China relations in focus before Taiwan elections

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan's stormy relations with China and violence in Tibet are dominating the final hours before the island's presidential election on Saturday, as each side seeks to show it is best qualified to resist Beijing.

Ruling Democratic Progressive Party candidate Frank Hsieh, who has trailed in media polls, has pushed a message that to vote for the more China-friendly Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate Ma Ying-jeou could make Taiwan "a second Tibet".

China has claimed self-ruled Taiwan as its territory since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949 and pledged to bring the island under its rule, by force if necessary. China sent its troops into Tibet, rocked by anti-China rioting, in 1950.

Not to be left out, Ma criticized remarks by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, who offered peace talks this week, calling Wen's comments "arrogant, absurd and self-righteous".

Ma suggested Beijing Olympic boycott if violence in Tibet continued, though he has disputed Hsieh's message that Taiwan could become another Tibet.

"I think they both try to present the image they are tough on China," said Alexander Huang, professor of strategic studies at Tamkang University in Taiwan. "My hunch is that both sides will be very tough on China."

Each has graced candlelit vigils alongside robed monks and local Tibetans for those believed killed by soldiers or police in Tibetan areas of China since protests began on March 10.

But Ma's party advocates eventual unification with China, while Hsieh's seeks independence.

Hsieh's cartoon TV commercials have lampooned Ma's proposal for a common market with China, showing Chinese workers and poisoned food pouring into Taiwan.

FINAL CAMPAIGNING

The candidates held their final rallies alongside tens of thousands of supporters carrying flags and blowing horns.

"If Ma wins today, what will the international media say the day after? The Taiwan people have abandoned the referendum on U.N. entry and they have voted for a president who is pro-China and advocates one China and a common market," Hsieh told supporters in Taipei.

"This is not in Taiwan's interest. This is in China's interest."

Russia on Wednesday threw its weight behind ally China, describing Taiwan's plan to hold a referendum on whether to seek U.N. membership as a "political escapade".

The initiative, which asks whether Taiwan should seek U.N. membership as "Taiwan" instead of its formal name, the Republic of China, has also sparked statements of protest from China, Japan, France and the United States. It is a fruitless bid, as China has a veto on the U.N. Security Council.

Two U.S. aircraft carriers have been sent to the Taiwan region for training exercises during the election.

China fired missiles into the Taiwan Strait in 1996, trying to intimidate voters during an election. The United States is Taiwan's biggest ally.

Ma, known for his professional image and strong economic platform, still leads Hsieh in opinion surveys by 5 to 10 percentage points, analysts say.

"It'll be close, but I don't think Hsieh has done enough to win," said Bruce Jacobs, a professor of Asian studies at Monash University in Australia. "I don't think Tibet can change votes."

Neither candidate has dropped pledges for regular direct flights to China, for a boost in tourism and for an easing of China investment rules, plans that are seen as ways to shore up a domestic economy beset by inflation and wage stagnation.

(Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard and Lee Chyen Yee)