"One country, two systems" has no market in Taiwan, a Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) official said yesterday.
MAC Vice Chairman John C.C. Deng (鄧振中) made the comment after releasing poll results at a news conference yesterday.
The poll showed that 69.2 percent of interviewees are against China's "one country, two systems," while only 9.2 percent agree with the plan.
Deng said that the results clearly show that people of Taiwan don't buy into the policy.
In a similar study conducted last March, 16.1 percent of interviewees supported "one country, two systems." The figure declined to 13.3 percent last July and now stands at 9.2 percent.
The 16.1 percent figure is the highest level of support for "one country, two systems" in the past 10 years.
Media speculation is that the decision by President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) government last March to stop the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant helped create an unstable political situation and temporarily boosted support for "one country, two systems."
On the issue of unification versus independence, the poll showed that 82.5 percent of those interviewed support the status quo.
The poll also showed 3.5 percent of respondents support an immediate declaration of independence, while 1.8 percent are in favor of unification.
Public opinion regarding the regulation of Taiwanese investment in China showed support for stricter rules. The poll revealed 51.7 percent back tighter controls while 24.4 percent think the government should ease the rules.
Direct flights between Taiwan and China with allowances for national security, dignity and equality were supported by 73.5 percent of those surveyed.
Questionnaires using the same design have been used to gauge public opinion since 1991. Since then, 22 similar surveys have been conducted.
"The current result is consistent with previous polls" on the issues of "one country, two systems" and "unification-independence," Deng said.
The poll interviewed 1,081 adults in Taiwan via telephone between Jan. 31 and Feb. 3.
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