In 2007, former President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) Lee Teng-hui (simplified Chinese ęē»č¾, t raditional Chinese ęē»č¼, pinyin: Li DÄnghuÄ« ) astonished the Taiwanese public when he declared to Next Magazine that he did not support Taiwan's independence [1]. For many years, Lee had been considered one of the most influential supporters of Taiwan's independence. In the 1990s, he had repeatedly angered the People's Republic of China and was denounced by Beijing as a 'separatist' who was pushing for an independent Taiwan. His political stance made him enemies on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. In fact, both the Chinese Communist Party and the Chinese Nationalist Party (Guomindang) support eventual reunification and adhere to the "one China" principle. In 2001, Lee was even expelled from the Guomindang, the party that he had led for 12 years. Although he had retired from active political life in 2000, during the election campaign he became th