A majority of people are in favor of the in coming Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government negotiating a new cross-strait concept with Beijing that would replace the so-called “1992 consensus,” a survey showed.
The poll conducted by the Taiwan Indicators Survey Research showed that 68.2 percent of respondents were in favor of a change.
The “1992 consensus,” a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) admitted making up in 2000, refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese government that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
According to the poll, 60 percent viewed cross-strait relations as diplomatic relations between two sovereign nations, while 27 percent thought otherwise.
President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration has 23 signed accords with China in the past eight years and those of those polled, 37.8 percent said the accords brought more benefits, while 36.8 percent said the accords were detrimental.
On the issue of maintaining the “status quo” on cross-strait relations — defined as maintaining the “1992 consensus” in accordance with the Republic of China Constitution — 40.6 percent of individuals agreed it, while 34.1 percent disagreed.
More than 76 percent of pan-blue supporters polled agreed with maintaining the “status quo” under such a definition, while 58.7 percent of DPP supporters disagreed, the poll showed.
When asked if the new government should initiate negotiations with China on a new political concept to replace the “1992 consensus,” 68.2 percent agreed, while 12.2 percent disagreed.
A majority of respondents — 72.3 percent — were against importing US pork with leanness inducing additives, even if allowing such imports would grant Taiwan entry into the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), while 16.9 percent agreed.
The US and Taiwan are locked in dispute over leanness inducing additives in meat, mainly due to Taiwan banning the use of the additive ractopamine. The dispute is reportedly threatening Taiwan’s entry into the TPP.
The poll was conducted by the TISR on Monday and Tuesday with 1,002 valid responses. The poll has a margin of error of about 3.1 percentage points and a confidence level of 95 percent.
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