Diverging somewhat from the positions of their chairmen, the pan-blue legislative caucuses expressed a positive-though-cautious attitude toward President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) National Day address.
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus on the other hand applauded what they called a goodwill gesture by Chen and urged Beijing to respond kindly in return.
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the People First Party (PFP) caucuses both acknowledged that Chen's address had attempted to extend an olive branch to the other side of the Taiwan Strait.
The KMT, however, remained much more skeptical about Chen's future moves.
"President Chen's words on cross-strait relations were quite positive and the KMT caucus approved of that because we think it helps eliminate the possibility of a war with China," KMT caucus whip Tseng Yuan-chuan (曾永權) said yesterday.
"On one hand the DPP government has been engaged in pro-independence activities over the past four years, but on the other hand, it has been promising to improve cross-strait relations. This is rather contradictory," Tseng said.
Contradiction was not limited to the DPP. The KMT caucus' position on Chen's speech varied greatly from that of its chairman, Lien Chan (連戰), who characterized the president's words as nothing more than an election gimmick.
Lien is currently in Taichung County attempting to build voter support for the pan-blue camp in the year-end legislative elections.
Tseng said that over the past few years, Chen has given mixed signals regarding the cross-strait relations and has repeatedly changed his policies.
"It is better to have a mild rather than a provocative speech when it comes to cross-strait relations. We hope that President Chen has the Taiwanese people in mind and contributes positively to Taiwan's security," Tseng said.
PFP caucus whip Liu Wen-hsiung (劉文雄) spoke more favorably about Chen's speech.
Liu said the PFP caucus approved of the address and was happy to hear Chen share similar positions as that of PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜).
Soong proposed a bill last week which he says promotes peace in the Taiwan Strait. Soong also recommended the establishment of a committee to engage in cross-strait policymaking and encouraging negotiations with Beijing.
Soong also said the bill would be based upon the "four noes" principle and the so-called 1992 Consensus.
"Although Chen did not reiterate the `four noes' pledge in his speech, we are still glad to see that he shares the same ideas as Soong," Liu said.
"Chen should act immediately to help push through Soong's bill, which promotes peace in the Taiwan Strait," Liu added.
He also said that Chen should not wait until after the legislative elections to establish a committee for cross-strait peace and development.
The DPP caucus' response, meanwhile, was predictably enthusiastic over the address.
"Chen again showed much goodwill today, and his offer to adopt the 1992 consensus and work for negotiations is a major breakthrough," DPP caucus whip Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) said.
"There is little Taiwan can do about cross-strait relations, and Chen showed that he is waiting for a response from the leadership in Beijing. The ball is in China's court," Tsai said.
Tsai also urged the opposition parties to cooperate with the government and help establish an inter-party committee to open up dialogue with Beijing.
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