The Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) yesterday unveiled its draft of an "anti-annexation" law that underscores Taiwan's sovereignty, its separate status from China and states that both sides of the Taiwan Strait should permanently renounce use of any non-peaceful means to unilaterally change the cross-strait status quo.
The draft is aimed at countering Beijing's proposed "anti-secession" law, said TSU caucus whip Lo Chih-ming (
According to the 11-article draft, the government should call a referendum and amend the Constitution to safeguard Taiwan's sovereignty in the event of the cross-strait status quo is threatened.
PHOTO:CNA
The president can -- according to power bestowed upon him by the Constitution -- resort to non-peaceful means to resist China's annexation, the draft states.
"This is Taiwan's 11 articles' against the 11 articles of China's anti-secession law," Lo said, referring to the legislation which is expected to be passed by China's National People's Congress in Beijing on Monday.
Stating that Taiwan has existed alongside China since the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC) on Oct. 1, 1949, with the status quo being that the two sides are independent of each other and have no jurisdiction over each other, the draft states that "Taiwan is already an independent, sovereign state and it is not an issue for Taiwan to declare independence or seek separation from China."
Taiwan and China should maintain peace and stability across the Strait and respect each other's independence and autonomy in terms of domestic and foreign affairs, it states.
TSU Chairman Shu Chin-chiang (
"Should the Taiwan Strait be defined by China's `one China' principle as one under its jurisdiction, it would then jeopardize not only Taiwan's interests but also that of the US and Japan," Su said.
According to the draft, Taiwan and China must respect the fact of that they exist alongside each other and they should negotiate with each other on an equal footing to resolve their differences, It also states that Beijing's "one country, two systems" format for unification is unacceptable to the people of Taiwan.
Two sides should expand their economic and cultural exchanges to enhance mutual understanding and trust, said the draft, which also proposes that a cross-strait military confidence-building mechanism and code of conduct be set up to protect regional peace and stability.
Meanwhile, to help fight China's "anti-secession" legislation, the TSU said it would go all-out in support of the arm procurement budget now before the Legislative Yuan.
It would be tantamount to act of encouraging China to use force against Taiwan should the legislature fails to pass the budget, Shu said. He called on all parties to transcend partisan ideology and beef up Taiwan's national defense.
"This would allow us to show China our determination to defend ourselves," Shu said.
Several Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) officials including Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) are to be summoned for questioning and then transferred to prosecutors for holding an illegal assembly in Taipei last night, the Taipei Police said today. Chu and two others hosted an illegal assembly and are to be requested to explain their actions, the Taipei City Police Department's Zhongzheng (中正) First Precinct said, referring to a protest held after Huang Lu Chin-ju (黃呂錦茹), KMT Taipei's chapter director, and several other KMT staffers were questioned for alleged signature forgery in recall petitions against Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators. Taipei prosecutors had filed
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
NEW WORLD: Taiwan is pursuing innovative approaches to international relations through economics, trade and values-based diplomacy, the foreign minister said Taiwan would implement a “three-chain strategy” that promotes democratic values in response to US tariffs, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said. Taiwan would aim to create a “global democratic value chain,” seek to capitalize on its position within the first island chain and promote a “non-red supply chain,” Lin was quoted as saying in the ministry’s written report to the Legislative Yuan submitted ahead of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee meeting slated for today. The Ministry would also uphold a spirit of mutual beneficial collaboration, maintaining close communication and consultations with Washington to show that Taiwan-US cooperation
Taiwan and the US have begun trade negotiations over tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump earlier this month, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said in an interview this morning before reporting to the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee. The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO), Taiwan’s de facto embassy in the US, has already established communication channels with the US Department of State and the US Trade Representative (USTR), and is engaging in intensive consultations, he said. Points of negotiation include tariffs, non-tariff trade barriers and issues related to investment, procurement and export controls, he
RSS