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Taiwan, China should not rush into agreements: ex-premier Hsieh

ROC Central News Agency

2008-05-29 16:22:58

    Taipei, May 29 (CNA) Former Premier Frank Hsieh said Thursday that governments on both sides of the Taiwan Strait should have patience in dealing with cross-strait exchanges and should not rush into any agreements.

    The defeated presidential candidate's comments came a day after ruling Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung met with his Communist Party of China (CPC) counterpart Hu Jintao in Beijing Wednesday in a first-ever summit between a Taiwanese ruling party and the Communist Party of China.

    The meeting is widely seen as an attempt by both sides to focus on improving relations rather than on differences, namely involving Taiwan's sovereignty.

    However, during the meeting, Wu's avoidance of referring to Ma Ying-jeou as president and his insistence on using "Chinese" instead of "China" to refer to Taiwan and China raised questions about whether this downgraded Taiwan to a local government.

    In response to this, Hsieh said that while he finds communication and negotiation to be good for bilateral relations between Taiwan and China, Taiwan does not have to take so many steps back. "Cross-strait exchanges take patience, " the former premier said. "While communication is good, one should not rush into conclusion." "We should keep our dignity and sovereignty and the government should consider how people feel, " he said. "If one can make so many concessions, why do we need wisdom?"

    He added that true wisdom is to maintain dignity without resulting in any conflict.

    Hsieh made the remarks in a press conference on oil price hikes held by the Shadow Government, a non-governmental organization founded by Hsieh after the March 22 presidential election to monitor the government.

    Hsieh said he would like to keep his promises to the 5.44 million people who voted for him, by speaking up on behalf of the lower middle class and serving as a watchdog on the new government. "The Shadow Government also provides a platform for the young generation to learn how to supervise the government and to elevate the quality of politics in Taiwan," he said.

(By Rachel Chan)

Enditem/CS