The decisive victory of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) in the March 22 presidential election represented a victory for democracy but not a defeat of the Taiwan-centric political line, a high-ranking Taiwanese official said on Thursday at the Taiwanese American Center in New York.
“Taiwanese identity and Taiwan-centric consciousness have become a consensus and common language in the country since the election,” said Tung Chen-yuan (童振源), vice chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), who is currently on a speaking tour of the US.
“The KMT owed its victory partly to its tilting toward the Taiwan-centric advocacy that has been championed by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP),” Tung said.
Tung said the contributions that outgoing President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) has made in deepening Taiwan’s democratization and consolidating Taiwanese identity are undeniable.
“Chen’s efforts have altered the mode of cross-strait relations development and have also created strategic maneuvering space between the two sides,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tung said, China’s leadership has ceaselessly adjusted its Taiwan policies and is still adjusting them, which he said indicates that Beijing has also been unable to free itself from the impact of Taiwan’s democratic development.
Arguing that Taiwan’s democracy is a core asset in cross-strait relations and the bottom line of cross-strait negotiations, Tung said Beijing has had no choice but to adjust its stance in the face of Taiwan’s democratic progress.
He said that although Beijing has never openly acknowledged the notion of “one China, different interpretations,” its stance seems to have changed, according to a March 26 telephone dialogue between US President George W. Bush and Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤).
A Xinhua news agency English-language report on Hu’s conversation with Bush reported that Hu said “it is China’s consistent stand that the Chinese mainland and Taiwan should restore consultation and talks on the basis of ‘the 1992 consensus,’ under which ‘both sides recognize that there is only one China, but agree to differ on its definition.’”
Hu’s remarks show that China in a sense will change and will accept the “one China, different interpretations” idea, Tung said, adding that should China anticipate any progress in political engagement across the Strait, it must face squarely the fact of the Republic of China’s existence on Taiwan.
He also said that Taiwan must get to know China better, given that it is an enemy and Taiwan’s closest neighbor.
He suggested that cross-strait relations be developed under a “triangular, two-tier” framework taking the opinions of Taiwan, China and the rest of the world into account, while heeding the will of the people on both sides of the Strait.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
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
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS