22 Taiwanese American Organizations Urge IOC President To Use “Taiwan” During Beijing Olympic Games Instead Of “Chinese, Taipei”

In a letter dated July 31 to Mr. Jacques Rogge, the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the heads of 22 Taiwanese American organizations urge Mr. Rogge to accord Taiwan during the Beijing held Olympic Games the name it deserves: “Taiwan.”

Because of pressure from China, Taiwan has been forced for the past20three decades to participate in international sports events under th e English tit le “Chinese Taipei,” based on a protocol signed with the IOC. An agreement signed between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait in Hong Kong in 1989 states that all sports teams or organizations representing Taiwan will follow IOC regulations when participating in sports events in China.

The letter was triggered by recent discussions in Beijing about whether the title of the Taiwanese Olympic team should be changed from “Chinese Taipei” to Zhongguo Taibei or “China Taipei. ” This would lend further credence to China’s irrational and unrealistic claims over Taiwan.

The organizations write: “We call on you to rethink the designation given to the nation of Taiwan by the IOC. We recommend that you adopt the straightforward and realist name “TAIWAN” in place of the outdated and denigrating moniker “Chinese Taipei.”

They continue: “Recently China attempted to further degrade Taiwan by publicly calling it “China Taipei.” This was in clear violation of the IOC decision of 1979. China’s nefarious act flew in the face of its own bilateral agreement with Taiwan of 1989 regarding the correct Chinese language translation of “Chinese Taipei.” Instead of being a gracious host of the 2008 summer Olympic Games, China is usurping its position to lay territorial claim over Taiwan.”

They conclude: “To ensure that the Olympic motto “Citius, Altius, Fortius” encourages fair athletic=2 0competition rather than sinister Chinese maneuver to annex Taiwan, we urge you to accord the island na tion the name it deserves. That name is TAIWAN.”

FAPA President Bob Yang, Ph.D. comments: “Chinese Taipei” and “China Taipei” are names concocted by communist China to further bully Taiwan in the international community into accepting that Taiwan is a part of China.  It is incontestable reality though that Taiwan is not a part of China. It is therefore high time that the international community open its eyes and face and accept the reality that Taiwan is a sovereign independent country whose name is “Taiwan” – nothing more, nothing less”.

台美人呼籲國際奧委會主席於北京奧運上稱呼台灣，而非中華台北

22個台美人社團領袖於7月31日連署致函國際奧委會主席羅格(Jacques Rogge) ，呼籲他在北京奧運典禮上以「台灣」之名稱呼台灣。台美社團領袖們主要是有鑑於目前台灣國內就中華台北或是中國台北名稱的相關辯論，有感而發並進而發起這項聯署信函。

信中表示：「我們希望您能重新審視奧委會給予台灣的名稱。我們建議您 採取直接與符合現實的做法，以台灣之名稱呼台灣，而不是過時與有損國格的中華台北。」「近來中國一再稱呼台灣為中國台北，這是很明顯的違反國際奧委會1979年的決議。中國醜惡的行為與1989年簽署的雙方協定背道而馳。中國原本應是一個大方的奧運地主國，卻反而企圖藉名稱炒作，侵佔台灣主權。」

「為了確保奧運精神能夠鼓勵公平的選手競爭，而不是中國意欲併吞台灣，我們呼籲您給予這個島國她值得的名稱：台灣。」

FAPA會長楊英育表示：「中華台北與中國台北都是共產中國為了恐嚇台灣，脅迫國際社會承認台灣為中國的一部份所衍生出來的名稱。台灣很明顯地不是中國的一部份，國際社會應該認清並接受台灣是一個主權獨立國家的事實。」

Photo Credit: Tom Nguyen (Wikimedia Commons)

The post 22 Taiwanese American Organizations Urge IOC President To Use “Taiwan” During Beijing Olympic Games Instead Of “Chinese, Taipei” appeared first on Formosan Association for Public Affairs.

Taiwanese American Organizations Urge President Bush Not to Attend Olympic Games in China Over Taiwan, Tibet and Human Rights

Over twenty Taiwanese American organizations sent the following letter to President Bush, urging him not to attend the Olympic games in China and expressing their deep concern over Chinese government’s recent violent crackdown in Tibet and China’s increasing missile threat against Taiwan.

FAPA President Bob Yang states, “Long before this torch relay fiasco started, China attempted to label the torch relay route in Taiwan a domestic one rather than an international one as it should be. That action by China contradicts its claim that sports should not mix with politics.” Yang concludes, “As long as China continues to disrespect human rights abroad and at home, Western leader should not reward such behavior by gracing the Olympics with their attendance.”

Below is the text of the letter:

President George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

April 24, 2008

Dear President Bush:

As leaders of Taiwanese-American and allied organizations, we write today to urge you not to attend the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in China.  We do so to express our deep concern about the brutal Chinese crackdown against the peace-loving people of Tibet, and about China’s unending intimidation, now with over 1,000 missiles, of the free and democratic nation of Taiwan.

China professes to be a responsible stakeholder in the international community and the Chinese leaders covet the glory of staging the Olympic Games in Beijing.  However, the cruel suppression of the protests in Tibet should not be tolerated as “business as usual.”  Your repeated calls for China to enter into dialogue with the Dalai Lama have all but fallen on deaf ears.  By attending these games, you would be viewed as endorsing China’s appalling policies toward Tibet and Taiwan.  These are policies antithetic to America’s core values of freedom, democracy and human rights.  In the words of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, China is carrying out “cultural genocide” in Tibet.  The United States must not be seen as colluding in committing this crime.

In his recent telephone conversation with you, Chinese President Hu Jintao demanded that, as a precondition for Tibet-China dialogue, the Dalai Lama accept “that Tibet and Taiwan are inalienable parts of China.”  Hu’s behavior can only be described as arrogant and imperialistic.  Hu is a dictator to be shunned, rather than an enlightened leader with whom you should share the stage in celebrating the Olympics.

We believe that responsible heads of state of the world should therefore not attend the 2008 Summer Olympic Games as long as China perpetuates its reign of terror in Tibet and continues to threaten Taiwan with the use of force.  Already several key European leaders have announced their intention to abstain from the opening ceremonies.  We urge you to make a similar declaration now.

Respectfully yours*,

台美人社團公開信

致 布希總統：

因為我們強烈關切中國殘忍對待愛好和平的西藏人民，以及中國使用超過一千顆長程飛彈無止境地欺凌自由民主的台灣，身為台裔美國人以及相關台裔友盟組織團體的領導(負責)人，我們強烈呼籲您不要參加二００八在中國舉辦的夏季奧運會。

雖然中國公開宣稱自己是國際社會肩負責任的成員, 而且中國的領導人盡情追逐奧運在北京登台的榮耀。但從其對西藏示威血腥鎮壓的角度來看，我們不認為這只是例行公事。如果前往參加奧運會，您將會被視為贊同中國對西藏與台灣的可怖政策，這樣將有違美國一向主張對自由民主人權的核心價值。引鑒達賴喇嘛的話來說，中國正在西藏實行”文化的大屠殺”，美國一定不能被認為是這項罪行的幫凶。

中國國家主席胡錦濤在最近與您的電話談話中，要求達賴喇嘛必先接受”西藏與台灣是中國不可分割的一部份”的預設條件才能展開西藏與中國的對話。胡的行徑只能以高傲霸。他是一個你必須極力迴避的獨裁者而不是一個您應該與之同台慶祝奧運的好領袖。

只要中國繼續在西藏境內的恐怖鎮壓以及使用武力威脅台灣，我們認為世界各國的重要領袖都不應該參加二００八在中國舉辦的夏季奧運會。有幾位歐洲的主要領袖已經宣佈他們不會參加奧運的開幕儀式，我們也強烈呼籲您能作相同的宣告。

此致

奧斯汀台灣研究社社長 陳春興
Jack Chen, President
Austin Institute for Taiwan Studies

聰美基金會會長 黃聲弘
Adam Huang, President
Chong-Bi Memorial Fund

王康陸博士紀念基金會會長 王康厚
Kang-Hou Wang, President
Dr. Kang-Lu Wang Memorial Foundation

Terri Giles, Executive Director
Formosa Foundation

全美台灣人權協會會長 王明珠
Pearl Tang, President
Formosan Association for Human Rights

台灣人公共事務會會長 楊英育
Bob I. Yang, President
Formosan Association for Public Affairs

北美洲台灣人教授協會會長 黃界清
Je-Chin Han, President
North America Taiwanese Professors’ Association

北美洲台灣婦女會會長 洪珠美
Darice Lee, President
North America Taiwanese Women’s Association

北美洲台灣人醫師協會會長 蔡榮聰
North American Taiwanese Medical Association

陳文成教授紀念基金會會長 劉彬碩
Ben Pin-Shuo Liu, President
Professor Chen Wen-chen Memorial Foundation

台灣優社社長 潘掬慧
Josephine Pan, President
Taiwan Elite Alliance

北美台灣客家公共事務協會會長 賴江椿
David Lai, President
Taiwan Hakka Association for Public Affairs in North America

台灣團結聯盟美東總部部長 陳貞華
Stephen Chen, President
Taiwan Solidarity Union-East Coast

北加州臺灣同鄉聯合會會長 陳媽及
Ma-chi Chen, President
Taiwanese American Federation of Northern California

全美台灣同鄉會會長 謝榮峻
Ron Shieh, President
Taiwanese Association of America

台灣學生社發言人 陳姿憓
Tzuhui Chen, Spokesperson
Taiwanese Collegian

全美台灣客家會會長 王興富
Fred H. Wang, President
Taiwanese Hakka Association of America

世界台灣客家聯合會會長 羅能平
Peter N.P. Lo, President
Taiwanese Hakka Association of the World

世界台灣同鄉會聯合會會長 程韻如
Susan Chang, President
World Federation of Taiwanese Associations

世界台灣人大會召集人 郭重國
C.K. Kuo, Coordinator
World Taiwanese Congress

台灣獨立建國聯盟美國本部主席 陳少明
James S. Chen, Chairman
World United Formosans for Independence-U.S.A.

Photo Credit: Tom Nguyen (Wikimedia Commons)

The post Taiwanese American Organizations Urge President Bush Not to Attend Olympic Games in China Over Taiwan, Tibet and Human Rights appeared first on Formosan Association for Public Affairs.

FAPA Statement Regarding Beijing Olympics

We are pleased to join our friends from Tibet, the Uihgurs of East Turkestan, Burma, and our Chinese human rights friends on this
momentous occasion. So we have the three “T” s: Tibet, Turkestan and Taiwan.

China says it wants to be a “responsible stakeholder”; China wants the glory of having the Olympics in Beijing

But China is brutally repressing the people of Tibet; China is brutally repressing the Uighur people in East Turkestan;

China is brutally repressing its own people; China is propping up failed regimes in Burma, Sudan and Zimbabwe

Will the world turn its head and look the other way? Will the world pretend that the Olympics should not be “politicized”? Will the world let the Olympic torch be besmirched by the blood of the victims of Chinese repression?

Our answer is NO.

The Olympic torch should be halted as long as the Chinese regime’s  police holds Tibetan monks prisoner — and we certainly hope that our friends in San Francisco will stop the torch today.

World leaders, including President Bush, President Sarkozy of France, and Prime Minister Gordon Brown should make it crystal clear that they will not attend the Olympics as long as China perpetuates its reign of terror in Tibet and East Turkestan, and continue to threaten Taiwan with 1000+ missiles. That signals should be given NOW!!

And if these signals don’t have immediate results, the International community – and in particular the democratic nations of the West – should remember the lesson of the 1936 Olympics which propped up a repressive Nazi regime in Germany with tragic results a few years later.

After World War II the cry was “Nie Wieder” (“never again” in German) – we will never let this happen again! Will we let it happen again, this time in Asia? We hope and pray that the answer is a clear NO.

The post FAPA Statement Regarding Beijing Olympics appeared first on Formosan Association for Public Affairs.