An overwhelming majority of Taiwanese believe Taiwan is a sovereign and independent nation, the results of a poll released yesterday by the Taiwan Brain Trust think tank showed, with 75.8 percent of respondents supporting the sentiment, while 18.9 percent disagreed.
On the issue of Taiwan’s status as a nation, the poll showed that 79.8 percent of respondents said that it is “definitely” or “probably” a sovereign nation, while only 18.9 percent said that either it is “definitely not” or “probably not” a sovereign nation.
The answers indicated that most Taiwanese disagree with a recent statement by China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson An Fengshan (安峰山), who said that “Taiwan has never been a nation.”
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Regarding President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) policies on cross-strait relations, the poll showed that 49.4 percent of respondents support her, while 25.5 percent do not.
However, 79.8 percent of respondents said that Taiwan should maintain the “status quo” in regard to its relationship with China.
The poll found that 39.6 percent of respondents do not think it is necessary for Taiwan to acknowledge the so-called “1992 consensus” as a prerequisite for developing relations with China, while 31.3 percent feel that recognition of the “1992 consensus” is necessary.
The “1992 consensus” — a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) admitted making up in 2000 — refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese government that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge that there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
In response to the question of what Taiwan should do if the “status quo” cannot be maintained, 60.5 percent of respondents said they would support independence, while 22.4 percent said they would support unification with China.
The numbers showed a significant shift from last year’s 70.9 percent and 22.4 percent respectively.
A cross-analysis of the poll showed that among those respondents in favor of independence, 87.4 said they support the New Power Party (NPP), 83.1 percent the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), 50.3 percent the People First Party (PFP) and 35.3 percent the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
Among those respondents who support unification with China, 47.6 percent support the KMT, 34.3 percent the PFP, 10.5 percent the DPP and 6.5 percent the NPP.
The think tank said the telephone survey was conducted between 6:30pm and 10pm on Oct. 13 among randomly selected respondents aged 20 or older.
The think tank said it collected 1,079 valid samples, adding that the poll has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
This was the first public opinion survey conducted by the think tank since its operations in August were handed over to the Ketagalan Foundation, an organization operated by supporters of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).
People can preregister to receive their NT$10,000 (US$325) cash distributed from the central government on Nov. 5 after President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday signed the Special Budget for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience, the Executive Yuan told a news conference last night. The special budget, passed by the Legislative Yuan on Friday last week with a cash handout budget of NT$236 billion, was officially submitted to the Executive Yuan and the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon. People can register through the official Web site at https://10000.gov.tw to have the funds deposited into their bank accounts, withdraw the funds at automated teller
PEACE AND STABILITY: Maintaining the cross-strait ‘status quo’ has long been the government’s position, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan is committed to maintaining the cross-strait “status quo” and seeks no escalation of tensions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday, rebutting a Time magazine opinion piece that described President William Lai (賴清德) as a “reckless leader.” The article, titled “The US Must Beware of Taiwan’s Reckless Leader,” was written by Lyle Goldstein, director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Defense Priorities think tank. Goldstein wrote that Taiwan is “the world’s most dangerous flashpoint” amid ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He said that the situation in the Taiwan Strait has become less stable
CONCESSION: A Shin Kong official said that the firm was ‘willing to contribute’ to the nation, as the move would enable Nvidia Crop to build its headquarters in Taiwan Shin Kong Life Insurance Co (新光人壽) yesterday said it would relinquish land-use rights, or known as surface rights, for two plots in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), paving the way for Nvidia Corp to expand its office footprint in Taiwan. The insurer said it made the decision “in the interest of the nation’s greater good” and would not seek compensation from taxpayers for potential future losses, calling the move a gesture to resolve a months-long impasse among the insurer, the Taipei City Government and the US chip giant. “The decision was made on the condition that the Taipei City Government reimburses the related
FRESH LOOK: A committee would gather expert and public input on the themes and visual motifs that would appear on the notes, the central bank governor said The central bank has launched a comprehensive redesign of New Taiwan dollar banknotes to enhance anti-counterfeiting measures, improve accessibility and align the bills with global sustainability standards, Governor Yang Chin-long (楊金龍) told a meeting of the legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday. The overhaul would affect all five denominations — NT$100, NT$200, NT$500, NT$1,000 and NT$2,000 notes — but not coins, Yang said. It would be the first major update to the banknotes in 24 years, as the current series, introduced in 2001, has remained in circulation amid rapid advances in printing technology and security standards. “Updating the notes is essential to safeguard the integrity
RSS