President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday invited Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) to visit Taiwan to experience democracy and freedom and to see "if Taiwan is a country with independent sovereignty."
China reacted coolly to Chen's invitation, however, rejecting any official contact until the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) dropped a clause in its charter calling for formal independence.
"Conditions for dialogue and consultations between us and Chen Shui-bian as well as the Democratic Progressive Party is recognition of the 1992 consensus, which embodies the `one China' principle, giving up the Taiwan independence party constitution of the DPP, as well as putting an end to splittist activities,'' said Wang Zaixi (王在希), an official at the Chinese Communist Party's Taiwan Work Office.
PHOTO: LIAO CHENG-HUI, TAIPEI TIMES
"So long as these conditions are met, we can resume dialogue and consultations with Chen Shui-bian and the DPP," Wang said.
Speaking hours before the return of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) to Taipei from China, Chen said he also wanted Hu to consider whether the "1992 consensus" actually existed.
"If there is not such a thing, I would like the Chinese leaders not to mention it anymore," he said.
Chen said the purported consensus between envoys from Beijing and Taipei -- preparing for talks between late Straits Exchange Foundation chairman Koo Chen-fu (辜振甫) and his counterpart, Wang Daohan (汪道涵) -- was not recognized by Taipei.
"The `1992 consensus' is a term created by former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (
Chen said the Chinese leadership did not understand Taiwan and had been invited on more than one occasion to visit Taiwan.
"I am not worried if he [Hu] comes. I am only concerned that he might refuse to come. If he visits Taiwan, Hu will understand what 23 million Taiwanese people really want," he said.
Chen was responding to reporters' questions on whether he would ask People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (
On the third day of his trip to the Marshall Islands, Kiribati and Tuvalu, Chen said he had invited Chinese leaders to visit Taiwan many times since he took office in 2000.
Taiwan is a free country, Chen said, adding that Hu could ask any questions he liked and conduct surveys on what the public thinks if he came.
But Chen yesterday urged the public not to worry about the recent pro-China sentiments of pan-blue camp leaders and their visits to China. He instead asked the Taiwanese people to vote for their preferred National Assembly candidates on May 14.
But during the press conference, the trips to China by Lien and Soong were the focus.
"Again, I would urge my fellow Taiwanese to relax, because they do not have to worry about Lien and Soong or any other politicians' possible trips to China," he said. "Those pro-China people are not my worry. What I really worry about is the election on May 14."
Chen urged the public to support the DPP so that the National Assembly could cut in half the number of legislative seats, reform voting structures and ultimately replace the assembly with referendums.
Chen said these three goals were negotiated and agreed to by all the major parties. However, he said, "some of these parties" changed their minds after the legislative elections in December.
"If a political party reneges and changes its policy just like that, then this means it will also cheat voters just as easily," Chen said. "I have not changed my policies since I took my oath of office in 2000 ... nothing will change and our goals will not be realized if people do not care about the election. This worries me a lot."
Speaking again on cross-strait matters, Chen said that he was not worried because he has good communication with Lien and Soong.
On the first day of his trip, Chen told reporters that he had asked Soong to "deliver some messages" to Chinese officials when he visits China. When asked what messages he gave Soong, Chen replied that it was not proper for him to make them public.
Chen said the conversation between him and Soong was also private and that he intended to keep it that way.
"Regardless of what I told him, my bottom line never changes. Taiwan's sovereignty must be recognized and respected." Chen said.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
HOTEL HIRING: An official said that hoteliers could begin hiring migrant workers next year, but must adhere to a rule requiring a NT$2,000 salary hike for Taiwanese The government is to allow the hospitality industry to recruit mid-level migrant workers for housekeeping and three other lines of work after the Executive Yuan yesterday approved a proposal by the Ministry of Labor. A shortage of workers at hotels and accommodation facilities was discussed at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee. A 2023 survey conducted by the Tourism Administration found that Taiwan’s lodging industry was short of about 6,600 housekeeping and cleaning workers, the agency said in a report to the committee. The shortage of workers in the industry is being studied, the report said. Hotel and Lodging Division Deputy Director Cheng
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
RSS