Saying that it was impossible for Taiwan and China to recognize each other based on their respective constitutions, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) proposed yesterday that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge what he termed "mutual non-denial."
Ma said the KMT supports the idea of each side of the Strait having its own interpretation of "one China." He said that as long as China and Taiwan could reach the status of what he termed as "mutual non-denial," they would spontaneously refer back to the so-called "1992 consensus."
"This [mutual non-denial] is the minimum requirement," Ma told reporters during a visit to Humayun's Tomb in New Delhi on the second day of his two-day trip to India.
"If we could put aside controversies through this [mutual non-denial] format, we could jointly address the more urgent and substantial issues," he said.
Ma said the idea of "mutual non-denial" could not be used to resolve the cross-strait stalemate immediately. It could be used as a first measure to change the attitudes on both sides and create more room for discussion, he said.
"The pursuit of legal independence is the pursuit of an illusion," he said.
"Those who pursue this will have big disappointment once they are disillusioned," he said.
Commenting on Ma's remarks, Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said in Taipei yesterday: "Taiwan does not deny China, it is China which is denying Taiwan's international space."
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
CARGO LOSS: About 50 containers at the stern of the ‘Ever Lunar’ cargo ship went overboard, prompting the temporary closure of the port and disrupting operations Evergreen Marine Corp, Taiwan’s largest container shipper, yesterday said that all crew members aboard the Ever Lunar (長月) were safe after dozens of containers fell overboard off the coast of Peru the previous day. The incident occurred at 9:40am on Friday as the Ever Lunar was anchored and waiting to enter the Port of Callao when it suddenly experienced severe rolling, Evergreen said in a statement. The rolling, which caused the containers to fall, might have been caused by factors including a tsunami triggered by an earthquake in Russia, poor winter sea conditions in South America or a sudden influx of waves,
The Ministry of Culture yesterday officially launched the “We TAIWAN” cultural program on Osaka’s Nakanoshima sandbank, with the program’s mascot receiving overwhelming popularity. The cultural program, which runs from Aug. 2 to 20, was designed to partner with and capitalize on the 2025 World Expo that is being held in Osaka, Japan, from April 13 to Oct. 13, the ministry said. On the first day of the cultural program, its mascot, a green creature named “a-We,” proved to be extremely popular, as its merch was immediately in high demand. Long lines formed yesterday for the opening
The Taipei Summer Festival is to begin tomorrow at Dadaocheng Wharf (大稻埕), featuring four themed firework shows and five live music performances throughout the month, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said today. The festival in the city’s Datong District (大同) is to run until Aug. 30, holding firework displays on Wednesdays and the final Saturday of the event. The first show is scheduled for tomorrow, followed by Aug. 13, 20 and 30. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Disney Pixar's movie Toy Story, the festival has partnered with Walt Disney Co (Taiwan) to host a special themed area on