More than half of Taiwanese view the “one country, two systems” framework as a failure and support the nation “going its own way” as Hong Kong marks the 20th anniversary of its handover to China, a survey published yesterday by the Taiwan Thinktank showed.
More than 52 percent of respondents said that the “one country, two systems” model applied in Hong Kong has proved a failure, with only 22 percent viewing it as a success.
More than 63 percent were pessimistic about Hong Kong’s democracy, with only 22 percent expressing optimism.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
Proposed by former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping (鄧小平) in the 1980s, the formula of extensive local autonomy beneath overarching Chinese sovereignty was initially directed at Taiwan before being applied to Hong Kong in 1997, but has failed to win local support.
More than 73 percent of respondents said they are not willing to accept reunification under a “one country, two systems” formula, with only 19 percent expressing support.
Numerous other questions focused on how the nation should respond to China’s diplomatic offensive following the severing of relations with Panama and forced changes to the name of numerous overseas representative offices.
When asked how to respond to China’s offensive, 40 percent of respondents chose “going our own way,” compared with 33 percent in favor of “maintaining the status quo” and 18 percent who opted for “compromising with China.”
When asked whether the nation should accept the so-called “1992 consensus” or insist on maintaining sovereignty, 51 percent chose maintaining sovereignty, compared with 34 percent who preferred to accept the “1992 consensus.”
Fifty-five percent supported referring to foreign representative offices in Taiwan to being “stationed in Taiwan” — as was the practice during former president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) term — rather than being “stationed in the Republic of China,” with 28.4 percent opposing the proposal.
More than 69 percent of respondents supported shifting resources from maintaining formal ties with the nation’s 20 remaining diplomatic allies to “participating in international society.”
“Regardless of name usage, where to invest our diplomatic resources or the overall direction for our foreign policy development, there seems to be some divergence between public opinion and the government’s current track,” Taiwan Thinktank deputy executive director Lai I-chung (賴怡忠) said, referring to President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) emphasis on maintaining the cross-strait “status quo.”
Meanwhile, Tsai’s approval rating is 29 percent, according to the poll, with 56 percent of respondents disapproving of her performance.
Overall support for pension reform was 49.8 percent, with 36 percent of respondents expressing dissatisfaction.
“What is interesting is that levels of dissatisfaction are highest among young people, who are probably dissatisfied because they feel reform has not gone far enough,” Taiwanese Association for Northeast Asia Studies deputy secretary-general Doong Sy-chi (董思齊) said.
The 20 to 29 age group had a 57 percent rate of dissatisfaction, more than 20 percentage points higher than any other age group.
The survey collected 1,133 valid samples and has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
The “1992 consensus” — a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) admitted making up in 2000 — refers to a tacit understanding between the KMT and the Chinese government that both sides acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Travel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. The airline said that it has confirmed that the planned industrial action by its international wide-body cabin crew would go ahead on Thursday and Friday next week. While the Auckland-based carrier pledged to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of the workers’ strike, an Air New Zealand flight arriving at Taipei from Auckland on Thursday and another flight departing from Taipei for Auckland on Saturday would have to
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS