A study advocating an internationally monitored plebiscite to decide the political future of Taiwan appeared this week on an Oxford University Web site.
“Unlike in bygone eras, international law no longer conceives of territories as mere pieces of property to be traded or conquered,” the study says.
Written by New York Law School professor Chen Lung-chu (陳隆志), the study says that human beings “are properly held to be at the center of international law.”
The study comes as Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman and New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) prepares for talks next week with Chinese President and Chinese Communist Party General Secretary Xi Jinping (習近平).
The idea of a plebiscite to decide the future of Taiwan is anathema to Beijing and a development that could lead to a military attack.
However, Chen argues that Taiwanese have the right to determine their own future.
“The inhabitants of a disputed territory, through collective effort, can develop their distinctive political, economic, social and cultural system,” he said. “This is effective self-determination — self-determination in action. When the international legal status of a territory is in dispute, an internationally monitored plebiscite provides the ideal means of resolving the dispute peacefully.”
Chen’s study appeared under the international law section of the University of Oxford Press Web site.
Asked to comment on the Xi-Chu meeting, the US Department of State said last week that the US encourages Taiwan and China to continue their dialogue.
“We encourage authorities in Beijing and Taipei to continue their constructive dialogue, which has led to significant improvements in the cross-strait relationship,” a spokesperson said.
Polls show that a majority of Taiwanese prefer independence to unification with China.
In the past, the US Department of State has discouraged the idea of a plebiscite for fear that it might trigger Chinese military action.
“In a world of increasing globalization and interdependence, we see a gradual expansion in identifications — more and more, members of the world community identify with the most inclusive community of humankind and a deepening perception of shared humanity,” the study says. “Genuine protection and fulfillment of human dignity values... will be possible only when individuals are enabled to be effective, active, equal participants at different community levels and in different social settings.”
It says that the past 30 years have witnessed a profound and persistent movement of democratization — and Taiwanization — that runs counter to China’s “unfounded claims over the island.”
“Under present conditions, Taiwan’s statehood is best understood in the context of an ongoing process of evolution propelled by the desire and action of the Taiwanese people for self-determination and democracy,” the study says.
‘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
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as