President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday issued guidelines on seven main areas where China’s “one country, two systems” proposal should be countered: cross-strait relations, democracy, the economy, foreign relations, security, national defense and society.
The government should view cross-strait exchanges positively and insist on the principle of equal dignity, Tsai said at a national securing meeting in Taipei.
Democracy should serve as the basis for cross-strait interactions, she said, adding that the government should resist attempts by China to use exchanges as an opportunity to engage in “united front” work or disrupt domestic affairs.
The government should push for amendments to the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) and speed up the completion of legal work for a “democratic safety net,” she said.
It should also help overseas-based businesses return home, dedicate itself to facilitating industrial transformation and upgrades, and approach its main trading partners to sign bilateral or multilateral economic or trade agreements, she said.
In terms of security, the government should prevent China from manipulating domestic discussion, infiltrating society, stealing classified information from the national defense and other core industries, and protect national security and social stability, she said.
It should continually increase the national defense budget and elevate its military capabilities to deter Chinese military advances, she added.
At the meeting, the National Security Council said that the results of local elections on Nov. 24 last year allowed Beijing to believe that its policies regarding Taiwan over the past two years have been successful.
Beijing would expand its influence in Taiwan and use economic incentives to control Taiwanese politics and society to create an environment that could speed up the process of unification, the council said.
The guidelines are necessary and reflect developments in cross-strait relations, Democratic Progressive Party caucus director-general Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said.
However, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus convener Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) said that the administration appears to have less confidence in the legitimacy of its political authority than the public has in the Republic of China (ROC) identity.
As along as Tsai admits the existence of the ROC and does not create a division in identity symbolism, there would be no “one country, two systems” problem, he said, adding that Taiwanese identification with the ROC has not wavered.
While Beijing’s “one country, two systems” proposal is not new, by putting on a large display about the issue, Tsai is giving people the impression that she is building publicity for her re-election campaign, he said.
The public wants to know is how Tsai’s administration will stabilize cross-strait relations, he added.
People First Party caucus convener Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞) said that no one in Taiwan supports the “one country, two systems” framework, so hosting a national security meeting and issuing guidelines on the issue is only an attempt to stir conflict and would worsen cross-strait relations.
New Power Party caucus convener Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) said that while he supports the general direction of the guidelines, he hopes the administration would propose clearer policies and amend laws governing cross-strait interactions.
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