Echoing Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) description of consequences that Xi said would follow any change to the political formula that endorses the “one China” principle — the so-called “1992 consensus,” President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday said that the “political basis” for cross-strait interaction is “irreplaceable.”
Cross-strait relations prosper when they go along with the “1992 consensus,” wither when they part from it and decline into chaos when they go against it — as evidenced by the development of the cross-strait relationship over the past 23 years, Ma said in a speech at the Mainland Affairs Council.
Ma’s conclusions echoed Xi’s recent statement that challenging the “1992 consensus” would “trigger an earthquake and topple hills.”
Photo: Wang Min-wei, Taipei Times
Ma read a 4,650-word statement about the “1992 consensus,” titled “Peace and Prosperity: The Common Future of Cross-Strait Relations.”
Officials said the statement covered the origins and history of the phrase, and to tally the effects it has had on cross-strait ties.
The “1992 consensus,” a term former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmaker Su Chi (蘇起) admitted making up in 2000 when he was head of the council, refers to a tacit understanding between the KMT and the Chinese government that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge that there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Photo: CNA
Ma listed in the speech the “challenges” facing the adoption and implementation of the consensus and the various initiatives advocated, separately, by former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) as potential alternative frameworks for engaging with Beijing.
None of the proposals is a substitute for the “1992 consensus,” since “they were neither endorsed by Taiwanese society nor by [China],” Ma said.
However, the president said he “viewed positively” recent statements by Tsai and Ko.
Tsai has said that the DPP would maintain the “status quo” in cross-strait ties, examine cross-strait agreements under a supervision framework and continue negotiations if it returns to power.
Ko has proposed a “2015 point of view,” which respects cross-strait history and all of the agreements signed and agreed upon, as well as the “four mutuals”: mutual awareness, mutual understanding, mutual respect and mutual cooperation.
Nevertheless, “the proposals by Chairperson Tsai and Mayor Ko shun the issue of ‘one China,’” Ma said.
He said that his administration has made it “crystal clear” that the “one China” in the “1992 consensus” means the Republic of China (ROC).
Ma then posed two questions to Tsai, saying that Tsai, as her party’s nominee for next year’s presidential election, is duty-bound to provide unequivocal answers.
“First, what is the ‘status quo?’ Is it the policy of ‘no independence, no unification and no use of force,’ in line with the ROC Constitution and the peaceful development in cross-strait relations made possible by the ‘1992 consensus’ on ‘one China,’ with each side having its own interpretation?” Ma said.
“Second, how should the ‘status quo’ be maintained,” he said.
The “1992 consensus” is not a cure-all, but is the formula that can resolve problems hindering cross-strait relations — mainly disagreement over “one China” — maintain the “status quo” and bring peace and prosperity to the relationship, Ma said.
The consensus has provided the political basis that both sides willingly accepted, Ma said.
In interpreting what “one China” is in the formula, “we have to abide by the ROC Constitution,” Ma said. “Of course, the ‘one China’ for us is the ROC, not ‘two Chinas,’ ‘one China, one Taiwan’ or ‘Taiwanese independence.’”
Critics have said the KMT’s version of the “1992 consensus” is wishful thinking, as Beijing has never accepted the existence of the ROC and has been intolerant of symbols of the ROC’s sovereignty.
Chinese officials, including Xi, have said “the mainland and Taiwan belong to the same ‘one China,’” calling it a “core element” of the “1992 consensus” without mentioning “respective interpretations.”
Ma said the question of what the “one China” is “should be set aside.”
“Surely this is an issue that needs to be addressed, but in the future, not now. We must spend time and energy advancing exchanges, rather than interpreting what ‘one China’ is. Otherwise, we would be derailed in efforts to deal with other issues,” Ma said.
His visit to the council came ahead of New Taipei Mayor and KMT Chairman Eric Chu’s (朱立倫) planned trip to China and a meeting with Xi.
It was the second time Ma made such a visit to the council; the first was in July 2008, two months after he took to office.
Ma said yesterday’s visit was timed to commemorate the first high-level cross-strait meeting, which took place 22 years ago yesterday in Singapore, as well as a meeting between then-KMT chairman Lien Chan (連戰) and then-Chinese president Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) in Beijing 10 years ago.
“Chu has told me that he wished to consolidate and deepen the ‘1992 consensus’ [in his meeting with Xi] and incorporate the formula in Taiwan’s participation in regional economic integration,” Ma said.
“Our views on those issues are exactly identical,” he said.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS