牽手和分手來自同一雙手

Apr 16, 2006 Beijing

Hu Jintao said Taiwan and China should resume talks on an equal footing and on the basis of a 1992 consensus, in which the two sides agreed the island and the mainland were part of "One China."

China and Taiwan split in 1949 after a civil war. Since then China has considered independently-ruled Taiwan a breakaway province that must be reunited with the mainland, by force if necessary.

Mr. Hu made the call for early negotiations Sunday in a televised meeting with Lien Chan, the former chairman of Taiwan's main opposition party. Mr. Lien was in Beijing for a cross-straits economic forum. 

Mr. Hu says ignoring the people's wishes, some people are denying the consensus of 1992 and deliberately damaging the status quo, which is that the mainland and Taiwan belong to one China. He adds that only by honoring the consensus can the two sides achieve the goal of peaceful development and common prosperity.

China has also repeatedly stressed the importance of improving economic ties with Taiwan and on Saturday pledged a package of trade and economic benefits, including aviation, agriculture and finance deals. 

Mr. Hu also announced that China's economy grew by more than 10 percent in the first quarter of this year. However, he insisted China was not deliberately pursuing high-speed growth and was more concerned about the environment and people's livelihood.


ref:] VOA News