Beijing should learn from the Tiananmen Square Massacre, and realize that brute force has severe consequences, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday.
Beijing should renounce the use of coercive means against Taiwan and respect the insistence of Taiwanese on sovereignty and dignity to lessen the distance between autocracies and democracies, and foster mutual trust, the MAC said in a statement issued ahead of the 34th anniversary of the massacre in China.
On June 4, 1989, the Chinese government ordered its military into Tiananmen Square, Beijing, to forcibly end weeks of student-led demonstrations.
Photo: Chung Li-hua, Taipei Times
Estimated deaths from the crackdown vary from several hundred to several thousand, but China has never released an official death toll.
Beijing is still unable to “face its historical past” regarding the Tiananmen Square Massacre, the MAC said, urging it to face its “historical errors,” make public all records of the incident and enact reforms to safeguard the rights to free speech, religion and assembly.
Peace is the “only option” to resolve cross-strait issues, and maintaining the “status quo” is the greatest common denominator, as well as a shared responsibility for both sides of the Taiwan Strait, it said.
A MAC-commissioned poll released on Thursday showed that 84.2 percent of respondents in Taiwan supported President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) stance on cross-strait affairs, including her statement that “it is the mutual responsibility of both sides of the Strait, as well as a global consensus that the Taiwan Strait problem be resolved peacefully.”
The poll showed that 91.7 percent of respondents were opposed to China’s military posturing, economic bullying and swaying Taiwanese diplomatic allies from Taiwan, while 90.4 percent were opposed to China’s efforts to divide Taiwan through its “united front” rhetoric.
As for the government’s gradual resumption of cross-strait ties, 84.2 percent of respondents were in support, and 87.2 percent agreed that the governments on both sides of the Strait should authorize negotiations between agencies before their borders are fully reopened to each other, the poll showed.
The poll showed that 85.3 percent of respondents supported stricter government regulations and the prevention of Chinese “united front” rhetoric, while 76.5 percent supported stepping up border controls for Chinese entering Taiwan.
The survey, conducted by Taiwan Real Survey Co on May 25 through Sunday last week, polled people aged 20 or older by telephone. It collected 1,077 valid samples, claiming a margin of error of 2.99 percentage points.
Tropical Storm Gaemi strengthened into a typhoon at 2pm yesterday, and could make landfall in Yilan County tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The agency was scheduled to issue a sea warning at 11:30pm yesterday, and could issue a land warning later today. Gaemi was moving north-northwest at 4kph, carrying maximum sustained winds near its center of up to 118.8kph and gusts of 154.8kph. The circumference is forecast to reach eastern Taiwan tomorrow morning, with the center making landfall in Yilan County later that night before departing from the north coast, CWA weather forecaster Kuan Shin-ping (官欣平) said yesterday. Uncertainty remains and
SEA WARNING LIKELY: The storm, named Gaemi, could become a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, with the Taipei City Government preparing for flooding A tropical depression east of the Philippines developed into a tropical storm named Gaemi at 2pm yesterday, and was moving toward eastern Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Gaemi could begin to affect Taiwan proper on Tuesday, lasting until Friday, and could develop into a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, it said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued as early as Tuesday morning, it added. Gaemi, the third tropical storm in the Pacific Ocean this typhoon season, is projected to begin moving northwest today, and be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday, the agency said. Today, there would likely
DISRUPTIONS: The high-speed rail is to operate as normal, while several airlines either canceled flights or announced early departures or late arrivals Schools and offices in 15 cities and counties are to be closed today due to Typhoon Gaemi, local governments announced last night. The 15 are: Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Tainan, Keelung, Hsinchu and Kaohsiung, as well as Yilan, Hualien, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang counties. People should brace for torrential rainfall brought by the storm, with its center forecast to make landfall on the east coast between tonight and tomorrow morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The agency issued a sea warning for the typhoon at 11:30pm on Monday, followed by a land warning at 11:30am yesterday. As of
CASUALTY: A 70-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree in Kaohsiung as the premier warned all government agencies to remain on high alert for the next 24 hours Schools and offices nationwide are to be closed for a second day today as Typhoon Gaemi crosses over the nation, bringing torrential rain and whipping winds. Gaemi was forecast to make landfall late last night. From Tuesday night, its outer band brought substantial rainfall and strong winds to the nation. As of 6:15pm last night, the typhoon’s center was 20km southeast of Hualien County, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. It was moving at 19kph and had a radius of 250km. As of 3pm yesterday, one woman had died, while 58 people were injured, the Central Emergency Operation Center said. The 70-year-old