TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Former Premier Frank Hsieh criticized the government Saturday for allowing relations between Taiwan and China to become a playground for the Kuomintang and the Chinese Communist Party.

He was referring to Thursday’s meeting between KMT Honorary Chairman Wu Po-hsiung and CCP General Secretary Xi Jinping, who also serves as president of China. The former said relations between Taiwan and China should take place under a ‘One China Framework,’ igniting concern that Wu and the KMT were giving in to Chinese demands. The government later explained that ‘One China’ meant the Republic of China.

Speaking in the margin of a seminar organized by the Taiwan Democracy Foundation Saturday, Hsieh said it was not in Taiwan’s interest that relations with China were being turned into merely relations between the two ruling parties.

The administration of President Ma Ying-jeou should choose to take the stance most beneficial to Taiwan and seek a national consensus, Hsieh said. If ‘One China’ meant the People’s Republic of China, that was extremely negative for Taiwan, and if it meant the Republic of China, it would not gain acceptance from other nations, he cautioned.

The best solution for Taiwan would be just to avoid the ‘One China’ formula completely because that would mean it was not realistic and not an existing situation, Hsieh said.

The former premier said there should be mutual respect between Taiwan and China, with neither side condemning the other and its Constitution as illegitimate.

He criticized the government for only mentioning ‘One China’ when its officials visited Beijing, while adding the formula ‘Each His Own Interpretation’ only when addressing domestic public opinion. The full formula was supposedly agreed upon during cross-straits talks in 1992, and has therefore become known as the ‘1992 Consensus.’ Critics say the consensus does not exist because China never mentions that each side can have its own interpretation of the ‘One China’ concept.

During his meeting with Xi, Wu also expressed the wish for a quick opening of Straits Exchange Foundation offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou while China’s Association for Relations across the Taiwan Straits wanted to open a representative office in Taipei.

Hsieh said Taiwan’s offices represented the government so they should not be downgraded or considered as representatives of a local government with a central government.

Nevertheless, he said that Wu’s mention of a ‘One China Framework’ probably did not violate the present wording of the Constitution, despite criticisms in that sense from the opposition Democratic Progressive Party, which Hsieh used to lead. He reportedly said that the DPP should accept the present Constitution, while the KMT should stop constitutional claims that the Republic of China also represented China and other territories.

During a groundbreaking visit to China last year, Hsieh made remarks in favor of the Republic of China Constitution which led to critical reactions from within the DPP.

The main opposition party last month held the first meeting of its China Affairs Committee, which Hsieh was initially expected to lead. In the event, party chairman Su Tseng-chang went on to serve as the committee’s convener.

Beginning June 20, the DPP will host a series of discussions and debates about China policies. Su will preside over the opening event, which will discuss the core values and prospects of the DPP stance on China.

The ‘1992 Consensus’ will be the topic of the second discussion, to be chaired by Tainan Mayor William Lai, a member of the CAC, the party announced Saturday. About 80 to 90 people are expected to show up for each of the nine events, the party said.

