Taiwan's discriminative trade policy, not the
one-China policy of the Chinese mainland, is the major reason
preventing the cross-Straits trade normalization, said Li Weiyi,
spokesman for the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office at a press
conference in Beijing Wednesday.
"The assertion of Taiwan authorities totally turns
things upside down," Li said, commenting on their charge that trade
abnormality across the Straits resulted from the delay of bilateral
negotiations due to political preconditions of the?Chinese
mainland.
He pointed out that the Chinese mainland is
Taiwan's largest export destination while Taiwan is the second
largest import source of the Chinese mainland. But up to September
this year, Chinese mainland's accumulated trade deficit to Taiwan
has reached US$261 billion owing to the intentional, restrictive
measures by Taiwan authorities.
Taiwan authorities have launched a large amount of
restrictions on products and services from the Chinese mainland,
which seriously blocked the trade normalization between them, he
said.
Meanwhile, Li pointed out that Taiwan, an
inseparable part of China, is not eligible to enter the UN, an
organization of only sovereign states.
He said that China's UN membership represents both
the mainland and Taiwan, which has been resolved at political,
legal and procedural level already for a long time.
The spokesman said the idea of applying for
membership of UN using the name of Taiwan was another step Taiwan
leader Chen Shui-bian will make to push for independence.
"However, any moves running counter to the purposes
and principles of the UN Charter and Resolution 2758 made by the UN
General Assembly and challenging the one-China principle widely
acknowledged internationally could by no means be agreed and
supported by member countries of the UN," the spokesman said.
Li also pointed out that the attempt of Chen's
education reform is to change Taiwan's education into ideological
education for "Taiwan independence." Behind all his activities he
wants to increase tension and hostility across the Straits, he
said.
"The facts have showed that Chen has never stopped
the attempt to promote 'Taiwan independence'," he said.
Taiwan local media recently quoted Chen as saying
that Taiwan needs a great reform of education to settle "the
problem of self-identity."
Taiwan's "education department" is trying to amend
history textbooks for high school students following ideas of
"Taiwan independence," according to local media reports.
Taiwan is an inseparable part of China, a fact
recognized in the Cairo Declaration and Potsdam Proclamation, Li
said.
The Cairo Declaration was signed by leaders of
three allied nations, China, the United States and Britain, on
December 1, 1943, demanding that all the territories Japan occupied
from China, such as the northeastern parts of China, Taiwan and the
Penghu Islands, be returned to China.
Commenting on Chen's recent remarks that claimed
Taiwan to be a "sovereign state" and needing a fresh
"constitution," the spokesman said: "This has once again exposed
Chen's true face of seeking independence."
"If Chen Shui-bian dares to use the so-called
'constitutional reform' to create any major incidents aimed at
independence, we will resolutely and completely crush such attempts
at all costs," Li warned.
He said Taiwan was never a "sovereign state," as
backed up by historical fact and laws and it is widely recognized
by the international community that Taiwan is an integral part of
the Chinese territory.
(Xinhua News Agency November 17, 2004)