The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) blasted Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
Ma's statement was inappropriate, DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun said, adding that "Ma acted as if he were an advocate for the CCP."
"This statement shows that Ma is too close to China," Yu said.
Yu was responding to Ma's comment late on Tuesday night that he wanted to promote cross-strait peace and cooperation.
As the chairman of the nation's biggest opposition party, he was willing to mediate between DPP and CCP if the mediation were helpful to cross-strait relations, Ma said.
DPP caucus whip Yeh Yi-chin (
"The will and choice of the Tai-wanese people must be respected when considering how to deal with cross-strait relations. This shows respect for Taiwanese people's human rights and autonomy," she said.
Yeh said the DPP does not need mediation with the CCP because it is the KMT that bears hatred toward the CCP.
She said the Taiwanese people had difficulty understanding why the KMT has been trying to fawn over the CCP when it used to lecture about the CCP's viciousness and the hatred between the parties.
DPP Legislator Huang Wei-cher (黃偉哲) said Ma should concentrate on reforming the KMT and returning the party's stolen assets.
He said he was in favor of promoting reconciliation between political parties domestically, but whether the KMT would live up to its words remained to be seen.
"How can reconciliation between parties be possible before the pan-blue camp has shown its goodwill toward important bills such as government officials' pension bills? Not to mention cross-strait mediation," he said.
DPP Legislator Wang Shih-cheng (王世堅) said Ma's statement was an insult to the nation's sovereignty.
"Cross-strait relations is a matter of national sovereignty and a matter of right and wrong. It is not something that the DPP can talk about [with the CCP] as a party," he said.
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