吴伯雄登陆使两岸关系更进一步

本文刊发于5月28日美国侨报、5月29日香港文汇报、加拿大环球华报   中国民党主席吴伯雄“登陆”，开创了国共两党的历史新纪元---这是两岸执政党半个多世纪以来的首次会面，彰显两岸政治关系发展的新高峰。在四川震灾的非常时期，在国民党重夺执政权的特殊时刻，两党最高领导人的握手具有非同寻常的象征意义。吴伯公要登上中山陵，大陆就改变奥运圣火传递路线，吴伯公要向国父孙中山先生宣誓国民党夺回了岛内政权，中国大陆也默然祝福。国民党在野八年，岛内政治局势突变，两岸关系紧张，归根结底一句话：台独肆行，“九二共识”被民进党当局摒弃。   也正因为如此，“胡连会”顺应历史潮流开启了国共共识的第二平台，这是在野的国民党和连战名誉主席给两岸关系做出的历史贡献。“胡连会”不仅达成了两岸诸多共识，更作出了“两岸和平发展共同愿景”的目标。目前，吴伯公作为执政党主席，“登陆”的目标之一就是以执政党的身份确认“胡连会”的“两岸和平发展共同愿景”。   更为重要的是，吴伯公能够在非常时期登陆，关键在于两岸间达成了良好的互动。就大陆方面而言，在过去一个月内接连会晤了台湾方面两位重要的政治家。一是4月12日，胡锦涛主席在海南博鳌论坛会见了当选“副总统”萧万长，从政治层面宣示了两岸关系的融冰，而且确认了经贸议题方面的共识。二是4月底胡锦涛主席再次会见连战先生，预示着“胡连会”开创的国共平台从此开始步入新阶段。这些两党间的良性互动，促成了马英九在5.20就职演说中的两岸关系的新定位：一是两岸同属中华民族，二是承认“九二共识”，三是认可胡锦涛主席在两岸关系上的善意，四是确认两岸和平共赢的基本原则。这些足显，两岸领导人和两党领导人在“九二共识”的基础上存在着协商对话的交集，面临着高端协商通道的机制性构建。   在两岸领导人暂不适宜会面，海基、海协两会依然需要政治政策的准备才能重启协商的情势下，通过既有的国共平台协商两岸事宜就成为重要管道。值得一提的是，吴伯雄此番登陆，重点不在党务而在政务，是在向大陆传递马英九时代的执政方略。   首先，在吴伯雄登陆前的24日，马英九、萧万长率领“府院”要员亲为吴伯公饯行。这意味着马英九对这次两党领导人会晤的重视，也击碎了外界的耳语谣传，笃定了吴伯雄代表马英九的态度。马英九需要吴伯公传递的信息包括：一是让中国大陆理解台湾现在采取的政策；二是搁置争议，在“九二共识”的基础上重启两岸协商；三是达成7月份两岸直航包机和大陆游客来台。因此，可以说吴伯公承担着台湾官方一揽子政治经济政策的高度期待。尤进者，为了表达国共平台在新形势下的作用，国民党名誉主席连战也决定亲自到机场给吴伯雄送行。因此，吴伯雄的肩上又多了党务机制的期待。   其次，吴伯雄在接受记者采访时也不讳言，这次登陆就定位在两岸执政党领导人会晤。既然是执政党领导人会晤，必然牵涉到执政党的现实政策协商。搁置现实争议，避免敏感话题，以“九二共识”和经贸话题为突破口，既是马英九的期待，也是连、吴二人的心愿，更符合大陆这边求同存异两岸共赢的底线准则。所以，国共两个执政党领袖的会晤其实就是开启了两岸官方接触的和谐序幕。   其三，最重要的是，吴伯公登陆，夯实了两岸执政党平台的基础，为江丙坤登陆促成海基、海协两会的复谈具有十分重要的前站效应。因为两会协商会谈才会使两岸关系进入实质性阶段。罗马不是一天建成的，如果说“胡连会”化解了国共两党的历史恩怨，给两党描绘了美好的远景，“胡吴会”就使两党共识升华为两岸共识，而未来“两会”的复谈，则使两岸共识进入实践操作阶段。因此，“胡吴会”起到了承前启后的作用。   吴伯公在大陆访问的这几天，不单担负着两党两岸协商共赢的历史重责，也能亲身体味中华民族面临自然灾害时两岸血浓于水的民族情感。当然，也能感受到奥运圣火在神州传递时的自豪。这些，都为吴伯公登陆濡染了政治之外的情感氛围。

Nepal Faces Political Crisis as Parties Fail to Agree on New Government

Anjana Pasricha | New Delhi
29 July 2010

Photo: AP
Dark clouds loom over Nepal's Constitutional Assembly building as a fresh vote for a new leader was ordered by House Speaker Subash Nemwang after none of three candidates managed to get a majority vote in the 601-seat parliament, Nepal, 23 July 2010

Nepal's former Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal resigned last month after Maoists led massive protests demanding that he make way for a power sharing government.

But despite weeks of negotiations, the three main political parties – the Maoists, the Nepali Congress, and the Communist Party known as UML have failed to reach a consensus on who should head a new government.

Lawmakers have voted twice to elect a prime minister. But neither the Maoist leader, popularly known as Prachanda, nor the Nepali Congress candidate, Ram Chandra Poudel, could win a majority.

2008 election brought peace

The situation is in stark contrast to 2008, when elections were held after a peace deal ended a 10-year violent insurgency and drew Maoist rebels into the political mainstream.

The polls, billed as historic, brought the former guerrillas to the helm of government. Although the Maoists did not win a clear majority in a hung parliament, they easily secured support from other parties. A hopeful mood gripped the nation as it looked ahead to peace and stability.??

But the charisma of the former guerrillas soon faded and the Maoist-led government collapsed in less than a year.

No cooperation

Political analyst and editor of Nepal's Samay magazine, Yuvraj Ghimre, says their efforts to form a government for the second time are not succeeding because they have been unable to work in cooperation with other parties.

"The Maoists is also in a way isolated or cornered, because when it was heading the government in the past, it basically refused to take suggestion, from any of the coalition partners," Ghimre said. "That is why they are not very willing to support the Maoists."

One of the main points of contention between the Maoists and other political parties is the future of about 20,000 former Maoist fighters, who are currently confined in U.N.-supervised camps. The Maoists want them integrated into the army, but other parties are refusing.

The infighting among the main parties has held up the main task with which parliament was entrusted – the writing of a new constitution for the country. Parliament's tenure was extended by a year after it missed the May 2010 deadline for writing the constitution.

New constitution

But the continuing political impasse has raised worries whether the constitution can be framed by next year.

Kunda Dixit, editor of Nepali Times, says the three main parties are refusing to step aside because they want a decisive say in the writing of the new constitution.

"This is especially true of the Maoists, who feel that if they are not in power, then the constitution will not be according to what they want," said Dixit. "This is why there is a real scramble for leadership and there is a real power struggle, which is reflected in the deadlock in the election in parliament."

The lack of political consensus has led to a virtual political paralysis in the country.

Parliament has not functioned for almost six months. The national budget has not been passed, the economy is stagnant, and development is at a standstill in one of the world's poorest nations.

Frustrating situation

Kunda Dixit says anger, outrage, and frustration are rising among ordinary people as political parties fail to sink their political ambitions, and resolve the deadlock.?

"They feel like the parties are so selfish they can't even work together," Dixit added. "There are these radio talks shows where people calling in from all over the country, and every one of those callers is abusing the politicians like anything."??????

Parliament is now scheduled to meet next week for a third time to choose a new leader – but this round too is widely expected to end in a deadlock.

Political analysts say if that happens, the two present candidates for the prime minister's post are likely to step down and make way for others who might be able to build a consensus.

But there are fears that even when a new government does get eventually elected, political differences and bickering could endanger the fragile peace process.