Cross-strait relations experts and government officials yesterday agreed that Taiwanese people must reinforce their state identity to allow for the establishment of a new constitution and change of the national title required to push for the country's legally independent status.
At the international conference of "Cross Strait Exchanges and National Security of Taiwan" held in Taipei by Taiwan Advocates, a think tank founded by former president Lee Teng-hui (
PHOTO: GEORGE TSRONG, TAIPEI TIMES
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lin Cho-shui (
To that end, Lin said that the people's state identity awareness should be reinforced to enact a series of systematic changes needed for a transformation from the current de facto independence to de jure independence.
"The systematic change includes changes to the country's internal political structure ranging from writing a new constitution, changing the nation's name from Republic of China [ROC] to Taiwan, and introducing more Taiwan-centric education material in schools," Lin said.
In addition to these systematic changes, Lin said, acquiring international recognition is also very important to ensure Taiwan's independent status.
Another panelist Shih Cheng-feng (
Shih said that although the government's democratization in the past decade has allowed for the country's substantive independence, Taiwan is still not legally independent given the existence of the ROC, which prevents Taiwan from gaining a sovereign state status in the international society.
To cast off the ROC image, Shih said that Taiwan should undergo more systematic reforms to build a complete state such as the construction of a new constitution and the change of the national name.
Senior Advisor to the President Peng Ming-min (
Peng said he disagreed with the pan-blue alliance's presidential candidate Lien Chan's (
Peng said, "The next presidential election is not a question of whether to destroy the ROC, rather it's about what the people want for their future -- a country of their own or the continuation of an old power."
"It's not just about choosing a new president, it's about choosing a country," Peng said.
Secretary General of the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Shi Hwei-yow (
Criticizing the Mainland Affairs Council's recent move to allow non-governmental sectors to conduct cross-strait negotiations without the channeling of the Straits Exchange Foundation, the official channel to conduct cross-strait affairs, Shi said such a move will downgrade Taiwan's national status and virtually trap Taiwan into China's "one China" principle.
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