China might be offering benefits to local governments that align with their interests, academics said, following Taitung County Commissioner Yao Ching-ling’s (饒慶鈴) visit to China.
Yao, a member of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), last week led a delegation to Beijing and met with China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) Director Song Tao (宋濤) on Saturday.
“Thank you to the mainland for resuming and expanding the import of Taitung’s sugar apple,” Yao was quoted by Chinese news platform Xinhua Net as telling Song during their meeting. “By supporting the ‘[so-called] 1992 consensus’ and opposing Taiwanese independence, we can promote the peaceful development of cross-strait relations and benefit both sides.”
Photo: CNA
The “1992 consensus” refers to a tacit understanding between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge that there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
In Taipei, a government official who wished not to be identified yesterday said Yao and the delegation applied to the Mainland Affairs Council to travel to China, but did not inform them that they would meet Song.
However, it is not surprising that a KMT politician would mention the “1992 consensus” in Beijing, the official said.
The Democratic Progressive Party has never acknowledged the existence of the “consensus.”
China in June 2023 announced it would conditionally resume importing sugar apples from Taitung. China also resumed imports of wendan (文旦) pomeloes in September last year, with the requirement that all products come from registered orchards and packaging plants.
At the time, the TAO said that as long as there is support for the “1992 consensus” and opposition to Taiwanese independence, anything can be discussed.
On Sept. 25 last year, China ended its policy exempting 34 Taiwanese agricultural products from tariffs, with sugar apples and pomeloes facing tariffs of 20 percent and 12 percent respectively.
Yao may have fought for tax exemption during this trip to Beijing, although no announcement has been made, the official said.
Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) yesterday said that it is important for the TAO to create an atmosphere of “large-scale cross-strait exchanges” this year ahead of the local elections next year.
Arranging for Taitung County officials to visit Beijing serves a specific purpose, as Taitung is governed by the KMT, Wu added.
Yao’s statement was tied to Taitung’s agricultural products, creating the sense that as long as there is support for the “1992 consensus,” products can be sold to China, he said.
China might try to influence local elections next year in an attempt to “besiege the central government with local influence,” he added.
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