Taiwan - '1 ROC, 2 areas' is more accurate, says Taiwan

Taiwan's Presidential Office said yesterday that “one ROC, two areas” is the more precise formulation of the “one country, two areas” concept.

Late Thursday, Kuomintang (KMT) Honorary Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung's told Communist Party of China (CPC) leader Hu Jintao in Beijing that President Ma Ying-jeou backs the notion of “one country, two areas” and that “relations between Taiwan and China are not state-to-state relations, but 'special' relations.”

“One country, two areas” is an unprecedented term for cross-strait relations. The KMT's traditional stance is “one China, with different interpretations.”

Responding to Wu's remarks yesterday, Presidential Office spokesman Fan Chiang Tai-chi said the “one country, two areas” concept is “obviously true.”

The statement, recast with greater precision, is “one Republic of China, two areas,” he said, noting that the ROC Constitution and the 1992 Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area both say that the ROC encompasses Taiwan and mainland China.

'Three Nos' Stand

President Ma's “Three Nos” of “no unification, no independence and no use of force” has never changed, said Fan Chiang.

President Ma has also never wavered in his support for the “1992 Consensus” as the basis for cross-strait relations, he said.

According to the “1992 Consensus,” each side of the Taiwan Strait agrees that there is only “one China,” but each is free to decide what “one China” means.

'Biggest obstacle' to FTA is Ma: DPP

Meanwhile, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Chun-yi said yesterday that Ma's position on Taiwan is the “biggest obstacle” to a free trade agreement (FTA).

Taiwan-Singapore talks over a FTA commenced last May under promising conditions but have since faltered, said Lee at a Legislative Yuan interpellation session yesterday afternoon.

“The real problem is that the Ma administration won't say that Taiwan is a sovereign, independent nation,” Lee said, addressing Premier Sean Chen.

Chen denied that FTA negotiations with Singapore have slowed.

“There is no timetable, but progress has not fallen behind,” said Chen, who also described Wu's statement in Beijing as“very straightforward.”

“What he meant is that according to the ROC Constitution, it's one ROC, two areas,” said Chen.

“Are you able to tell the nation - as head of the Executive Yuan - that Taiwan is a sovereign country?” asked Lee.

“The Republic of China is a sovereign country,” said Chen.

“You've said you want your Cabinet to give people some peace of mind. But you know what we call you? The Distressing Cabinet. The Secretive Cabinet. Step Down Cabinet,” said Lee.

At the DPP headquarters, party spokesman Lo Chih-cheng said that accepting “one country, two areas” is equal to renouncing the ROC “It's a tremendous change to Taiwan's democracy and sovereignty,” said Lo.

Former DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen said that Wu's statement is “risky.” Late yesterday, Tsai called on the President to personally clarify his position on cross-strait relations.

Authorised by Ma: Wu

Wu used the idiom “if a friend asks for a favor, you should do your utmost to help” to explain his remarks in the meeting, according to an aide from Wu's entourage to the mainland.

The aide emphasised that Wu had not transgressed when he made the statement, and that Wu's mood has not been affected by the current domestic controversy.

Besides that, all that should be stated has already been stated and Wu will not comment further, said the aide, adding that the Presidential Office and the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) are handling the issue.

Wu confirmed that his comments were authorised by the president, according to a report from the local daily, China Times.

Meanwhile, the mainland Chinese China News Agency reported that Wu had focused on the peaceful development of cross-strait relations and the importance of not entering into “civil war”.

Enru Lin

The China Post

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