Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday said his latest trip to China, including his attendance at the Straits Forum, can promote “closer people-to-people exchanges” across the Taiwan Strait.
“It [the visit] is not only about deepening our understanding of the local history and industrial development of Fujian Province, but also about promoting closer people-to-people exchanges across the Strait through face-to-face interaction,” Ma said at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport before embarking on his fourth visit to China since leaving office.
“We hope this exchange will encourage more young people from Taiwan to visit the mainland, and likewise welcome young people from the mainland to visit Taiwan, so they can learn from each other through interaction,” he said.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
“I believe this will definitely be very helpful for the development of cross-strait peace,” Ma said, adding that his first stop would be Xiamen in China’s Fujian Province.
Leading a group of Taiwanese students on a two-week visit to China until June 27, Ma is scheduled to attend the 17th Straits Forum in Xiamen, which begins today.
First held in 2009, the forum has been organized annually in Xiamen by “relevant organizations across the Strait,” with the aim of “promoting broad exchanges across all sectors and enhancing people-to-people cooperation between the two sides,” an official publication for this year’s forum said.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
The forum is supported by the Chinese government.
On Wednesday, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office said that 7,000 participants from Taiwan — including political party representatives and delegates from a broad range of sectors — are expected to attend.
Ma’s planned attendance at the Straits Forum has drawn criticism from the administration of President William Lai (賴清德), with the Mainland Affairs Council on Wednesday urging Ma not to become a propaganda tool for Beijing’s “united front” efforts.
“The Straits Forum is a ‘united front’ platform used by the Chinese Communist Party [CCP] to target Taiwan,” it said, adding that during Ma’s presidency, regulations were introduced to bar central government agency personnel from participating in the forum to prevent infiltration.
“The government finds it [Ma’s attendance at the forum] deeply regrettable and inconceivable, and believes it will not gain the support of the majority of Taiwanese,” it said.
The council reminded Ma to comply with laws governing cross-strait affairs and urged him “not to cooperate with the CCP’s political agenda.”
Ma Ying-jeou Foundation CEO Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑) on Friday was quoted by the Chinese-language United Daily News as saying that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) should stop using the term “united front” to intimidate the public into not engaging in cross-strait exchanges.
Hsiao said he had reviewed all the laws in Taiwan and found that none include the term “united front,” aside from a few administrative directives, adding that the government should not accuse citizens based on terminology that lacks a legal basis.
After attending the Straits Forum, Ma’s delegation is to travel to Gansu Province for cultural activities and to learn about the Silk Road, Hsiao said.
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