The Institutional Context of President Chen Shui-bian's Cross-Strait Messages

[[abstract]]This paper o ers an institutional account of how President Chen Shui-bian of Taiwan hassent important messages acrossthe Taiwan Strait. Under Taiwan's constitutional system, the parliament can neither hold the president accountable for what he says norsack the premier appointed by the president, while a president who lacks legislative support also finds it hard to put his policy goals into practice. These problems give President Chen the excuse to set up extra-constitutional channels to deliver roindependence messages, some of which go against his o icial pledges. Here, a collection of Chen's important remarks directed acrossthe Taiwan Strait are analyzed, and a consistent pattern isrevealed of when and where he is likely to say what.[[fileno]]2040629010010[[department]]社會學研究