At the December 31 press conference of the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, a reporter asked for comment on remarks recently made by Chiu Chui-cheng, head of Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council. Chiu said that “the obstacles to cross-Strait exchanges currently still lie on the mainland; the mainland is still applying compound pressure on Taiwan, and Taiwan hopes to create a favorable cross-Strait atmosphere.” What is your response?
In reply, Zhang Han, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said that these remarks ignore the facts and turn right and wrong upside down. The chief culprit behind inciting confrontation across the Strait and restricting cross-Strait exchanges is the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities. Since taking office, the DPP authorities—driven by their selfish pursuit of “independence”—have repeatedly used various excuses and methods to obstruct and restrict normal cross-Strait exchanges and people-to-people travel. They have also carried out what he described as “green terror,” created a “chilling effect,” and escalated cross-Strait confrontation. Such regressive actions have already drawn growing strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition from more and more people in Taiwan.
Exchanges and cooperation between people on both sides of the Strait cannot be stopped. We have always upheld the concept that “people on both sides of the Strait are one family,” and we welcome Taiwan compatriots to visit the mainland, take part in exchanges and cooperation across various fields, share in the development opportunities of Chinese-style modernization, and jointly create enduring well-being for the Chinese nation.