If China and Taiwan achieve peaceful reunification, Friday's meeting between Chinese president Hu Jintao of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and chairman Lien Chan of the Kuomintang (KMT) will be remembered as the first step. The two parties once fought a united front against an imperialist power, and have agreed on "Three Links" for peaceful reunification. Next month, the head of the KMT's sister party, the People First Party (PFP), will also visit the mainland to meet with Hu.
Ironically it was the reelection of Taiwanese president Chen Shui-bian and his Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) pursuit of Taiwanese independence that contributed to the meeting. China has been pressuring Chen with among other things the "anti-secession law" that it passed last month, and the heightened tension is what led the KMT to decide to act. In that sense the limitations of the meeting are clear. Reportedly less than half of Taiwan's population supported the talks. If China and the KMT cannot encourage positive change in Chen's attitude, then it might lead instead to a heightening of tensions.
Nevertheless, it is still very significant when China's ruling camp and Taiwan's largest opposition party start talking officially about peaceful reunification. The issue of independence has sharply divided Taiwanese politics since the DPP took power; maybe Taiwan's political factions will take this opportunity to come up with concrete reunification proposals. Here in Korea we need to think of intra-Korean reunification, and the idea that Taiwan would change its constitution to declare independence, despite the fact China has always said it would use military force to keep that from happening, is strange for us. We hope Friday's meeting will mean a step ahead in the discussion about peaceful reunification.
The Hankyoreh, 30 April 2005.
[Translations by Seoul Selection (PMS)]
[Editorial] China and Taiwan, Closer to Peaceful Reunification |
