Beijing’s official media outlet, Xinhua news agency, has praised the response of some of Macau and Hong Kong’s media to the Taiwanese President’s inauguration speech on Friday.
Claiming to cite Chinese-language newspapers in the two Special Administrative Regions, Xinhua acclaimed local publications for their conclusion that mainland China had “expressed [a] firm stance while revealing flexibility and enough goodwill.”
The accuracy of Xinhua’s assessment of the reaction from the Macau and Hong Kong press remains questionable however, especially as some alleged quotes from Hong Kong publications appear to be misattributed, while others could not be found at all.
A Xinhua article yesterday accredited Sing Pao Daily News, one of the oldest Chinese newspapers in Hong Kong, as having resolved that, “the Taiwan compatriots share blood ties with us and there is no force that can separate us.” However, according to a second, separate Xinhua article, this is a direct quote from the mainland’s Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council.
Xinhua also claimed Sing Pao warned that if Tsai refused to publicly accept the ‘One China’ principle, “her plan to participate in regional economic communities will be unrealistic.”
There was no article relating to the inauguration of Tsai Ing-wen on Sing Pao’s website yesterday when the Times tried to verify the attributed statement, and a search in the “Cross-Strait” section of the paper brought up no results.
Dancers perform during the inauguration ceremony of Taiwan’s pro-independence President Tsai Ing-wen, in Taipei
Macao Daily News said in its editorial on Saturday that Tsai has been inconsistent over China-Taiwan relations, “changing constantly,” and is becoming increasingly ambiguous on the issue.
The author of the editorial identifies herself in the piece “as a scholar who studies the history of Macau.” She came to the conclusion that Tsai’s desire for less reliance on the Mainland’s economy, together with her intention to keep relations stable, represents an inconsistency.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Headline Daily said that cross-
Straits relations would be adversely affected by Tsai’s opinions and that it would be difficult to have “positive interaction” between Beijing and Taipei if the new president is determined to maintain her position.
In her speech on Friday, Taiwan’s newly-inaugurated president Tsai Ing-wen failed to announce her adherence to the ‘One China’ principle, though she stated that she would seek common ground in cross-Straits relations.
Mainland governmental entities such as the Taiwan Affairs Office responded angrily, describing Tsai’s inauguration speech as an “incomplete test answer,” defying the “common will of people of both sides of the Straits [… to] strive for the prospect of China’s peaceful reunification.”
Taiwan’s counterpart organization, the Mainland Affairs Council, took a contrary view, saying that Tsai showed maximum flexibility and exemplified “good will” in her address. The council’s assessment of Tsai’s speech is almost identical to Xinhua’s summation of the Mainland’s reaction, though in reverse with each emphasizing their side’s flexibility, restraint and good will.
The entity added that it would continue to communicate with the Mainland’s Taiwan Affairs Office to maintain the bilateral channel [see more on page 10]. MDT
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