> For immediate release May 8, 2003
>
> TAIWANESE AMERICAN ORGANIZATIONS
> CALL UPON WHITE HOUSE TO REFER
> TO TAIWAN AS TAIWAN AND NOTHING ELSE
>
> In a May 8, letter to the White House, Taiwanese American organizations expressed their dismay about the occurrence on the front page of the East Asia and the Pacific section of the State Departments newly released 2002 Country Report on Human Rights of the reference to Taiwan as China (Taiwan only.)
>
> The letter states: Taiwans president, Mr. Chen Shui-bian, has repeatedly stated that Taiwan no longer maintains that there is only One China. In recent statements, he has been quite clear about the separate sovereignty of Taiwan. On August 3, 2002, he declared, Taiwan is not a part of any other country, nor is it a local government or province of another country. Taiwan can never be another Hong Kong or Macau, because Taiwan has always been a sovereign state.
>
> The letter continues there is no such thing as a divided China today, that Taiwan is not a province of China, and that thus Taiwan can not be referred to as China (Taiwan only.)
>
> The letter concludes: We ask that you consistently refer to Taiwan as Taiwan in the next Human Rights Report and your other publications.
>
> Ming-chi Wu, Ph.D., President of FAPA, states: Taiwan is not part or province of China. Taiwan today is a sovereign nation and there is no dispute about its de facto independent status. It is high time that the rest of the world in general and the United States in particular accepts this reality.
>
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>
> The White House May 8, 2003
> 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
> Washington, DC 20500
>
> Dear Mr. President:
>
> We -the joint Taiwanese American organizations- write to you today to thank you for your exceptional support for Taiwan over the past two years. A few weeks after your inauguration you stated that you would do whatever it takes to defend Taiwan. Ever since, you have expressed your support for Taiwan whenever the opportunity arose. You stated repeatedly that you continue to support the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, the U.S. Law of the Land, the foundation of U.S.-Taiwan Relations. Before you were President, you visited Taiwan as Governor.
>
> It therefore comes as a surprise to us Taiwanese Americans that, on the front page of the East Asia and the Pacific section of the State Departments newly released 2002 Country Report on Human Rights, Taiwan is being referred to as China (Taiwan only.) In other sections of the report Taiwan is being correctly referred to as Taiwan.
>
> Taiwans president, Mr. Chen Shui-bian, has repeatedly stated that Taiwan no longer maintains that there is only One China. In recent statements, he has been quite clear about the separate sovereignty of Taiwan. On August 3, 2002, he declared, Taiwan is not a part of any other country, nor is it a local government or province of another country. Taiwan can never be another Hong Kong or Macau, because Taiwan has always been a sovereign state. In short, Taiwan and China standing on opposite sides of the Strait, there is one country on each side.
>
> We are in complete agreement with President Chen that, today, there is a separate sovereign country on each side of the Taiwan Strait: Taiwan and China.
>
> It is therefore clear that there is no such thing as a divided China today, that Taiwan is not a province of China, and that thus Taiwan can not be referred to as China (Taiwan only.)
>
> We ask that you consistently refer to Taiwan as Taiwan in the next Human Rights Report and your other publications.
>
> We thank you for your support.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> - Formosan Association for Public Affairs
> - North America Taiwanese Engineers Association
> - World United Formosans for Independence
> - Formosa Foundation
> - North American Taiwanese Professors Association
> - Taiwanese Collegian
> - North America Taiwanese Womens Association
>
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