The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday criticized two upcoming high-level forums between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Chinese officials, calling them part of China’s unification strategy.
DPP spokesperson Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) said the DPP saw the forums as a political event and that cross-strait dialogue should be conducted within a country-to-country framework.
A large number of senior KMT officials are expected to attend the second annual Straits Forum — a weeklong event which begins tomorrow — in Fujian Province, China. Former vice-premier Eric Chu (朱立倫), who is running for Sinbei City mayor, was one of the KMT delegates at the forum last year.
Former KMT chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄) is expected to lead another delegation to a KMT-Chinese Communist Party (CCP) forum in Guangzhou from July 8 through July 11.
Tsai said DPP party and elected officials would be barred from attending both forums after a number of DPP mayors received invitations to attend the weeklong Straits Forum. Two DPP members were disciplined last year after they attended a KMT-CCP forum despite a party ban.
Unofficial KMT exchanges with China have attracted growing anger from the DPP, which says that such contact serves as a front for secret political exchanges. The DPP says that cross-strait relations should be conducted on an official government-to-government basis.
Former National Security Council secretary-general Su Chi (蘇起) was forced to call off a visit to the Boao Forum in April after his plans drew questions from legislators over national security concerns.
“We aren’t against dialogue with China, but this should be conducted under a framework that is accountable to the public. These forums, however, have the ultimate goal of political unification — a position that the DPP is very much against,” Tsai said.
He said that rather than party to party forums, the DPP would aim to expand its dialogue with China through third channels, including non-governmental organizations, city exchanges or educational contacts.
Adding to comments by DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) last month that the DPP would not rule out having “realistic dialogue with China,” Tsai Chi-chang said the party was aiming for a mutually respectful and equal platform to conduct talks with Beijing.
He did not elaborate on when such talks could take place, saying only that they were in the planning stage.
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