“All the negotiation issues are practical,” he said. “It serves the interests of the people if both sides shelve political differences and focus on addressing economic issues.”
While the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has accused him of being “China friendly,” Ma said he was “Taiwan friendly” and that it was unfair to label former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) as someone who “loves Taiwan” and him as someone who is “selling out Taiwan” simply because he is a member of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
At a meeting with John Hapner, national commander of the American Veterans organization, Ma said Taipei would “stand firm” when negotiating with Beijing.
Ma said he was working to restore mutual trust with the US and improve relations with China. His administration is trying to promote cross-strait peace and normalize cross-strait economic ties to sustain Taiwan’s development, he said.
Concerned that the negotiations could compromise Taiwan’s sovereignty, the DPP said it strongly opposed the meeting and would hold a series of protests during Chen Yunlin’s visit.
DPP caucus whip William Lai (賴清德) called Chen Yunlin’s tears “crocodile tears.”
“We already found [ARATS Vice Chairman] Zhang Mingqing’s (張銘清) tears hard to believe. Little did we know that Chen Yunlin is a better actor than Zhang Mingqing,” Lai said.
Zhang left for China ahead of schedule last Wednesday after he was jostled and jeered by independence activists and politicians last Tuesday. At Kaohsiung International Airport, Zhang said the warmth of Taiwanese was “memorable.”
In related news, a melee broke out at the legislature’s Internal Administration Committee yesterday between KMT and DPP lawmakers over Chiang’s absence from the meeting. Chiang had been scheduled to deliver a report on Chen Yunlin’s visit.
DPP lawmakers chanted slogans criticizing Chiang for failing to show up and accused him of treating them with contempt, while Legislator Lin Shu-fen (林淑芬) jumped on top of a desk.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA AND STAFF WRITER
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