Wang Daohan mulls visit

China's top cross-strait negotiator said yesterday that he's prepared to visit Taiwan anytime and that he wouldn't reject a meeting with former President Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) or President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).

The president of China's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS, 海協會), Wang Daohan (汪道涵), made the remarks yesterday in Shanghai, while meeting a delegation from Taiwan.

The delegation, consisting of independent and opposition lawmakers, is led by former DPP chairman Hsu Hsin-liang (許信良).

Wang said that he is still energetic and the fact he has read many books published in Taiwan shows he is prepared to visit anytime.

"We hope the link established in 1992 and 1993 between Taiwan and China could last. Over past years, we have been preparing for new contact with Taiwan," he said.

Responding to a suggestion by Hsu that he visit both Lee and Chen so the three might exchange opinions on cross-strait affairs, Wang said, "If I had the opportunity, I wouldn't reject a meeting with them."

As for the issue of direct links, Wang said the negotiations should be carried out by private bodies.

He also said Chen's rejection of the "one China" principle is the major obstacle in the resumption of talks between Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF, 海基會) and the ARATS.

"[Chen] speaks Chinese, reads Chinese and frequently gets cross-strait affairs related information from people who visit China, but he still refuses to accept the `one China' principle. That's why the SEF and the ARATS can not resume talks," he said.

Chiao Jen-ho (焦仁和), former SEF secretary-general as well as a member of the delegation, told Wang he believes "both the SEF and the ARATS are private bodies that could serve as negotiating representatives to talk about direct links."

But Wang responded that the "Taiwan government is still behind the SEF, and its refusal to recognize `one China' is really troublesome."

But he added, "Chen is not a person who will never change ? China still has hope for him."

Meanwhile, Chen told reporters in Malawi on Sunday that normalizing cross-strait relations is the government's longstanding goal, but that he regrets China is still bound to political ideology when it comes to cross-strait affairs.

He added, however: "I would talk to Chinese leaders on any issue as long as no preconditions are set."