About 90 percent of Taiwanese have an unfavorable impression of China and do not want unification with China, a poll publicized by the World United Formosans for Independence (WUFI) showed yesterday.
WUFI chairman Richard Chen (陳南天) cited the polling results, saying that only 11.9 percent of respondents have a favorable impression of China; 44.3 percent lean toward independence, while 10.7 percent lean toward unification with China.
If the “status quo” cannot be maintained, 61 percent lean toward independence and 21.8 percent lean toward unification, the poll showed.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
It showed that that 45 percent of the respondents believe the government should seek full diplomatic relations with the US, Chen said.
The proportion of poll respondents with a political inclination toward the pan-green camp is higher than those leaning toward the pan-blue camp, he added.
“China incessantly employed threats, enticements and infiltration through ‘united front’ tactics against Taiwan,” he said.
“The good news is that most Taiwanese people are able to distinguish between good and evil, right and wrong, primarily because democracy is the way of life in Taiwan,” Chen said. “This way of life has proven to be quite resilient in the face of China’s threats.”
This is the sixth year WUFI and the Taiwan Security Association have conducted a public opinion poll on Taiwan-US diplomatic relations, he said.
Over these six years, it has clearly shown that establishing diplomatic relations with the US in the name of Taiwan, forming a military alliance with the US, and joining international organizations in the name of Taiwan are all issues with a high level of consensus among Taiwanese, he said.
According to WUFI, the poll, conducted from Monday to Wednesday last week, collected 1,077 valid samples from people aged 15 or above, and had a margin of error of 2.99 percentage points.
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