Taiwan remains inalienable from mainland: China
Taiwan remains inalienable from mainland: China
BEIJING (Agencies): China reaffirmed yesterday its total opposition to the idea of Taiwan as a democratic sovereign state following the election of Lee Teng-hui for a second presidential term on the island.
While respecting the right of "Taiwan compatriots" to develop democratic politics, China's Taiwan Affairs Office stressed that such a process could only take place on the understanding that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China.
"We resolutely oppose any attempt to divorce from the fact that Taiwan is a part of China, or to advocate Taiwan 'as a main body' or to declare on Taiwan 'a new era when sovereignty lies with the people,'" the office said in a statement.
The statement was a direct reaction to the inaugural speech delivered on Monday by Lee, who won a landslide election in Taiwan's first free presidential elections on March 23.
The statement made no reference to Lee's offer to fly to Beijing to bridge the bitter 46-year rift between the rival governments, and at the same time gave a cynical response to Lee's declaration that Taiwanese independence was "totally unnecessary and impossible."
"The Taiwan authorities must take concrete actions, rather than providing spoken guarantees, to stop their activities aimed at creating two Chinas, or one China one Taiwan, and to genuinely stand by the principle of one China," the statement said.
Without naming Lee specifically, the statement also accused the Taiwanese leadership of attempting to split Chinese territory and divide state sovereignty.
At a press briefing, foreign ministry spokesman Cui Tiankai refused to respond to questions on Lee's speech, stating Taiwan was an internal issue and unrelated to China's foreign policy.
In the past, such a stonewalling ploy has been taken as an indication that the government has yet to decide on an official response to any fresh initiative from Taipei regarding relations across the Taiwan Strait.
Analysts said any detailed government reaction to Lee's speech would be postponed until President Jiang Zemin's return from his African tour.
Most Taiwan people support President Lee Teng-hui's proposed "journey of peace" to China and say the rivals should reunite in the next century, an opinion survey published in Taipei yesterday showed.
The survey, conducted by the mass-circulation United Daily News , said 55 percent of the 774 respondents believed Lee should visit the communist mainland.
Only 19 percent would object to such a trip.
The survey said 45 percent responded that Taiwan and China, rivals since a civil war ended in 1949, should reunite in the 21st century. Twenty-four percent objected to unification after 2000.
Beijing, which regards Taiwan as a rebel province, has long accused Lee of pursuing independence by raising Taiwan's international profile while paying lip service to unification. China vows to attack if Taiwan declares independence.
Lee belittled China's stance on independence, describing it as a moot issue because the Republic of China -- Taiwan's official title -- already exists as a sovereign state.
Chinese officials have said Lee is welcome to visit in his capacity as chairman of Taiwan's Nationalist Party but not as president.
The Taiwanese surveyed shared their president's defiant attitude, with 51 percent believing Lee should visit as president. Only 14 percent said he should go as chairman.
Leaders of Taiwan's main opposition, the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party, lauded Lee's offer of talks but said the first summit should not be in China.