Later this week, government officials I have never used the words "one China." In fact, I have never learned the usage of "one China," and today I have found that this is not my singular experience. One of the distinguished participants from the United States told us that he did not remember having used the phrase when he was in office during the Reagan-Schultz years.

There are three reasons why I cannot be at ease with this expression. The first reason is that it is a political pose rather than a reality. Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui told us in his July 20 Rotary Club speech that one China does not exist until China and Taiwan are unified under a democratic process in the future. It is not an opinion. It is a simple statement of fact. Under any criteria of existing international law, both China and Taiwan are qualified to be called states, and there are two governments, one in Beijing, and one in Taipei. Anyone who has eyes can see this. For the political pose the criterion is simple; a "friend" of China and not an enemy. The problem is that as Taiwan succeeds in establishing its democratic statehood, the discrepancy between pose and fact is widening.

Lee's remark is like the story of the emperor with no clothes. A child shouts that the emperor has no clothes on. In the fairy tale, that is the end of the story. However, things do not work that way in the real world. In the real world, the emperor asks his retinue, "Am I not properly dressed?" No one dares to say no. They all assure him, "Yes, your majesty, you are properly dressed." The emperor even seeks the opinion of somebody on the other side of the globe, someone living in a white building on the other side of the world, and the person says, "Yes, your majesty, you are always properly dressed." This person is even prepared to assist the emperor in convincing others that the emperor is indeed decently attired. This is what has been happening at the Singapore ASEAN forum.