The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday expressed hope that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) could join hands with the Taiwanese government in facilitating a new pattern of amicable cross-strait exchanges, after China’s 13th National People’s Congress formally endorsed Xi’s second presidential term.
The council made the remarks hours after Xi received unanimous support with 2,970 votes during the meeting in Beijing, which also re-elected him as chairman of the Chinese Central Military Commission.
Meanwhile, former Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Central Commission for Discipline Inspection secretary Wang Qishan (王岐山) was elected as China’s vice president by 2,969 votes to one.
The congress on Sunday last week voted to end a two-term limit on China’s head of state, paving the way for Xi to remain in power even after his second term ends in 2023.
The MAC declined to directly comment on what it called “widely expected results,” but said that China functioned differently from democratic countries and that the Chinese National People’s Congress’ election of national leaders is only symbolic.
“Taiwan has adopted a free and democratic system of governance, under which the nation’s leaders, lawmakers and councilors are elected by the people and their policymaking is subject to scrutiny,” the MAC said, adding that the international community sees Taiwan as a beacon of democracy for ethnic Chinese.
Although the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have different systems of governance and have followed different development paths, the council said it hoped that Beijing’s top leaders would shoulder the responsibility of maintaining peace across the Strait and in the region as they consolidated their power.
“[Chinese leaders] should also work to safeguard people’s wellbeing, while pragmatically considering how to join hands with Taiwan in developing a new pattern of amicable cross-strait interactions,” the MAC said.
Cross-strait relations have cooled since President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) took office in May 2016, primarily due to her refusal to accept China’s condition that she express support for its “one China” principle before entering into dialogues and exchanges.
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