Taiwan will never accept Beijing’s attempts to undermine its sovereignty, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday, after the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) at its National Day celebrations in Beijing vowed to achieve unification with Taiwan.
The CCP’s statement was not conducive to peaceful cross-strait relations, the council said.
The event, hosted by the Chinese State Council, featured Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (李克強), the other five CCP Politburo Standing Committee members and Vice President Wang Qishan (王岐山), as well as 500 guests from China and abroad.
Photo: REUTERS
Taiwanese based in China also attended the ceremony, Xinhua news agency said.
Li greeted “people of all ethnicities” in China, and extended “warmest regards” to “compatriots of Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and overseas.”
With regard to cross-strait relations, Li said it is imperative to implement the general strategies of the CPP to resolve the “Taiwan issue.”
China seeks to maintain and uphold the “one China” principle and the “1992 consensus” to oppose the “secession” of Taiwan, which is promoted from within Taiwan and by foreign entities seeking to meddle with China’s domestic affairs, Li said.
The council said the statement was an attempt to undermine the legitimacy and sovereignty of Taiwan.
“We will never accept such ideas,” it said.
The government is assessing whether Taiwanese attended the event, and urges Taiwanese not to become mouthpieces of the CCP and undermine Taiwan’s national interests, the council said.
Neither side of the Taiwan Strait “belongs” to the other, it said.
The council called on the CCP to respect the choices made by Taiwanese, saying that the international community strongly opposes Beijing’s attempts to disturb peace and the “status quo” across the Strait.
China’s National Day marks the anniversary of the proclamation of the People’s Republic of China on Oct. 1, 1949, before the then-Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government retreated to Taiwan.
China Central Television (CCTV) wished its followers on Sina Weibo a happy National Day, posting a picture with an “I Love You, China” slogan.
CELEBRITIES
The picture was quickly shared by the official social media accounts of China-friendly Taiwanese celebrities, including Ouyang Nana (歐陽娜娜), Rainie Yang (楊丞琳), Lin Chi-ling (林志玲), Jiro Wang (汪東城) and Janine Chang (張鈞甯), who added the phrase: “Best wishes for our fatherland, may it prosper and be strong.”
Lin’s post came after she in August was criticized by Chinese social media users after she did not repost a picture with the slogan “There is only one China” that was originally posted on the CCTV Web site in response to a Taiwan visit by US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
The so-called “1992 consensus” — a term that former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) in 2006 admitted making up in 2000 — refers to a tacit understanding between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Tropical Storm Gaemi strengthened into a typhoon at 2pm yesterday, and could make landfall in Yilan County tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The agency was scheduled to issue a sea warning at 11:30pm yesterday, and could issue a land warning later today. Gaemi was moving north-northwest at 4kph, carrying maximum sustained winds near its center of up to 118.8kph and gusts of 154.8kph. The circumference is forecast to reach eastern Taiwan tomorrow morning, with the center making landfall in Yilan County later that night before departing from the north coast, CWA weather forecaster Kuan Shin-ping (官欣平) said yesterday. Uncertainty remains and
DISRUPTIONS: The high-speed rail is to operate as normal, while several airlines either canceled flights or announced early departures or late arrivals Schools and offices in 15 cities and counties are to be closed today due to Typhoon Gaemi, local governments announced last night. The 15 are: Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Tainan, Keelung, Hsinchu and Kaohsiung, as well as Yilan, Hualien, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang counties. People should brace for torrential rainfall brought by the storm, with its center forecast to make landfall on the east coast between tonight and tomorrow morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The agency issued a sea warning for the typhoon at 11:30pm on Monday, followed by a land warning at 11:30am yesterday. As of
CASUALTY: A 70-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree in Kaohsiung as the premier warned all government agencies to remain on high alert for the next 24 hours Schools and offices nationwide are to be closed for a second day today as Typhoon Gaemi crosses over the nation, bringing torrential rain and whipping winds. Gaemi was forecast to make landfall late last night. From Tuesday night, its outer band brought substantial rainfall and strong winds to the nation. As of 6:15pm last night, the typhoon’s center was 20km southeast of Hualien County, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. It was moving at 19kph and had a radius of 250km. As of 3pm yesterday, one woman had died, while 58 people were injured, the Central Emergency Operation Center said. The 70-year-old
SEA SEARCH: Nine crew members of a cargo ship had taken to the water after the vessel sunk off the southern coast, with a rescue effort under way, officials said The strongest typhoon to hit Taiwan in eight years yesterday killed three people and flooded parts of the nation’s second-biggest city, while rescuers were searching for nine sailors after their cargo ship sank in the storm. Typhoon Gaemi transformed streets in Kaohsiung into rivers, with some households flooded. Offices and schools were closed for the second consecutive day, with thousands of people evacuated. Three people died and 380 were injured due to strong winds and torrential rainfall brought by Typhoon Gaemi, the Central Emergency Response Center said. The typhoon made landfall in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳) at midnight yesterday and departed Taiwan