People's pressure forced Lee out, says China

BEIJING, MARCH 24. Taiwan's outgoing President, Mr. Lee Teng-hui, today resigned as leader of the ruling Kuomintang Party (KMT), taking full responsibility for the debacle of the party in the March 18 presidential polls in the island.

``The reasons behind this setback are various but as KMT Chairman, I have to take full responsibility. I resign now and I recommend that (outgoing Vice-President) Lien Chan be acting Chairman,'' Mr. Lee said in a statement.

Since the KMT's humiliating defeat, protesters have demonstrated outside the party headquarters, demanding Mr. Lee's immediate resignation as party Chairman.

China, which is closely monitoring the political upheaval in Taiwan, which it claims as a rebel province, immediately flashed the news of Mr. Lee's resignation.

The official Xinhua news agency reported that Mr. Lee was forced to announce his resignation due to mounting public pressure.

Mr. Lee, who firmly believes in Taiwan's independence, had angered Beijing last year by redefining China-Taiwan relations as state-to-state, prompting China to warn of resolute actions to stop Taiwan's independence.

Noting that after the defeat of the KMT, demands for Mr. Lee's resignation became louder and louder, Xinhua said he had earlier planned to step down in September.

However, calls for Mr. Lee's immediate resignation became stronger with protests spreading from the KMT headquarters to other parts of the island and overseas, the state-run news agency said.

The pro-independence candidate, Mr. Chen Shui-bian, won the presidential election, much to the discomfort of China's Communist Party leadership.

Senior party leaders had openly urged Taiwan voters to shun Mr. Chen, whose Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) favours the island's independence.

Analysts say many in Taiwan and Beijing suspect that Mr. Lee secretly supported Mr. Chen since he thought that the KMT candidate, Mr. Lien Chan, could not defeat his rival, Mr. James Soong, who earlier quit from the KMT. Mr. Soong finished second while Mr. Lien came third.

China has acted cautiously to Mr. Chen's victory, saying it would watch his words and action.

The Chinese President, Mr. Jiang Zemin, said Taiwan and the mainland could resume negotiations on early reunification of the motherland once Mr. Chen acknowledged the ``one-China'' principle. Under this principle, everything could be discussed, he said.

Mr. Lee's resignation also comes in the wake of the visit of the U.S. President, Mr. Bill Clinton's unofficial envoy, Mr. Lee Hamilton, to Taipei to ease cross-Straits tension after Mr. Chen's victory.

- PTI

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