Accepting Beijing’s “one China” principle and the so-called “1992 consensus” would be tantamount to Taiwan giving up its sovereignty, Vice President William Lai (賴清德) said in Miaoli County yesterday.
Lai, the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential nominee, made the remarks at the launch of a campaign group, while expressing his continued support for the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait.
Taiwan would grow and move forward if it upholds its sovereignty, he said.
Photo: Tsai Cheng-min, Taipei Times
Taiwan would regress to autocracy if voters accept the “one China” principle or the “1992 consensus,” Lai said, adding that only when there is sovereignty is there true peace.
On Saturday, at another campaign event in Chiayi City, Lai accused China of fear-mongering about a potential war to lead Taiwanese to select a political party that it favors.
Lai urged Taiwanese voters to use their ballots to counter the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the presidential election scheduled for Jan. 13 next year.
If Taiwan lets China dictate its election results, it would be the end of the road for democracy, he said.
If a war breaks out, it would be because of a dictatorship, not the DPP, he said.
As Taiwan faces growing military threats from China, people have to take them seriously and not bow to the Chinese dictatorship, he said, adding that if Taiwan’s election results in the wrong choice, there would be no way to return.
The presidential election is not a decision between war and peace, he added.
The “1992 consensus” — a term that former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) in 2006 admitted making up in 2000 — refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the CCP that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge that there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
The DPP rejects the “1992 consensus,” saying that agreeing to it implies acceptance of China’s claim over Taiwan. It has also drawn a parallel between the “1992 consensus” and Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for Taiwan, but there is no evidence that Beijing demands Taiwan to accept the latter for relations to be restored.
There has been a virtual freeze in cross-strait relations since 2016, when President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) took office and rejected the “1992 consensus” that had underpinned closer cross-strait ties during the KMT administration of president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) from 2008 to 2016.
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