It would be better for both sides of the Taiwan Strait to engage practically rather than make symbolic moves, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) spokesperson Zhu Fenglian (朱鳳蓮) said as she rejected the Straits Exchange Foundation’s (SEF) gift of two Formosan sika deer.
On Oct. 16, SEF Secretary-General Luo Wen-jia (羅文嘉) said that the organization would be gifting the two deer as a gesture of goodwill.
The deer are named He He (和和) and Ping Ping (平平), a play on the word for “peace” (heping, 和平).
Photo: Chen Yu-fu, Taipei Times
Instead of gifts, both sides should sincerely adhere to the so-called “1992 consensus” and recognize that Taiwan and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) are one country, Zhu told a news conference in Beijing.
Once the two sides agree to that principle, it would be possible to restart cross-strait communication, exchanges and cooperation, she 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 Chinese Communist Party that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge that there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Some legislators criticized the foundation for giving the deer as a goodwill gift, and said that mutual respect is necessary.
The TAO statements are untrue, DPP Legislator Wang Mei-hui (王美惠) said in an interview.
There has never been a “1992 consensus,” she added, calling it a fabrication.
The SEF decision to send the deer shows how Taiwan seeks peaceful relations and mutual respect, Wang said, adding that the TAO should stop making baseless statements, as Taiwan has not historically been a part of the PRC.
Taiwan's Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) said Saturday that she would not be intimidated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), following reports that Chinese agents planned to ram her car during a visit to the Czech Republic last year. "I had a great visit to Prague & thank the Czech authorities for their hospitality & ensuring my safety," Hsiao said on social media platform X. "The CCP's unlawful activities will NOT intimidate me from voicing Taiwan's interests in the international community," she wrote. Hsiao visited the Czech Republic on March 18 last year as vice president-elect and met with Czech Senate leadership, including
There have been clear signs of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) attempts to interfere in the nationwide recall vote on July 26 in support of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators facing recall, an unnamed government official said, warning about possible further actions. The CCP is actively involved in Taiwanese politics, and interference in the recall vote is to be expected, with multiple Chinese state media and TAO attempts to discredit the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and undermine public support of their recall movement, the official said. This interference includes a smear campaign initiated this month by a pro-Beijing Hong Kong news outlet against
A week-long exhibition on modern Tibetan history and the Dalai Lama’s global advocacy opened yesterday in Taipei, featuring quotes and artworks highlighting human rights and China’s ongoing repression of Tibetans, Hong Kongers and Uighurs. The exhibition, the first organized by the Human Rights Network for Tibet and Taiwan (HRNTT), is titled “From the Snowy Ridges to the Ocean of Wisdom.” “It would be impossible for Tibetans inside Tibet to hold an exhibition like this — we can do it. because we live in a free and democratic country,” HRNTT secretary-general Tashi Tsering said. Tashi Tsering, a Taiwan-based Tibetan who has never
A first shipment of five tons of Taiwan tilapia was sent from Tainan to Singapore on Wednesday, following an order valued at NT$600,000 (US$20,500) placed with a company in the city. The products, including frozen whole fish and pre- cooked fish belly, were dispatched from Jiangjun Fishing Harbor, where a new aquatic processing and logistics center is under construction. At the launch, Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) called the move a “breakthrough,” marking Taiwan’s expansion into the Singaporean tilapia market. Taiwan’s tilapia exports have traditionally focused on the United States, Canada, and the Middle East, Huang said, adding that the new foothold in
RSS