Peace feelers

There are reasons to applaud the unprecedented visit to Beijing by the leader of Taiwan’s Nationalist Party, Lien Chan. It is certainly better for leaders on both sides of the Taiwan Strait to be settling their quarrels by political means rather than peremptory declarations or threats of force. Subtler effects of Lien’s overture may also become evident in political changes both on democratic Taiwan and on the Communist-dominated mainland.

The popularity of the visit is reflected not only in polls taken on Taiwan but also in the reaction of Chen, the president. To catch up with his Nationalist Party rival, Chen let it be known that he is passing a conciliatory message to leaders on the mainland through James Soong, leader of a small party opposed to the island’s independence. Chen made a similar point Sunday when he said about Lien’s Beijing visit: “…we accept that different political parties have different views.” This note of tolerance and pluralism sounded by Chen represents more than a gracious way of making a virtue of necessity.

The ultimate benefit of Lien’s trip may have less to do with its effect on Taiwan than with its reverberations on the mainland. The lesson for the people on the mainland is that Taiwan’s multiparty democracy is more resilient, more peaceful, and more civilised than that of the former. — The Boston Globe