was defeated by strong government, he had decided to go to Islands Business with his story.
President Tong told Islands Business that his preference was for an inquiry by Kiribati's Ombudsman so that the matter was removed from "the political arena." 'A category five hurricane is not normal nor were the characteristics and route through the region it took causing severe damage in five countries.'
'I find it interesting that the allegations that are now being levied against me were in fact confirmed in a self confession as having been committed by another candidate.'
Islands Business:: Would you be able to state categorically Mr. President whether you and/or your party was given money by Taiwan during last year's election on the condition that you establish diplomatic relations with Taiwan if you become President?
President Tong: "I have on previous occasions been asked the same question and my answer then as it is now remains no."
Islands Business:: Is it true that in the last session of Parliament last year you had admitted bringing in some cash from the Marshall Islands, but you did not specify the donor? Is this so, and if true, was the cash given by Taiwan?
President Tong: "In response to an allegation by the opposition I confirmed that I had travelled from the Marshall Islands carrying contributions from donors from whom we had solicited funds. As a party we had on every election sought donations from individuals, businesses and corporate organisations both in Kiribati and abroad including the Marshall Islands, the United States, Japan, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, etc.
Most of our donors specifically asked as a condition of their assistance that we do not disclose their identity apparently for fear of reprisals. Some of the contributions are even anonymous whose identity will not be known to most party members and who will most probably deny having made any donations if asked. Their desire is understandable since some are civil servants or organisations which have been or could be affected by any changes in the policy of the government. Some are simply pro-democracy and good governance advocates. As you will no doubt agree, there will always be future elections and I and the party will continue to look for support from sources such as these.
"Accordingly, you will no doubt understand our unwillingness to betray their confidence, hence my reluctance to comply with the wishes of the opposition on this question. We have also approached representatives of foreign Governments, but the answer has invariably been 'we are not in the business of doing that. But we will offer you our moral support.' So to answer your question once again, No, the allegation is not true. I did not receive any funds from any foreign government including Taiwan."
Islands Business:: With at least one senior politician admitting receiving money from Taiwan, do you believe that such blatant acts of interference by a foreign power into the internal affairs of your sovereign nation needs an independent inquiry?
President Tong: "I find it interesting that the allegations that are now being levied against me were in fact confirmed in a self confession as having been committed by another candidate. So because he is guilty I must also be. I did it, so he must have also done it. It's a strange kind of logic I suppose. But surely we need more than that. Interferences by foreign powers (whether government or others) in the internal affairs and democratic processes of another country is, of course, a threat that has always existed, particularly for small defenceless countries.
It happens in substantially larger countries all over the different continents where and when the interests involved are significant, so why not in small Kiribati tucked away in the middle of nowhere? This act of interference would not be the first time it has occurred in Kiribati. It is a concern which I have expressed long before and since my election. During the recent change in our foreign policy we suffered the indignity of being told by a foreign government that we had made the wrong decision and must correct it as soon as possible.
It was followed by blatant acts to destabilise my government through direct efforts to swing public opinion against the government including the distribution of letters to the public and a staged public protest, acts which are clearly unfriendly and somewhat threatening.
"So yes, interference by foreign powers should not be allowed and should be investigated. There was a motion in the last meeting of parliament to establish a parliamentary select committee to undertake investigations. But we did not believe it would be objective given the proposed membership.
We believed it was simply an attempt to politicise the issue rather than a genuine desire to address the problem. We proposed instead that it should be investigated by a constitutionally independent body; something like an Ombudsman's Commission which would then take it out of the political arena."
Islands Business:: This politician admits being given an MOU to sign when given cash, with documents specifying that he initiates relations with Taiwan if he becomes President. Was a similar MOU given to you by Taiwan before your election as President?
President Tong: "I have already answered that question. I am not aware of the identity (was it the other candidate?) and the details of the disclosure in the senior politician's confession. But I would imagine that the Taiwanese must either be pretty dumb or extremely bold as to enter into the same deal with both sides.
"Naturally, we would be most interested to learn the identity of the senior politician and the details of his confession for the purpose of the independent investigations to be carried out and hope that you will be able to assist with the investigations, in time.
"It should be recalled that I had never been a candidate before and only became one very late in the day when our primary party candidate did not come through in the general election.
"Even if I had wished to do so, what credibility did I have and what opportunity could I have had to sign an MOU? If any deal was entered into by the Taiwanese, they would have been better advised to back the favourite rather than the outsider which was what they most probably did.
"The decision by my government to establish diplomatic relations with Taiwan in November of 2003 was based on what cabinet considered to be in the best interests of our people. It may have also been influenced by our frustrations over the interferences in our domestic politics by outsiders on previous occasions."
