A proposal by online news outlet My-Formosa.com vice chairman Wu Tzu-chia (吳子嘉) and former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator Kuo Cheng-liang (郭正亮) — both DPP members — to revise the party charter’s clauses on Taiwanese independence drew mixed reactions.
“We are not trying to freeze the clauses on Taiwanese independence, we are not even proposing anything concrete,” Wu told reporters at the DPP headquarters in Taipei. “The party charter and many of the party’s major resolutions contradict each other and the charter denies the Republic of China [ROC], which is not in accordance with the political situation.”
“The political situation is that President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) was sworn in as the ROC president under the ROC Constitution — the party should catch up with the president and the government,” Wu said.
Photo: CNA
Article 1 of the DPP charter, passed in 1991, states that it is the party’s objective to establish a sovereign and independent Republic of Taiwan.
In 1999, the DPP adopted the Resolution on Taiwan’s Future, which says that Taiwan is already a sovereign and independent nation, and therefore any change of status must be decided by the people of Taiwan.
In 2007, the DPP passed the Resolution on Normalization of the Nation, which reaffirmed that Taiwan is a sovereign and independent state, but added that due to pressure from China, Taiwan could not sustain a role in the international community as a “normal nation,” and therefore the party would push for the “normalization” of Taiwan’s status in the international community.
Wu and Kuo said that as Tsai’s proposal to maintain the cross-strait “status quo” won overwhelming public support in the presidential and legislative elections in January, it is time for the DPP to catch up with mainstream public opinion and propose something new in the party charter.
The proposal asks the DPP’s Central Executive Committee to amend the party charter, Wu said.
Formally proposed by 32 party delegates and endorsed by 35, the proposal would be discussed in the DPP national congress next month.
Wu said that he is just a member so he and Kuo are only the planners of the proposal.
DPP spokesperson Wang Min-sheng (王閔生) said that every party delegate has the right to make proposals and any proposal may be discussed in the party’s national congress.
“However, the core value of the DPP that the future of Taiwan should be decided by its people will absolutely not change,” Wang said.
Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsang (鄭文燦), when asked to comment on the issue in a radio interview, said that while it does not hurt to have such discussions in the party’s national congress meeting, “the existing Resolution of Taiwan’s Future already includes the idea of maintaining the cross-strait ‘status quo.’”
Former DPP legislator Lin Cho-shui (林濁水) criticized the new proposal.
“Recently some people have been criticizing ‘independence’ as an extreme political doctrine, therefore the DPP should adopt a clause to maintain the ‘status quo’ and give up Taiwanese independence,” Lin said. “Why is every American saying that the US is an independent nation? Why are China, Japan, Germany and all nations believe they are independent nations?”
“Perhaps the truth is that every nation in the world follows some extreme political doctrine and Taiwan should be the only ‘non-independent’ nation in the world to be non-extreme,” Lin said.
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if the next president of that country decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said today. “We would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said during a legislative hearing. At the same time, Taiwan is paying close attention to the Central American region as a whole, in the wake of a visit there earlier this year by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Lin said. Rubio visited Panama, El Salvador, Costa Rica and Guatemala, during which he