● Plummeting Competitiveness: Overall return for local banks in 2006 was negative. Taiwan is the 114th place in the world in terms of soundness of banks (WEF 2007). Taiwan’s financial sector is facing a serious crisis.

● Missed Opportunities: Unreasonable restrictions have driven the people to move their assets abroad. A jaw-dropping NT$ 4.9 trillion is being deposited abroad. Taiwan has missed the golden opportunity to make itself an asset management center.

● Lost Development Opportunities: The DPP government’s restriction on financial institutions setting up branches in Mainland China has stood in the way of overseas deployment for Taiwanese businessmen and also made it impossible for Taiwanese businessmen to capitalize on business opportunities in Mainland China. Some of the local banks have even been sold out to foreign capital at a low price.

● Scandal-Ridden Financial Reform: The DPP government’s “conclusions first, grounds later” mindset has led to a mushrooming of scandals and wheel-spinning of the financial market. The transaction and timetable involved in the merger of state-owned banks are completely preconditioned. State-owned banks have been used by the DPP government to reward the service of supporters, and in some cases have become election campaign tools.

●

● The Sidelined Disadvantaged: The expansion in size for local financial institutions has made it even more difficult for small and medium enterprises and disadvantaged groups to secure funds. The low transparency and growing complexity of financial products have put the rights of financial consumers in jeopardy.

The New Blueprint for the “Asia Pacific Asset Management Center”

● Return of domestic capital: Enact the “Statute for the Development of Asset Management Center,” create an interdisciplinary task force, and put together a package of laws and programs to provide incentives to encourage foreign financial institutions to set up regional headquarters and operations centers in Taiwan and facilitate the return of domestic capital and human resources to fuel economic development and create employment opportunities.

● Deregulation: Restrictions in financial laws and regulations will be listed to encourage innovation and comply with international practices, and function-oriented management will be introduced to the FSC.

● Global Competitiveness: Create a taxation environment that complies with standards and possesses competitiveness, and set up a single window for management.

● Care for the disadvantaged: Introduce micro business start-up loans to take care of the financially disadvantaged and safeguard the rights of financial consumers.

● Across-the-Board Review of the Financial Reform: Conduct an across-the-board review of the second financial reform and investigate corruption scandals involved in the financial reform; respect professionalism in the management of state-owned banks, and provide a legal framework for the transformation of securities firms to investment banks.

● Enter the Mainland market: Install a cross-Strait financial alert and defense mechanism, facilitate the operation of a cross-Strait financial monitoring mechanism, give local financial institutions a competitive edge in the Mainland Chinese market, and allow the exchange of RMB.

● Expand the capital market: moderately allow Mainland Chinese capital to invest in Taiwan’s stock market, and relax restrictions regarding the introduction of overseas financial products and the investment in overseas financial products.

● Safeguard labor rights: Deal with the labor issues involved in the merger of financial institutions as well as problematic financial institutions on a case-by-case basis and reserve seats for laborers on the board of state-owned banks.

Connect with the World

1. Participate in global economic integration activities

● Sign FTA or CECA with other countries under the framework of WTO.

● Push for the signing of FTA under the framework of APEC.

● Actively participate in international economic and financial activities organized by the IMF, the Word Bank, and the OECD.

2. Push for dynamic adjustments in cross-Strait economic and trade activities: replacing “bird-cage policies” with “opening-up programs”

● Realize cross-Strait direct sea and air transportation: Open seven airports, namely CKS Airport in Taoyuan, Taichung Airport, Taipei Songshan Airport, Kaohsiung International Airport, Magong Airport in Penghu, Hualien Airport, and Taitung Airport, to cross-Strait direct flights.

● Open negotiations with Mainland China regarding cross-Strait direct flights with a view to realizing cross-Strait direct flights

● Allow Mainland Chinese capital to be invested in production businesses in Taiwan.

● Moderately relax existing restrictions including the 40% cap in the investment in Mainland China and the type of businesses invested in, and encourage Taiwanese companies to leave their key technologies in Taiwan.

3. Create a new era for cross-Strait economic and trade negotiations

Push for cross-Strait economic and trade negotiations and establish proper systems and rules in light of the long-term interests of the country. The KMT is the only political party in Taiwan capable of negotiating with Mainland China as a co-equal and creating a new era for cross-Strait economic and trade negotiations. The top priority issues for negotiations are as follows:

● Normalization of cross-Strait trade and protection mechanism for specific industries
● Cross-Strait investment guarantee, and settlement and arbitration of economic and trade disputes
● Cross-Strait intellectual property rights protection and patent registration mechanisms
● Standard specification for products and standard testing and certification
● Cross-Strait financial operations and supervision cooperation
● Negotiations and arrangements for cross-Strait direct air and sea transportation
● Cross-Strait fishing cooperation mechanism

4. Integrate business opportunities in the global and the Mainland market, with Taiwan as the hub:

● Push for the “Double-Gold Airline Hub” and the “Double Operations Center” development programs: Make the best use of Taiwan’s geographical advantages to push for the Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia double airline hubs.

● Make the best use of the niche of Taiwan’s science and technology industries and the advantages of Taiwan companies in Mainland Chinese market to construct “double gold triangles” for high-tech industries: the two strategic triangles of “Silicon Valley-Taipei-Shanghai” and “Tokyo-Taipei-Shanghai” will help Taiwan play a key role in global high-tech development.

5. Make breakthroughs in regional cooperation through cross-Strait connection

● Put together the resources of government, academic, and industrial circles to push for the “East Asia Regional Integration Forum” and invite representatives of government, academic, and industrial circles in East Asia to participate in the Forum to gather opinions on an official regional economic integration framework which covers Taiwan.

● Participate in regional economic integration arrangements including “ASEAN plus 3” and “ASEAN plus 6.”

● Gradually realize the creation of “Taiwan Free Trade Zone.”

(Origin: Ma-Siew Campaign Headquarters, 2008-03-12)

Taiwan opposition triumphs in elections

http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/22/taiwan.elections/index.html

TAIPEI, Taiwan (CNN) -- Taiwan voters overwhelmingly elected Nationalist Party candidate Ma Ying-jeou to be president on Saturday, apparently choosing the promise of economic growth through closer ties with China over fears that those ties to the mainland could lead to a loss of independence.

Ma, whose campaign touted the economic benefits of better relations with China, defeated the Democratic Progressive Party's Frank Hsieh, who advocated going slower and holding back in some areas.

Taiwan's central election commission projected that Ma Ying-jeou had won more than 58 percent versus Frank Hsieh's 41 percent, with most of the votes counted.

His margin of victory was the largest in the history of Taiwan's presidential races.

Ma's vote total topped the 7 million mark, a point at which it would be mathematically impossible for him to lose, the commission said.

The commission estimated that 75 percent of Taiwan's eligible voters cast ballots in the presidential race. ...

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