Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday defended his statement that Taiwanese should not oppose unification, which he said is established by the Constitution.
Ma made the remark during a speech on cross-strait relations at Soochow University’s Chengzhong Campus in Taipei after a participant asked why Ma changed his “three noes” policy that underpinned cross-strait interactions during his eight-year presidency.
The “three noes” refers to Ma’s slogan of “no unification, no independence and no use of force.”
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
He on Nov. 7 revised his stance to “no opposition to unification” in a speech marking the third anniversary of his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平).
“Unification is a goal stipulated in our Constitution, but there is no timetable,” Ma said, adding that the process must be democratic and peaceful.
Ma said that he proposed the idea of “no opposition to unification,” because this was something that might happen, depending on the conditions and timing, and that he wanted to bring the issue to the attention of Taiwanese so that they could decide their own fate amid fluctuating cross-strait ties.
Regarding the so-called “1992 consensus,” Ma said that it is akin to a contract that has served as a political foundation for cross-strait ties.
“If you want to change it, it will need the consent of the other party. Otherwise it could jeopardize mutual trust across the Taiwan Strait,” he said.
Ma said the “consensus” was not fabricated by former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起), but rather proposed by the Straits Exchange Foundation under the guidance of then-president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) in November 1992 and accepted by the Chinese Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits.
The “1992 consensus” — a term Su in 2006 admitted making up in 2000 — refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Beijing that both sides acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Beijing has never publicly endorsed the existence of the “different interpretations” element.
Ma also questioned President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) policy of maintaining the cross-strait “status quo,” which Tsai said would remain unchanged, despite the Democratic Progressive Party’s losses in the Nov. 24 elections.
“Which ‘status quo’ is she referring to? The one under my administration or that under the administration of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁)?” Ma asked, adding that Chen’s lacked the “1992 consensus.”
ANOTHER EMERGES: The CWA yesterday said this year’s fourth storm of the typhoon season had formed in the South China Sea, but was not expected to affect Taiwan Tropical Storm Gaemi has intensified slightly as it heads toward Taiwan, where it is expected to affect the country in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, the 120km-radius storm was 800km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving at 9kph northwest, the agency said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued tonight at the earliest, it said, adding that the storm is projected to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday. Gaemi’s potential effect on Taiwan remains unclear, as that would depend on its direction, radius and intensity, forecasters said. Former Weather Forecast
As COVID-19 cases in Japan have been increasing for 10 consecutive weeks, people should get vaccinated before visiting the nation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said. The centers reported 773 hospitalizations and 124 deaths related to COVID-19 in Taiwan last week. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) on Tuesday said the number of weekly COVID-19 cases reported in Japan has been increasing since mid-May and surpassed 55,000 cases from July 8 to July 14. The average number of COVID-19 patients at Japan’s healthcare facilities that week was also 1.39 times that of the week before and KP.3 is the dominant
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) working group for Taiwan-related policies is likely to be upgraded to a committee-level body, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said. As Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is increasingly likely to upgrade the CCP’s Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, Taiwanese authorities should prepare by researching Xi and the CCP, the report said. At the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP, which ended on Thursday last week, the party set a target of 2029 for the completion of some tasks, meaning that Xi is likely preparing to
US-CHINA TRADE DISPUTE: Despite Beijing’s offer of preferential treatment, the lure of China has dimmed as Taiwanese and international investors move out Japan and the US have become the favored destinations for Taiwanese graduates as China’s attraction has waned over the years, the Ministry of Labor said. According to the ministry’s latest income and employment advisory published this month, 3,215 Taiwanese university graduates from the class of 2020 went to Japan, surpassing for the first time the 2,881 graduates who went to China. A total of 2,300 graduates from the class of 2021 went to the US, compared with the 2,262 who went to China, the document showed. The trend continued for the class of 2023, of whom 1,460 went to Japan, 1,334 went to