Beijing needs to lift bans on Taiwanese Internet news sites in China if it is to move toward repairing "volatile" relations in the aftermath of the passage of its "Anti-Secession" Law, Mainland Affairs Council Chairman Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said yesterday.
In an exclusive interview with the Taipei Times, Wu said China would have to begin respecting public opinion in Taiwan and renounce the use of military force under any circumstances in order to repair the damage caused by the recently approved law.
Describing the cross-strait situation as volatile, he said the removal of blocks on online news sites from Taiwan was the first step towards demonstrating a respect for democratic society and public opinion.
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
"There is no exception. All news service sites have been blocked by China. Under such circumstances, how can China understand Taiwan? And if they can' t understand Taiwan, how can they understand our democracy, or see how Taiwan's democracy could contribute to China's development?" he said.
"So the first thing that has to be done is that all Internet service needs to be open to all. They need to let Chinese academics, officials and the people understand what the Taiwanese are thinking and doing," he said.
He said Beijing should also respect Taiwan's right to international participation, particularly in the non-political, non-governmental sector.
On March 14, while delivering the nation's official response to Beijing's Anti-Secession Law, Wu said the Chinese government should apologize to the Taiwanese people by actions, not words. He called on Beijing to repair relations with conciliatory gestures.
Asked whether the government had any specific policies to counter the new law, Wu pointed to the significance of strong support from the international community.
"The first level [of the government's response], and the most important level that we are undertaking, is to appeal to the international community to understand the problems and the viciousness of the Anti-Secession Law, and the problems the law will create in the future," he said.
Judging from the lack of reports on any abnormal Chinese military activities, war was not imminent, he said, although he quickly added that "there continues to be a danger in the area."
"I think the best way to deal with it is trying to bring down the tension on one hand, and work with the international community to make sure the Chinese side does not do anything stupid," Wu said.
He pointed to this Saturday's rally sponsored by the Democratic Progressive Party as an example of action that indicates that "we don't want to be bullied by China."
He said that planning was underway for him to travel abroad to lobby for support against China's new law, but nothing was confirmed.
Saying the law was a "new element of danger ? added into already complicated cross-strait relations," Wu said the council would be closely observing any follow-up legislation.
"We need to assess and continue to asses the impact of the law -- and of course the law is just a preliminary political statement that has been codified -- there might be other legislation related to the law. We will continue to watch very carefully what China might do in the near future to make the situation worse," Wu said, referring to Beijing's possible enactment of legislation on the mobilization of defense forces.
He said that while peace and stability, along with the development of cross-strait relations, were the nation's primary long term policy goals, "we need to handle cross-strait policies in a much more cautious manner."
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and