presented by Helen Allen
March 23, 2010
The Formosan Association for Human Rights was established in 1976 by Taiwanese Americans in the New York and Los Angeles areas. Now we have members across the United States. Over the years our Association has expended much effort supporting political dissidents in Taiwan and their families, trying to alleviate their suffering.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states:
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. (Article 1)
Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person. (Article 3)
Our association firmly believes in these principles and our goal is to help preserve these basic human rights for the people of Taiwan.
Both the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (adopted 16 December 1966 by the UN General Assembly) states in Article 1:
All peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development.
At a U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission hearing on March 18, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State David Shear said:
We insist that cross-Strait differences be resolved peacefully and according to the wishes of the people on both sides of the Strait.
But how will the people of Taiwan express their wishes concerning the future of Taiwan? Taiwan’s referendum law is designed to prevent any referendum from succeeding. No referendum has ever passed due to the many obstacles to holding a referendum and the high threshold for passage.
We urge the United States to seriously consider organizing an international consortium of disinterested nations to conduct and supervise a plebiscite under the right circumstances so the people of Taiwan would have an opportunity to determine their own future peacefully and without outside intimidation or internal subversion. This idea was suggested by some scholars in Taiwan and we believe it has merit.
The Taiwan Relations Act provides that “The preservation and enhancement of the human rights of all the people on Taiwan are hereby reaffirmed as objectives of the United States.” [Section 2(c)]
The right to self-determination is a basic human right. We urge President Obama to support the Taiwanese people’s right to self-determination. Such policy is not only in accord with our nation’s democratic values, it would also in the long run help steer China toward the path of peaceful development.
Thank you
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