"we cannot deny that in our country's Mainland Region there is a governing authority that is engaged in mutual interaction with us."Our country's Mainland region? Seriously? This is like the British saying:
"We cannot deny that in our country's American Region there is a governing authority that is engaged in mutual interaction with us".
The tell-tale give away about Ma's statement is that it could also be used by the PRC:
"we cannot deny that in our country's Taiwan Region there is a governing authority that is engaged in mutual interaction with us."
If ever there was evidence that Ma and the KMT are rapidly eroding the international barriers between Taiwan and China by converting them to domestic barriers, this is it. Since Ma loves to think he is a constitutional President, lets recap on some facts:
- The ROC Constitution does not name the territory of Taiwan or China or any geographical area specifically.
- The Act Governing Relations Between the Mainland Region and the Taiwan Region is an ACT only and not a part of the Constitution. It can therefore be amended and/or repealed by the Legislature without engaging the rules of Constitutional amendment or review.
- The ROC Constitution was not voted on by the Taiwanese people en masse and therefore lacks popular legitimacy.
- Maintaining the fiction that PRC controlled China is still a part of the ROC is a clear indicator that Ma and the KMT wholeheartedly support a unified One China - their goal is unification, no more, no less. Any claim to the contrary is subterfuge, obfuscation and mendacity.
- Since the end goal of unification is explicitly stated in the constitutional amendments, Taiwanese have no recourse to complain unless they collectively demand that the constitution be revised again to remove this goal and replace it with 'a determination of Taiwan's status and relationship with China following a vote by all the people of Taiwan on their future'.
