PLA Daily: Why Mainland Never Pledged Not to Use Force
The Liberation Army Daily, the newspaper run by the armed forces of China, carries a commentary Saturday titled "Why We Have Never Promised to Abandon the Use of Force."
Lee Teng-hui, despite strong accusations from at home and abroad, has insisted on including his "two-states" statement in a Kuomintang resolution, and also wants to conform it in other legal forms, the commentary says.
Facts indicate that "this stubborn element who has lost national conscience" has gone farther on the road towards splitting the motherland, it says.
Peace or war is the only solution for the Taiwan issue, the paper says, recalling that as an inalienable part of Chinese territory, Taiwan has experienced warfare and chaos and was occupied by foreign invaders several times.
The Chinese people have showed the utmost fortitude in struggles to defend the territorial integrity of the motherland, the paper says, pointing out that in history China had adopted the use of force several times in efforts to recover Taiwan from the hands of foreigners, including the Dutch and Japanese invaders.
Since the founding of New China, the Communist Party of China ( CPC) has also faced these two solutions, peace and war, the paper says. It comments that since the 1950s, and especially since 1979, the CPC has tried to deal with the Taiwan issue by peaceful means.
The commentary goes on to say that Deng Xiaoping was the advocate of the principal guideline of "peaceful reunification and one country, two systems." Deng had even pledged to grant a more favorable policy to Taiwan, namely to copy the policy toward Hong Kong and, moreover, allow the island keep its own army after reunification.
On the day of the Spring Festival in 1995, President Jiang Zemin put forwards his "eight proposals" and reiterated that " everything can be negotiated, under the premise of one China." This stance was warmly supported by Chinese at home and abroad, according to the paper.
The paper says that the Chinese Communists have been sincere and showed utmost humanity and duty by insisting on their stance of peaceful reunification of the motherland. It accuses Lee Teng- hui for his repeated rejection of the stance of the CPC and the Chinese government and insistence on splitting Taiwan from the motherland.
"How could we promise to abandon the use of force while facing such an evil attempt?" the paper asks.
The commentary says that the policy of making no promise to abandon the use of force is a result of strategic consideration, acting as a reliable guarantee for the implementation of the great cause of reunification.
If such a promise were made, peaceful reunification will become more difficult, it says, stressing that the reunification of the motherland is in the supreme interest of the entire nation.
It asks: "Who will take the responsibility for losing the integrated territory of the motherland which has been passed down from generation to generation?"
The paper stresses that on the issue of safeguarding state sovereignty and territorial integrity, China counts no cost and abandons no solution, including the use of force, if necessary.
China's refusal to abandon the possible use of force is not aimed at the Taiwan compatriots, but rather at a handful of separatist forces who are engaged in plotting "Taiwan independence ", the commentary says.
If people like Lee Teng-hui are in power in Taiwan, it is not right to have only one solution, peace, the paper says.
It also stresses that China does not make the promise, because there is interference by foreign forces, and that the Taiwan issue is purely an internal issue of China, and will not be resolved by foreign interference.
The paper says that China retains the possible use of force in order to make the utmost effort for peaceful reunification, and avoid the use of force.
The People's Liberation Army of China firmly supports the stance of the Chinese government which hopes to resolve the Taiwan issue by peaceful means. But "we have no choice," if Lee Teng-hui persists in attempts to separate Taiwan from China, and adds that Lee Teng-hui must be responsible for all consequences resulting from his stance. (Xinhua)
Opinion 1999-09-11 Page2
Copyright by People's Daily Online
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