TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Tuesday (July 18) issued a rebuttal to Foxconn founder Terry Gou's (郭台銘) suggestion that Taiwan enters negotiations with China on a "one China framework" to bring peace and stability to the strait.
On Monday (July 17), Gou, who is considered a potential independent presidential candidate, posted an op-ed in the Washington Post titled, "Taiwan abandoning the one-China framework aggravates the risk of war." Gou criticized President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Vice President and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Lai Ching-te (賴清德) for rejecting what he labeled the "one China framework."
Gou claimed that under the "1992 Consensus," Taiwan and China "agreed to accept the framework of 'one China.'" Although the Kuomintang's (KMT) definition says that under the consensus, there is "one China" with each side differing on its interpretation, Gou labeled it as the "one-China framework" and repeatedly used the term in his op-ed.
Gou said he has long advocated for the resumption of cross-strait negotiations between Taipei and Beijing as the "only way to truly ease tensions and to preserve Taiwan’s democracy, freedom and rule of law." Gou believes the framework provides space for Taiwan to "fully protect its democracy, freedom and way of life" and that it is essential to come to an agreement to "pull us back from the precipice."
In a press release on Tuesday (July 18), the MAC issued a four-point response to Gou's remarks:
First, it said there has never been a "one China, respective interpretations framework," only the "one China principle framework" unilaterally set up by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) with the "intention of eliminating the Republic of China and annexing Taiwan." The council said, "Mr. Gou is either completely ignorant of the CCP's political plot against Taiwan, or he is deliberately beautifying the CCP's attempt to destroy the Republic of China and annex Taiwan."
Second, the MAC said that according to the "One China Principle" white paper published by the CCP, the government of the Republic of China is only a "local authority" within the territory of China. Taking the "1992 Consensus" as a prerequisite for cross-strait dialogue and forcing Taiwan to interact with it as a "local government" is "contrary to the fact that Taiwan, the Republic of China, is a sovereign state. The people of Taiwan will never accept it, and we believe that no leader of the Republic of China would ever hold such a political stance.”
Third, it emphasized that Taiwan is a sovereign country and has never been part of the People's Republic of China. "The two sides of the Taiwan Strait are not affiliated to each other" is the status quo and objective fact of the Taiwan Strait, the MAC said.
Fourth, the council said the government’s cross-strait policies are consistent, and cross-strait affairs are handled in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of China and the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area. The MAC added that since Tsai took office, she has "steadfastly adhered to the 'Four Commitments' and will have 'Four Areas of Resilience' to defend national sovereignty, democracy, and freedom."
