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PLANS FOR 'PREVENTIVE' REFERENDUM NOT AFFECTED BY BUSH-WEN TALKS

2003-12-10 15:11:46

    Taipei, Dec. 10 (CNA) Taiwan's plans to hold a "preventive" referendum in the face of mainland China's military threat will not be changed as a result of Tuesday's meeting between mainland Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and U.S. President George W. Bush, the Executive Yuan spokesman said Wednesday.

    Spokesman Lin Chia-lung said the Bush-Wen talks have not affected President Chen Shui-bian's advocacy of a "preventive" referendum aimed at pushing Beijing to remove its missiles and other destructive weapons targeting Taiwan.

    Lin said that relations between Taiwan and the United States remain intact following the Bush-Wen meeting and that communications between the two countries are smooth, with both sides having a clear understanding of each other's ideas.

    After meeting with Wen Tuesday, President Bush said that the United States is committed to the "one-China" policy, with the three joint communiques and the Taiwan Relations Act being the bedrock of the Sino-U.S. relations. "We oppose any unilateral decision by either China or Taiwan to change the status quo. And the comments and actions made by the leader of Taiwan indicate that he may be willing to make decisions unilaterally to change the status quo, which we oppose, " Bush told the media after the meeting.

    Commenting on Bush's remarks, Lin said that the government is appreciative of the United States' efforts in maintaining stability across the Taiwan Strait.

    He added that the government also understands that the U.S. policy toward Taiwan is consistently based on the Taiwan Relations Act and the U.S.-Beijing three communiques and that the United States is opposed to any unilateral change in the cross-Taiwan Strait status quo.

    Lin said the government's promoting of a "preventive" referendum is a move reflecting that Taiwan's democracy has matured, and has nothing to do with the question of independence versus unification.

    He added that the "preventive referendum" advocated by President Chen will be based on the principles of the "four noes plus one" promise that he made in his 2000 inauguration speech and will not change Taiwan's status.

    The "four noes plus one" are: no declaration of independence, no change to the Republic of China's national title, no inclusion of the "state-to-state relationship" description of cross-Taiwan Strait ties in the ROC Constitution, no referendum on the unification versus independence question, and no abolishment of the existing National Reunification Council, so long as Beijing does not attack Taiwan.

    Lin also claimed that it is actually mainland China that is attempting to alter the cross-strait status quo by increasing the number of its ballistic missiles deployed against Taiwan by 50 to 75 per year.

    Taiwan has no choice but to let the world know its determination to safeguard its sovereignty and protect itself from being attacked, Lin stressed.

(By Deborah Kuo)

enditem/Li