Tokyo Mayor Shintaro Ishihara yesterday warned that Beijing was damaging its own interests by withdrawing from the Asian Network of Major Cities 21 (ANMC21), an organization aiming to unite the major cities in the region.
Ishihara, the initiator of the ANMC21 in August 2000 in Kuala Lumpur, expressed his regret over Beijing's decision to withdraw from the organization to protest against Taipei's hosting of the meeting this year.
"Major cities symbolize their countries, and the outcome of Bei-jing's boycott is not only regrettable for all of Asia, but also has a negative impact on China," Ishihara said during a press conference to mark the closing of the fifth annual convention of the ANMC21 in Taipei yesterday.
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
The Tokyo mayor said that Beijing refused to accept any explanations put forth by ANMC21 member cities concerning hosting privileges and insisted on withdrawing from the meeting.
Noting that China is a notorious polluter in Asia and a major source of illegal immigrants, Ishihara claimed that the entry of illegal Chinese immigrants into Japan was one of the factors behind Tokyo's high crime rate.
Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), host of the convention, reiterated Taipei's regret at Beijing's intervention in the 2004 ANMC21 meeting in Jakarta by refusing to sign the Jakarta Declaration and withdrawing from the organization.
The Jakarta Declaration stated that Beijing would host the meeting last year and that Taipei had the "priority" right of hosting the meeting this year. Beijing's abrupt withdrawal as last year's host forced the suspension of the Fourth Plenary Meeting last November.
The Taipei City Government then accepted Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara's proposal to host the summit this year and move the meeting forward from November to this month.
"Even though the ANMC21 is a small international meeting, Bei-jing should have shown its good intention and maintained a cooperative attitude. Its withdrawal from the meeting is not good for Beijing and China," Ma said.
The 2006 annual convention of ANMC21 issued a "Taipei Declaration" yesterday with mayors and representatives from Tokyo, Singapore, Seoul, New Delhi, Bangkok, Jakarta, Hanoi, Manila, Kuala Lumpur and Taipei pledging to promote information technology to enhance urban functions and civil services, and keep working together to tackle challenges including environmental issues.
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