Former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator Julian Kuo (郭正亮) yesterday promoted his proposal to freeze the Taiwanese independence clause in the party’s charter, saying that it is aimed at maintaining the nation’s “status quo,” which would help the party in the next presidential race, but agreeing that its adoption could be pushed back until after the year-end local elections.
Before attending the launch of a book about DPP Legislator Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍), the party’s nominee for the Greater Taichung mayoral poll in November’s local elections, Kuo said the US wants a Taiwan that maintains the “status quo,” which is why it supported the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) in the 2012 presidential election.
“The idea of freezing the Taiwan independence clause is to maintain the ‘status quo’ in the hope that the US will be neutral in the 2016 presidential election,” Kuo said.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
Kuo said he was under no illusion that the Chinese Communist Party would support the DPP if it froze the clause, but does believe it would allow Washington to be neutral in the next presidential poll.
The independence clause of the DPP charter adopted in 1991 calls for the creation of the “Republic of Taiwan” and a new constitution.
Kuo’s proposal, cosponsored by many other DPP delegates, was briefly discussed at the national party congress on Sunday, until DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) decided to refer it to the Central Executive Committee for discussion and, if necessary, deal with it at a future congress.
Kuo said that the nationwide nine-in-one elections to be held on Nov. 29 are the party’s top priority right now and discussion of the proposal could wait until after the elections or the Lunar New Year holiday early next year.
By waiting, the DPP could ride the crest of success in the local elections and the momentum of choosing the party’s presidential candidate in May next year to help the measure pass at the next national congress in July of that year, Kuo said.
In other news, a Chinese academic has argued that that the DPP remains the biggest hurdle for the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, a digital Chinese media outlet reported.
Zhou Zhihuai (周志懷), director of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences’ Institute of Taiwan Studies, made the remarks at a cross-strait relations seminar that opened in Qinghai Province yesterday, www.crntt.com reported.
Zhou said that as the two sides of the Taiwan Strait make major progress on peacefully developing relations, four issues have arisen:
After Tsai was re-elected as DPP chair in May, she said that “freezing the Taiwan Independence clause would require a lot of time” and that “China will adjust to the DPP after it triumphs in the year-end local elections,” Zhou was reported as saying. “This shows that the DPP is still the biggest hurdle to the peaceful development of cross-strait ties.”
Another issue was the mass protest in March against the cross-strait services trade agreement — dubbed the Sunflower movement — which Zhou said shows that while Taiwanese are supportive of the peaceful development of bilateral ties, they have misunderstandings and misgivings about the future course of these relations.
Also, the existing political differences between the two sides have become more salient and both parties need to address them squarely, he said.
Finally, Taiwan is to stage two major electoral events soon — the year-end local elections and the 2016 presidential poll — which will create uncertainty for the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, Zhou said.
Taiwan's Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) said Saturday that she would not be intimidated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), following reports that Chinese agents planned to ram her car during a visit to the Czech Republic last year. "I had a great visit to Prague & thank the Czech authorities for their hospitality & ensuring my safety," Hsiao said on social media platform X. "The CCP's unlawful activities will NOT intimidate me from voicing Taiwan's interests in the international community," she wrote. Hsiao visited the Czech Republic on March 18 last year as vice president-elect and met with Czech Senate leadership, including
There have been clear signs of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) attempts to interfere in the nationwide recall vote on July 26 in support of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators facing recall, an unnamed government official said, warning about possible further actions. The CCP is actively involved in Taiwanese politics, and interference in the recall vote is to be expected, with multiple Chinese state media and TAO attempts to discredit the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and undermine public support of their recall movement, the official said. This interference includes a smear campaign initiated this month by a pro-Beijing Hong Kong news outlet against
A week-long exhibition on modern Tibetan history and the Dalai Lama’s global advocacy opened yesterday in Taipei, featuring quotes and artworks highlighting human rights and China’s ongoing repression of Tibetans, Hong Kongers and Uighurs. The exhibition, the first organized by the Human Rights Network for Tibet and Taiwan (HRNTT), is titled “From the Snowy Ridges to the Ocean of Wisdom.” “It would be impossible for Tibetans inside Tibet to hold an exhibition like this — we can do it. because we live in a free and democratic country,” HRNTT secretary-general Tashi Tsering said. Tashi Tsering, a Taiwan-based Tibetan who has never
A first shipment of five tons of Taiwan tilapia was sent from Tainan to Singapore on Wednesday, following an order valued at NT$600,000 (US$20,500) placed with a company in the city. The products, including frozen whole fish and pre- cooked fish belly, were dispatched from Jiangjun Fishing Harbor, where a new aquatic processing and logistics center is under construction. At the launch, Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) called the move a “breakthrough,” marking Taiwan’s expansion into the Singaporean tilapia market. Taiwan’s tilapia exports have traditionally focused on the United States, Canada, and the Middle East, Huang said, adding that the new foothold in
RSS