Tom Plate definitely has a thing going for Ma Ying-jeou 馬英九. In today's Japan Times ジャパンタイムズ he writes (in "A winner that Beijing would be wise to cheer"):
"His name is Ma Ying-jeou, 57, he went to Harvard, and my wife volunteers that he is quite good looking. Handsome or whatever, he gave a terrific inaugural speech that is important for everyone. That's because the policy directions taken in Taipei regarding its head-to-head relationship with Beijing could help determine whether a war erupts in Asia someday."
It's late, I'm tired, and I'm tired of reading commentaries like this one. It basically says that, compared to the previous administration, Ma is more pragmatic or reasonable, and this is a great opportunity for China to get what it wants from Taiwan...which, of course, is for the good of Taiwan as well:
"Ma's way is different. For him almost all issues are negotiable, the mainland as well as Taiwan deserves respect and the two must live in an arrangement of peace and stability...He avoided antagonizing the mainland while not giving the keys to the island to Beijing. Instead of speaking in grand (and illusive) concepts, he proposed practical, step-by-step negotiations designed to build confidence and trust...Beijing would be well advised to play along with Ma...it is very unlikely that Beijing, for the foreseeable future anyway, will find a better man with whom to negotiate than Ma. He's sensible, international, and strong on vision. Ma wants to lift the touchy bilateral relationship out of the basement of adolescent rivalry and into the master sitting room of adult diplomacy. China should exert every effort to work with him to its greatest abilities."
I have a feeling there are going to be a lot more opinion pieces like this one in the weeks and months to come. I do hope the homoerotic hero worship gets toned down a bit, however.
No comments:
Post a Comment