Saying that many of President Chen Shui-bian's (
Chen and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) have been "consistently deceiving" the Taiwan-ese people about Taiwanese independence with talk of "one country on either side" of the Taiwan Strait and of a sovereign Taiwan nation, Lien said yesterday.
Implying that the people still believe in the concept of the "Republic of China" over a Taiwan nation, Lien said that Chen should hold a referendum on Taiwanese independence on Dec. 11, the day of the legislative elections, to see if the people believe in defending the "Republic of China" or in declaring independence.
Lien made the comments yesterday while on a break from electioneering at the KMT's Central Standing Committee meeting in Kaohsiung.
The KMT and its pan-blue allies have long claimed that the Chen administration has heightened tensions with China through pro-independence activities, such as debates on Taiwan's national title, as part of its election rhetoric in the 2004 presidential election and in the current run-up to the legislative elections next month.
While Chen said in 2002 that the relationship between Taiwan and China was of nations on either side of the Taiwan Strait, Chen and the DPP have not pushed for a sovereign Taiwanese nation since he became president in 2000. According to the DPP's current party platform, while Taiwanese sovereignty is already a reality, the establishment of a sovereign Taiwan Republic should be decided by plebiscite.
TPP RALLY: The clashes occurred near the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall on Saturday at a rally to mark the anniversary of a raid on former TPP chairman Ko Wen-je People who clashed with police at a Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) rally in Taipei on Saturday would be referred to prosecutors for investigation, said the Ministry of the Interior, which oversees the National Police Agency. Taipei police had collected evidence of obstruction of public officials and coercion by “disorderly” demonstrators, as well as contraventions of the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法), the ministry said in a statement on Sunday. It added that amid the “severe pushing and jostling” by some demonstrators, eight police officers were injured, including one who was sent to hospital after losing consciousness, allegedly due to heat stroke. The Taipei
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RESPONSE: The transit sends a message that China’s alignment with other countries would not deter the West from defending freedom of navigation, an academic said Canadian frigate the Ville de Quebec and Australian guided-missile destroyer the Brisbane transited the Taiwan Strait yesterday morning, the first time the two nations have conducted a joint freedom of navigation operation. The Canadian and Australian militaries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Ministry of National Defense declined to confirm the passage, saying only that Taiwan’s armed forces had deployed surveillance and reconnaissance assets, along with warships and combat aircraft, to safeguard security across the Strait. The two vessels were observed transiting northward along the eastern side of the Taiwan Strait’s median line, with Japan being their most likely destination,
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