TAICHUNG, Taiwan — Tens of thousands of opposition demonstrators marched through the streets of the central Taiwanese city of Taichung on Sunday, ahead of the arrival of a senior Chinese envoy for trade talks that some on the island fear could eventually lead to unification.
The demonstrators chanted pro-independence slogans and waved anti-China banners to protest the visit of China’s top Taiwan negotiator, Chen Yunlin, whom they view as a stalking horse for Beijing’s proclaimed policy of bringing Taiwan back into its fold. The sides split amid civil war in 1949.
Chen was scheduled to arrive in Taichung today for five days of talks. He is set to sign four new commercial accords with Taiwanese officials, adding to the 10 already in the books.
Protester Hsu Wen, a 55-year-old businessman from the southern city of Kaohsiung, said Chen’s visit would help pave the way for a loss of Taiwan’s hard-won democratic freedoms and its virtual independence.
“It’s all very clear [China] wants to use the economy as a means to force us to unification,” Hsu said.
Buoyed by a strong showing in local elections earlier this month, the Democratic Progressive Party sponsored Sunday’s demonstration to press home its message that President Ma Ying-jeou’s signature policy of tightening economic links with Beijing is threatening the well-being of Taiwan’s people and paving the way for a Chinese takeover.
Since assuming office in May 2008, Ma has eased cross-strait tensions to their lowest level in 60 years, turning his back on his predecessor Chen Shui-Bian’s pro-independence policies amid a welter of business-boosting initiatives.
They include launching regular air and sea links between the sides and ending across-the-board restrictions on Chinese investment in Taiwan - precursors, Ma says, to a partial Taiwan-China trade agreement meant to be signed next year.
Police put Sunday’s crowd in Taichung at 20,000-30,000. Some 500 officers were on hand to control the protesters, mindful that a visit by Chen late last year provoked repeated clashes between authorities and demonstrators. There were no reports of trouble.
Taiwan’s powerful business community stronglyfavors Ma’s approach, seeing it as necessary to prevent the island’s economic marginalization amid growing trade ties between Beijing and neighboring Asian countries.
Washington also supports it enthusiastically. Despite shifting its China recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979, the U.S. remains Taiwan’s most important ally and fears being drawninto the armed conflict that Beijing threatens would follow any opposition move to formalize Taiwan’s independence. It sees Ma’s policies as strongly reducing that possibility.
The Democratic Progressive Party, however, believes the president’s China-friendly push sets the stage for an eventual Chinese takeover of the island, an accusation Ma denies.
Front Section, Pages 4 on 12/21/2009