Closer ties favored

Closer ties favored

The majority of people in Taiwan consider themselves to be Chinese and are in favor of stability and closer ties with the mainland - despite the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) winning more seats in the "Legislative Yuan" in the just-concluded elections. Wen Wei Po said this in its editorial Monday.

Excerpts follow: After the elections last Saturday, the influence of the DPP has increased in the legislature but weakened at the local level, while the Kuomintang (KMT) has suffered from the sabotage by its former president Lee Teng-hui. On the whole, the wish of voters was to retain the stabilizing forces in the counties and cities. As the Pan Blue Alliance has gained the upper hand in the densely populated north, it has laid the foundation for the next "presidential" election.

KMT's heavy losses in the legislature were the result of a stab in the back by traitor Lee Teng-hui who slung mud wantonly at the party and its candidates. The party's campaign efforts were also hampered by the lack of an energetic and articulate standard bearer.

The DPP, on the other hand, captured the media's and voters' attention by exposing a skeleton in the cupboard and smearing KMT's image by fabricating vote-buying incidents and placing anti-KMT advertisements.

The DPP also took advantage of the single-seat constituency system of the elections and benefited from the split of the KMT which has slashed its share of the vote.

However, interviews conducted on the street have indicated that the average Taiwanese is still against independence and radical governance.

We hope all parties on the island will take into account the overall interest of Taiwan by working for national reunification, which is the only way to lift the island's economy from the doldrums.

-- China Daily, Beijing