Q: Since it was announced that combat zone administration on Kinmen is to be lifted at the end of September and replaced with local self-administration, some problems connected with the adjustment have begun to emerge. How will Kinmen make a smooth transition to constitutional democracy?

A: Kinmen is always changing. Residents who are over forty years old have witnessed the island's progress from poverty to prosperity. Similarly, Kinmen has to make the change today from being a combat zone to being locally self-administered. We are anxious about it too because of the special attributes of Kinmen. The integration of party, government and army into one, and the combination of public well-being with national defense, was a necessity in the past. Thus administrators, consultative representatives and the public on Kinmen have lacked understanding and experience of self-administration for over thirty years. Luckily there have always been elections for township and village leaders, which counts as fundamental training. Therefore we are confident that we simply need to get through this period of adjustment in order to effect a smooth transition to self-administration. The end of combat zone administration is not like simply cutting a watermelon in two--one chop for a clean break with no complications. The regulations, personnel organization, administrative measures and so on that remain from over thirty years under the system of combat zone administration all have to be changed. So there are many areas where the military authorities and local government will have to work together in the future.

Rapidly Opening Up

Q: Many people believe that Kinmen should rapidly open up to tourism after the implementation of local self-administration. What is your opinion?

A: That is certainly a hope that most people on Kinmen share at the moment. Local self-administration and constitutional democracy don't put bread on the table! Therefore future reconstruction and economic independence are very important for Kinmen. We currently have an excellent development opportunity, an integrated reconstruction plan for Kinmen drawn up by the the Council for Economic Planning and Development, with investment of NT$3.7 billion. It includes major projects like the civil airport on which work is already under way. Another important part of the project is planning for Kinmen's tourist resources.

Q: Kinmen is small, and if tourism is to be developed the whole island will have to be opened up, although still under martial law. Won't that make for conflict with the military authorities?

A: As a matter of fact the military is already opening up rapidly. Kinmen now has its first public swimming beach, with the second soon to be opened. I think that we simply need to set a schedule, and many problems can be solved jointly. For instance, the military plans to open the Mashan observation post, the one nearest to the mainland, so that visitors won't need to apply for permission first. The longest tunnel in Asia, which has a military use, has also long been partially open to visitors. More and more areas can be opened in the future once the Regulations for the Safety and Protection of Kinmen, Matsu, Tungsha and Nansha have passed through the legislature. Military resources are in fact one of the main tourist resources in our planning.

The Combat Zone Wants Democracy Too

Q: What other tourist resources does Kinmen have apart from military resources?

A: Because Kinmen has carried the label of "combat zone", for so long, many people mistakenly think that Kinmen is a place of strategic importance, with little else to say for it. In fact, being only 2.3 kilometers off Amoy, the island was used for farming as early as the Chin dynasty (265-420 AD). During the Sung dynasty (96O-1279 AD), Chu Hsi, the chief of accounts for Tungan in Fukien Province, lectured in Kinmen, and the island thus earned the name "Tsou and Lu by the sea."(Tsou and Lu were the native lands of Mencius and Confucius respectively). The atmosphere of culture is everywhere on Kinmen, and the the Council for Cultural Planning and Development records that for its total of grade three and abovelisted monuments the island is second only to Tainan County in Taiwan. There are also 62 wind-repelling lion figurines spread among every village on the island, and many perfectly preserved southern Fukien-style buildings, which are all "ready made" tourism resources. Native industry isanother important tourism resource for Kinmen. Examples would be the production of kaoliang wine, which begins with the planting of sorghum; the process of ceramics production, which begins with mining and carries through to the finished object; and the making of native candies, beginning with harvesting the peanuts. Transportation to see these industries is convenient because they are all concentrated within a 100-square-kilometer area of land.

Q: There still exist many unknowns in the developing relationship between Taiwan and the mainland. Can Kinmen really open up completely at this time?

A: Although combat zone administration is due to be lifted, I'm afraid that some restrictions must remain as long as the Communists have bad intentions towards Taiwan. But I want to stress that opening up to tourism, or bringing in constitutional democracy, does not have to clash with combat zone policies. It is a big challenge to bring the two together, but democracy is the trend of the times, even in a combat zone. The central government recognizes this, and the people of Kinmen know it too.

Justice for the People of Kinmen

Q: Some people on Kinmen complain that in the past they had to pay a heavy price for the war and for the nation, but were not paid back fairly. During the Battle of the Taiwan Straits, for example, many people lost their lives helping to salvage property and materials brought from Taiwan. Yet history doesn't mention this.

A: I am from Kinmen myself, and in 1949 my home in Tingpu, Chincheng Town, was demolished for military requirements. I think that as a Kinmen Islander I have nothing to complain of, because one will pay any amount of money and property, and even give one's life, to defend one's homeland.

For those who paid the price and even gave their lives, I believe the government should pay compensation, as we are now at the point when we can look back over that history. Future Kinmen County annals and other materials dealing with the history of the island should faithfully record the actions that islanders took to defend their homeland. The military has already compensated those who can show receipts for the loan of their houses and boats. In cases where there is no documentary evidence, residents need to cooperate level-headedly with the military to solve the problem. These losses were simply caused by the tragedy of the times.

Q: There are also some who believe that Kinmen can become a springboard between the two sides of the Taiwan Straits. What is your opinion?

A: The reunification of China is an inevitability, but the position and role of Kinmen at this momentous time is very subtle, and also awkward. The people of Kinmen are more familiar with the real nature of the Communists than people in the rear, because in the past the island has undergone artillery attack and encirclement by the Communists. Although some people think that Kinmen can serve as a relay station between both sides with the relationship across the Straits improving, I feel that many Kinmen Islanders would strongly object. The relationship across the Straits is still a big variable, and so although in the future Kinmen may be better positioned than Hong Kong to play the role of springboard, the island is still a combat zone. Kinmen is Taiwan's "eyes," with the responsibility for watching over the frontier.

[Picture Caption]

County chief Chen Shui-tsai, hopes that the island's tourist resources can bring in more revenue to facilitate the transition to local self-government. (photo by Vincent Chang)