Accepting Beijing’s “one China” principle and the so-called “1992 consensus” would be tantamount to Taiwan giving up its sovereignty, Vice President William Lai (賴清德) said in Miaoli County yesterday.
Lai, the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential nominee, made the remarks at the launch of a campaign group, while expressing his continued support for the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait.
Taiwan would grow and move forward if it upholds its sovereignty, he said.
Photo: Tsai Cheng-min, Taipei Times
Taiwan would regress to autocracy if voters accept the “one China” principle or the “1992 consensus,” Lai said, adding that only when there is sovereignty is there true peace.
On Saturday, at another campaign event in Chiayi City, Lai accused China of fear-mongering about a potential war to lead Taiwanese to select a political party that it favors.
Lai urged Taiwanese voters to use their ballots to counter the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the presidential election scheduled for Jan. 13 next year.
If Taiwan lets China dictate its election results, it would be the end of the road for democracy, he said.
If a war breaks out, it would be because of a dictatorship, not the DPP, he said.
As Taiwan faces growing military threats from China, people have to take them seriously and not bow to the Chinese dictatorship, he said, adding that if Taiwan’s election results in the wrong choice, there would be no way to return.
The presidential election is not a decision between war and peace, he added.
The “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 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the CCP that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge that there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
The DPP rejects the “1992 consensus,” saying that agreeing to it implies acceptance of China’s claim over Taiwan. It has also drawn a parallel between the “1992 consensus” and Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for Taiwan, but there is no evidence that Beijing demands Taiwan to accept the latter for relations to be restored.
There has been a virtual freeze in cross-strait relations since 2016, when President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) took office and rejected the “1992 consensus” that had underpinned closer cross-strait ties during the KMT administration of president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) from 2008 to 2016.
Civil society groups yesterday protested outside the Legislative Yuan, decrying Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) efforts to pass three major bills that they said would seriously harm Taiwan’s democracy, and called to oust KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁). It was the second night of the three-day “Bluebird wintertime action” protests in Taipei, with organizers announcing that 8,000 people attended. Organized by Taiwan Citizen Front, the Economic Democracy Union (EDU) and a coalition of civil groups, about 6,000 people began a demonstration in front of KMT party headquarters in Taipei on Wednesday, organizers said. For the third day, the organizers asked people to assemble
Taipei is participating in Osaka’s Festival of Lights this year, with a 3m-tall bubble tea light installation symbolizing Taiwan’s bubble tea culture. The installation is designed as a bubble tea cup and features illustrations of Taipei’s iconic landmarks, such as Taipei 101, the Red House and North Gate, as well as soup dumplings and the matchmaking deity the Old Man Under the Moon (月下老人), affectionately known as Yue Lao (月老). Taipei and Osaka have collaborated closely on tourism and culture since Taipei first participated in the festival in 2018, the Taipei City Department of Information and Tourism said. In February, Osaka represented
POOR IMPLEMENTATION: Teachers welcomed the suspension, saying that the scheme disrupted school schedules, quality of learning and the milk market A policy to offer free milk to all school-age children nationwide is to be suspended next year due to multiple problems arising from implementation of the policy, the Executive Yuan announced yesterday. The policy was designed to increase the calcium intake of school-age children in Taiwan by drinking milk, as more than 80 percent drink less than 240ml per day. The recommended amount is 480ml. It was also implemented to help Taiwanese dairy farmers counter competition from fresh milk produced in New Zealand, which is to be imported to Taiwan tariff-free next year when the Agreement Between New Zealand and
IDENTITY SHIFT: Asked to choose to identify as either Taiwanese or Chinese, 83.3 percent of respondents chose Taiwanese, while 8.4 percent chose Chinese An overwhelming majority of Taiwanese, 71.5 percent, think that Taiwan should compete in international competitions under the name “Taiwan,” a Taiwan Brain Trust survey published yesterday showed. Referring to Taiwan’s victory last month at the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s Premier12, the survey results showed that 89.1 percent of respondents said that Taiwan’s exceptional performance in sporting competitions furthers national unity. Only 18.8 percent of respondents supported Taiwanese teams’ continued use of the name “Chinese Taipei” in international sporting competitions, the survey showed. Among Taiwan’s leading political parties, the name “Team Taiwan” was supported by 91.1 percent of self-identified Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) supporters,
RSS