Taiwan and China are not subordinate to each other and only Taiwanese can decide on the nation’s future, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday.
The party issued the remarks following former legislative speaker Wang Jin-pyng’s (王金平) proposal of a new cross-strait formula based on “separate governance without division” between Taiwan and China.
The Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) Wang on Sunday said that “the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are not subordinate to each other in terms of governance, but share sovereignty without division.”
Photo: Taipei Times
His proposal acknowledges the reality that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are governed separately, while “pragmatically” keeping avenues open for fostering peaceful relations, Wang said.
DPP China Affairs Director Wu Jun-zhi (吳峻鋕) yesterday said that Taiwanese are determined to safeguard the nation’s democracy and freedom.
“The DPP supports having dialogue with China based on mutual respect and dignity, through healthy and orderly engagement,” he said. “When Beijing shows willingness to stop intimidation and recognizes the existence of Republic of China [ROC, Taiwan], the two sides can immediately start to have dialogue.”
KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) yesterday said his party supported cross-strait exchanges and “welcomes anyone making contributions or efforts on behalf of cross-strait peace.”
Wang’s proposal is intended to “promote cross-strait peace — to allow for cross-strait exchanges and dialogue based on existing foundations, and we support and approve of that,” he said.
Separately, the Mainland Affairs Council yesterday said that the nation’s cross-strait narrative must ensure Taiwan’s free and democratic system, and recognize the ROC’s existence.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) yesterday said that differentiating “governance” and “sovereignty” can easily cause terminological confusion.
President William Lai’s (賴清德) “four pillars of peace” action plan and “four commitments” have clearly stated Taiwan’s stance, Lin said.
The “four commitments” were first mentioned by former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) in her National Day Address in 2021. They include “a free and democratic constitutional system,” “the ROC and the People’s Republic of China should not be subordinate to each other,” “resist annexation or encroachment upon our sovereignty,” and “the future of the ROC must be decided according to the will of Taiwanese.”
Lai proposed the “four pillars of peace” action plan earlier this year which involves strengthening self-defense, enhancing economic security, deepening democratic ties and engaging in dialogue.
Additional reporting by Lee I-chia and CNA
Taiwan yesterday condemned the recent increase in Chinese coast guard-escorted fishing vessels operating illegally in waters around the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. Unusually large groupings of Chinese fishing vessels began to appear around the islands on Feb. 15, when at least six motherships and 29 smaller boats were sighted, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said in a news release. While CGA vessels were dispatched to expel the Chinese boats, Chinese coast guard ships trespassed into Taiwan’s restricted waters and unsuccessfully attempted to interfere, the CGA said. Due to the provocation, the CGA initiated an operation to increase
A crowd of over 200 people gathered outside the Taipei District Court as two sisters indicted for abusing a 1-year-old boy to death attended a preliminary hearing in the case yesterday afternoon. The crowd held up signs and chanted slogans calling for aggravated penalties in child abuse cases and asking for no bail and “capital punishment.” They also held white flowers in memory of the boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), who was allegedly tortured to death by the sisters in December 2023. The boy died four months after being placed in full-time foster care with the
CHANGING LANDSCAPE: Many of the part-time programs for educators were no longer needed, as many teachers obtain a graduate degree before joining the workforce, experts said Taiwanese universities this year canceled 86 programs, Ministry of Education data showed, with educators attributing the closures to the nation’s low birthrate as well as shifting trends. Fifty-three of the shuttered programs were part-time postgraduate degree programs, about 62 percent of the total, the most in the past five years, the data showed. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) discontinued the most part-time master’s programs, at 16: chemistry, life science, earth science, physics, fine arts, music, special education, health promotion and health education, educational psychology and counseling, education, design, Chinese as a second language, library and information sciences, mechatronics engineering, history, physical education
The Shanlan Express (山嵐號), or “Mountain Mist Express,” is scheduled to launch on April 19 as part of the centennial celebration of the inauguration of the Taitung Line. The tourism express train was renovated from the Taiwan Railway Corp’s EMU500 commuter trains. It has four carriages and a seating capacity of 60 passengers. Lion Travel is arranging railway tours for the express service. Several news outlets were invited to experience the pilot tour on the new express train service, which is to operate between Hualien Railway Station and Chihshang (池上) Railway Station in Taitung County. It would also be the first tourism service
RSS