Efforts by China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) to rewrite Koxinga’s “liberation” of Taiwan as having brought both sides of the Taiwan Strait under “one China” cannot change the fact that Taiwan is a sovereign country, the Mainland Affairs Council said on Wednesday.
Koxinga, also known as Cheng Cheng-kung (鄭成功), was a Ming Dynasty loyalist and military commander who in 1662 conquered Dutch-held Fort Zeelandia and established the capital of his renegade kingdom in Tainan, as a base of operations against the Qing empire.
Events marking Cheng’s liberation of Taiwan 360 years ago were held in Chiayi County and Nanan City, China, on Tuesday, with Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Vice Chairman Tseng Yung-chuan (曾永權) attending the event in Taiwan and TAO Minister Liu Jieyi (劉結一) attending the event in China.
Photo: Wu Shu-wei, Taipei Times
Chinese media quoted Liu as telling the Nanan City event that he hoped “Taiwanese compatriots would engage themselves toward the goal of unification.”
TAO spokesman Ma Xiaoguang (馬曉光) told a news briefing on Wednesday that Koxinga was a hero worshiped on both sides of the Strait for having “liberated Taiwan,” upholding the dignity of the Zhonghua minzu (中華民族, Chinese ethnic group), and favoring the Zhonghua minzu by protecting their sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The MAC said that Taiwan is a sovereign state and has never been a part of the People’s Republic of China.
No matter what “united front” rhetoric or method the Chinese Communist Party uses, both sides of the Strait belonging to “one China” is an illusion and cannot change the facts, the council said.
The council accused the KMT of participating in China’s “united front” tactic on Tuesday, and urged Taiwanese to cherish their hard-won democracy and freedoms.
Taiwanese should be aware that China seeks to divide Taiwan from within, the council added.
The MAC warned Taiwanese and civic groups to watch out for Chinese “united front” rhetoric at cross-strait events, and to abide by the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) so that the nation’s interests are not harmed.
No citizen or group should participate in discussions or events on “democratic negotiations” or a “one country, two systems” model, which have been promoted by Beijing, the council said, adding that it is closely monitoring Chinese activities promoting “united rhetoric.”
The council said it would take action against people found to have contravened the law.
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
CARGO LOSS: About 50 containers at the stern of the ‘Ever Lunar’ cargo ship went overboard, prompting the temporary closure of the port and disrupting operations Evergreen Marine Corp, Taiwan’s largest container shipper, yesterday said that all crew members aboard the Ever Lunar (長月) were safe after dozens of containers fell overboard off the coast of Peru the previous day. The incident occurred at 9:40am on Friday as the Ever Lunar was anchored and waiting to enter the Port of Callao when it suddenly experienced severe rolling, Evergreen said in a statement. The rolling, which caused the containers to fall, might have been caused by factors including a tsunami triggered by an earthquake in Russia, poor winter sea conditions in South America or a sudden influx of waves,
The Ministry of Culture yesterday officially launched the “We TAIWAN” cultural program on Osaka’s Nakanoshima sandbank, with the program’s mascot receiving overwhelming popularity. The cultural program, which runs from Aug. 2 to 20, was designed to partner with and capitalize on the 2025 World Expo that is being held in Osaka, Japan, from April 13 to Oct. 13, the ministry said. On the first day of the cultural program, its mascot, a green creature named “a-We,” proved to be extremely popular, as its merch was immediately in high demand. Long lines formed yesterday for the opening
The Taipei Summer Festival is to begin tomorrow at Dadaocheng Wharf (大稻埕), featuring four themed firework shows and five live music performances throughout the month, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said today. The festival in the city’s Datong District (大同) is to run until Aug. 30, holding firework displays on Wednesdays and the final Saturday of the event. The first show is scheduled for tomorrow, followed by Aug. 13, 20 and 30. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Disney Pixar's movie Toy Story, the festival has partnered with Walt Disney Co (Taiwan) to host a special themed area on
RSS