China, in its strongest statement yet on the political crisis convulsing Taiwan since its controversial election, warned yesterday it would not stand idly by if the situation spirals out of control.
"We will not sit by watching should the post-election situation in Taiwan get out of control, leading to social turmoil, endangering the lives and property of our flesh-and-blood brothers and affecting stability across the Taiwan strait," Beijing's policy-making Taiwan Affairs Office said in a statement.
It reiterated that China was paying close attention to events on Taiwan, which has been racked by protests and political paralysis since President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) won re-election by the thinnest of margins on Saturday. The opposition immediately contested the result and demanded a recount.
The statement gave no further details. China's response came after angry supporters of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) stormed the Central Election Commission yesterday, but failed to stop it from formally declaring Chen the winner.
In response to China's reac-tion, People First Party (PFP) Legislator Chiu Yi (邱毅), which led fierce protests outside the Central Election Commission as it officially announced the presidential election results, said China would not easily take action against Taiwan.
"China was just bluffing," when commenting on Taiwan's recent unrest, Chou said. "It is impossible that China would interfere in our affairs."
KMT spokesman Alex Tsai (
Its intervention will only complicate the situation, he said.
"China would only interfere into Taiwan affairs when Taiwan declares independence, faces uprisings or is invaded by other countries," said Tsai.
He urged Chen to take concrete action to find a solution to the current unrest.
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
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