Taipei, May 21 (CNA) President Chen Shui-bian said Monday that his "four imperatives and one non-issue" dictum does not contravene his "four noes plus one" pledge and that he has always been consistent.
Speaking in a 30-minute interview with Channel NewsAsia, a Singapore state-owned television station, Chen elaborated on a wide range of issues, including his policy toward China, the U.S. and Japan, the consistency of his policies, the 2008 Beijing Olympic relay route and Frank Hsieh winning the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential primary.
"I have always remained consistent. The Chen Shui-bian of 2000, of 2004, and of 2007 are all the same Chen Shui-bian. I have not changed. Regardless of whether it's my policies toward China, toward the building and promoting of our relationship with the United States, or other issues, there has been no change, " he said.
Chen said the imperative of independence lies on the fact that "the vast majority of Taiwan's people are very clear on, support staunchly, and desire to defend the fact that Taiwan is a sovereign independent nation."
As for the imperative of changing the country's name, Chen said that "we have not changed the national title, but merely wish to use the name `Taiwan' in the international arena."
On the issue of a new constitution, he said that "Taiwan needs a new constitution because the existing one is out of date, unsuitable, and inapplicable. Despite numerous revisions, our people are still unsatisfied. In order for the nation to achieve long-term stability and sound governance, and to improve our international competitiveness, we must proceed with the constitutional re-engineering process."
He also said that speculation on why security in the Taiwan Strait was not listed among the common strategic objectives of the recent U.S.-Japan Security Consultative Meeting was unnecessary and that it was not the first time the issue was ignored.
"The U.S. and Japanese governments have explained that their policies toward Taiwan have not changed, nor has there been any change in their policies toward the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. The United States is still bound by the Taiwan Relations Act, and is still obligated by that law to help Taiwan defend itself. The United States and Japan have a security treaty that, like a Japanese law concerning its surrounding region, cites Taiwan as a focus of concern, " he said.
Channel NewsAsia interviewed Chen in Taipei May 9 and broadcast the interview Monday. It marked the first time since 1999 that Singapore's state-owned television station has interviewed Taiwan's president.