Taiwan rejects China's meddling in referendum plan
ROC Central News Agency
2007-09-06 17:16:30
Taipei, Sept. 6 (CNA) Taiwan is a sovereign state independent of the People's Republic of China and the country's democratic development should not be subject to interference from the totalitarian regime, a Presidential Office spokesman said Thursday.
The democratic development and future of Taiwan must be determined by the Taiwanese people themselves, said Presidential Office Deputy Secretary-General Chen Chi-mai.
He added that the planned referendum does not involve the question of changing the cross-Taiwan Strait status quo, nor does it violate President Chen Shui-bian's "four noes" pledges made during his inauguration.
Chen Chi-mai was responding to a statement by Chinese President Hu Jintao a day earlier in which he claimed that Taiwan's plan to hold a referendum on whether the country should apply to join the United Nations under the name Taiwan is a separatist move toward independence.
Hu said China is working to achieve peaceful unification and will never tolerate any attempts to "separate" Taiwan from China.
Hu made the remarks ahead of a meeting between himself and U.S. President George W. Bush scheduled to take place Thursday in Sydney, Australia on the sidelines of the informal leadership summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.
(By Y.F. Low)
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