President Tsai blasted Xi’s “one country, two systems” remark

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen blasted Chinese President Xi Jinping’s “one country, two systems” remark immediately after Xi delivered his half-hour long speech in Beijing on January 2, 2019.   Xi made the remark during an event marking the 40^th anniversary of the 1979 “Message to Compatriots in Taiwan” which called for the unification of China”.  In 1979, after officially establishing a diplomatic tie with the United States of American, China’s leader Deng Xiaoping issued a statement “Message to Compatriots in Taiwan” to open a new dialogue to the people in Taiwan.   This time, Xi announced plans to explore using the “one country, two systems” model with Taiwan.   Xi further explained that he would ensure that Taiwanese’s social system, way of life, personal property, religious beliefs and legal rights are fully respected and protected.   Xi listed five points for the promotion of peaceful development of cross-strait ties and peaceful unification.   However, Xi would not renounce the use of force against Taiwan.  In addition Xi mentioned the so-called “1992 consensus” and included “national unification’ as part of his definition of the “consensus”.  Su Chi, former Mainland Affairs Council Chairman under the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) administration, made up “1992 consensus” referring to an acknowledgement by both KMT and CCP (Chinese Communist Party).   Both sides acknowledged there is “One China”, with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.   From CCP’s interpretation, the People’s Republic of China (PROC) is the only China, while KMT claimed one China is Republic of China (ROC).    KMT used “1992 consensus” as a tactics to fool people in Taiwan, and in the mean time let China know that KMT prefers “One China” instead of “Two Chinas” or “One Taiwan, One China” in regard to political dispute between Taiwan and China.   President Tsai said that Taiwan and its people would never accept a “one country, two systems” arrangement and urged China to bravely embark on the path to democracy to fully understand the minds of Taiwanese.  On new-year day, President Tsai proposed “four musts” as the basis for moving cross-strait relations in a ppositive direction, vowing to establish mechanisms to safeguard Taiwan’s national security.   The four musts are: 1. China must recognize the existence of the Republic of China; 2. Respect the values of democracy and freedom Taiwan’s 23 million people hold dear; 3. Resolve cross-strait differences in a peaceful and equitable manner; 4. Engage in negotiations with the government of Taiwan or an institution with a mandate from the government.