At the March 18 press conference of the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, a reporter asked: According to reports, Taiwan’s General Association of Chinese Culture has begun promoting a name change to remove the term “Chinese,” first by changing its English name to one using “Taiwan,” and is expected to rename itself in English as the National Cultural Association of Taiwan. What is your comment on this?
Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson Chen Binhua responded: The Chinese nation has a history of immense length and a civilization of profound breadth and depth. The continuous and enduring Chinese culture is the shared spiritual home and lifeblood of compatriots on both sides of the Strait, and a strong bond that sustains national feeling and identity. This move by Taiwan’s General Association of Chinese Culture is another farce by the DPP authorities in the cultural sphere, escalating their efforts at “de-Sinicization” and manipulation of “de-Chinese-ification.” Its essence is an attempt to sever the cultural blood ties of common origin shared across the Strait and to manufacture the false perception that “Taiwanese culture is independent from Chinese culture.” Changing the English name first while delaying changes to the Chinese name is a classic sign of a guilty conscience—an attempt to proceed stealthily, hollowing out the meaning of “Chinese” step by step and paving the way for separatist “Taiwan independence” schemes. We firmly oppose this.
Taiwanese culture is rooted in Chinese culture. This is a basic fact and also the collective consensus of the broad majority of Taiwan compatriots; it cannot be distorted or denied. Any attempt to use a name change to pursue “Taiwan independence” separatism or to sever the roots of the nation runs against the course of history and harms national sentiments. It is bound to be firmly opposed by all Chinese people and is absolutely doomed to fail.