Blue and Green Jointly Propose “Five Principles for Handling Cross-Strait Issues” to Defend Taiwan’s Sovereignty

We, who once belonged to different political parties and who during the martial-law era stood on different sides, have — out of loyalty to our nation and deep love for Taiwan — broken through the shackles and barriers of the mind. After months of meetings and discussion, we now, in our individual capacities, put forward “Five Principles” as a proposed solution to the “China question” or “Taiwan question” that has long troubled the governments and peoples on both sides of the Strait:

1. Respect the status quo, and do not change the status quo unilaterally.
2. The status quo is this: the Republic of China and the People’s Republic of China have coexisted since 1949, and the two governments have moved from being “belligerent governments” to “separately governing governments.”
3. The “One China principle” has been narrowed and ossified by some into a synonym for “the People’s Republic of China.” It neither reflects the cross-strait status quo nor is it increasingly acceptable to the 23 million Taiwanese people of the Republic of China. We propose replacing it with a “Greater One China Framework,” which alone accords with the status quo and opens the road to reconciliation.
4. The “Greater One China Framework” envisions the “Republic of China” and the “People’s Republic of China” jointly forming, above themselves, an incomplete international legal person that handles matters of mutual concern by consensus, as a transitional arrangement for the present stage of cross-strait relations.
5. Under the “Greater One China Framework,” the two sides should end hostilities and jointly maintain peace and security in the region. Both sides commit not to use force against each other, and not to sign with any other country military agreements detrimental to the other side; both sides shall enjoy the right to participate in the United Nations and other international organizations and to establish normal relations with other countries.

In the twentieth century, China went through a bloody civil war, and Taiwan endured long years of martial-law rule, leaving deep hostility and painful hatred. These emotions have become the cheapest fertilizer for partisan power struggles; manipulated through elections, they have made dialogue between Blue and Green difficult and kept the nation in a state of bloodless division, robbing it of a common direction of struggle. Even cross-strait policy, on which the nation’s survival and economic development depend, has been left to ideological manipulation, unable to break out of deadlock. A broken Taiwan has no future.

The step we take is only an opening — a beginning. We hope these principles, through the exchange of wisdom among people from all walks of life, will gradually become a consensus between the governing and opposition parties, a consensus of Taiwan, a consensus of the Republic of China, and in turn a cornerstone for the peaceful development of cross-strait relations. We pray earnestly: may our nation never forget the ideals of liberty, equality, and fraternity; may our government always remember the Constitution’s promise of government of the people, by the people, and for the people; may the light of tolerance and reconciliation lead all the people of Taiwan toward a better future, and leave hatred and hostility in the twentieth century.

Co-signatories:

Chang Wu-ueh (Graduate Institute of China Studies, Tamkang University)

Chiao Jen-ho (former Vice Chairman, Straits Exchange Foundation)

Hong Chi-chang (former Chairman, Straits Exchange Foundation)

Chen Ming-tong (former Minister, Mainland Affairs Council)

Su Chi (former Minister, Mainland Affairs Council)

Chen Chien-jen (former Minister of Foreign Affairs)

Shih Ming Te (former Chairman, Democratic Progressive Party)