President Hu Jintao said Friday that the Chinese people will do their best to seek peaceful reunification of the motherland but will never tolerate "Taiwan independence".

                       
President Hu Jintao shakes hands with a member of the third session of the 10th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference before joining them in group discussion March 4, 2005. [Xinhua]

"We will continue to make our greatest efforts with the utmost sincerity to seek the prospects of peaceful reunification. Meanwhile, we will never tolerate 'Taiwan independence' and never allow the 'Taiwan independence' secessionist forces to make Taiwan secede from the motherland under any name or by any means," said Hu, while joining in a joint panel discussion of CPPCC members representing the Taiwan region Friday afternoon.

China's top advisory body, the CPPCC (Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference) is now in an annual full session of its 2,000-strong-member National Committee in Beijing.

"Tremendous and complicated changes have taken place on the Taiwan island in recent years, and the intensified activities of the 'Taiwan independence' secessionist forces have posed a grave impact on the peaceful and stable development of across-Straits relations," said Hu, citing the Taiwan authorities' pursuit of a "creeping independence" by means of "rectification of Taiwan's name" and "desinification".

"The Taiwan authorities have deliberately provoked antagonism across the Taiwan Straits and tried every means to undermine the status quo that the mainland and Taiwan belong to one and the same China," said Hu.

Evidence has shown that the "Taiwan independence" secessionist forces and their activities are increasingly becoming the "biggest obstacle for the development of cross-Straits relations" and the "biggest real threat to peace and stability in the region around the Taiwan Straits", the president said.

"If we do not oppose and check the 'Taiwan independence' secessionist forces and their activities resolutely, they will certainly pose a severe threat to China's national sovereignty and territorial integrity, ruin the prospects of peaceful reunification, and harm the fundamental interests of the Chinese nation," he added.

The president acknowledged that at present, some "new and positive factors" that are conducive to checking the "Taiwan independence" secessionist activities have emerged in the cross-Straits relations, and the tense situation across the Straits has developed "certain signs of relaxation".

However, "the struggle against the 'Taiwan independence' secessionist forces and their activities remains stark and complex," he said.

                         
President Hu Jintao shakes hands with a member of the third session of the 10th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference before joining them in group discussion March 4, 2005. [Xinhua]

Four-point guidelines

Hu put forth a four-point guideline on the development of cross-Straits relations "under the new circumstances".

"First, never sway in adhering to the one-China principle," he said. "Adherence to the one-China principle serves as the cornerstone for developing cross-Straits relations and realizing peaceful reunification of the motherland."

Although the mainland and Taiwan are not yet reunified, the fact that the two sides belong to one and the same China has remained unchanged since 1949. "This is the status quo of cross-Straits relations," said Hu.

"The sticking point in the current development of cross-Straits relations lies in the fact that the Taiwan authorities have refused to recognize the one-China principle and the '1992 Consensus' which embodies this principle," said the president.

Dialogues and talks between the two sides of the Taiwan Straits can be resumed immediately, and can be carried out on whatever topics and issues, as long as the Taiwan authorities acknowledge the "1992 Consensus", said Hu.

"We can talk about the official conclusion of the state of hostility between the two sides, the establishment of military mutual trust, the Taiwan region's room of international operation compatible with its status, the political status of the Taiwan authorities and the framework for peaceful and stable development of cross-Straits relations, which we have proposed," Hu said.

                          
Chinese President Hu Jintao (L) and Premier Wen Jiabao chat at a preparatory meeting of the third session of the 10th National People's Congress in Beijing March 4, 2005. The session of China's top legislature is scheduled to start Saturday. [newsphoto]

"We can also talk about all the issues that need to be resolved in the process of realizing peaceful reunification," he added.

"We welcome the efforts made by any individuals or any political parties in Taiwan toward the direction of recognizing the one-China principle," said Hu.

"No matter who he is and which political party it is, and no matter what they said and did in the past, we're willing to talk with them on issues of developing cross-Straits relations and promoting peaceful reunification as long as they recognize the one-China principle and the '1992 Consensus'," he added.

Hu urged the Taiwan authorities to stop all activities for "Taiwan independence" and return to the path of recognizing the "1992 Consensus" at an early date.

"Secondly, never give up efforts to seek peaceful reunification," Hu told the CPPCC members. "A peaceful resolution of the Taiwan issue and peaceful reunification of the motherland conforms to the fundamental interests of compatriots across the Taiwan Straits and the Chinese nation, as well as the currents of peace and development in the world today."

Peaceful reunification does not mean that one side "swallows" the other, but that the two sides confer on reunification through consultation on an equal footing, he stressed.

"As long as there is still a ray of hope for peaceful reunification, we'll do our utmost to achieve it," said Hu.

"We hope at the bottom of our hearts that relevant personages and political parties in Taiwan would seriously consider this important issue and ... make the correct historic choice to maintain peace across the Taiwan Straits, promote cross-Straits relations and realize peaceful reunification," he urged.

The third point the president underscored was "never to change the principle of placing hope on the Taiwan people".

"The more the 'Taiwan independence' secessionist forces want to isolate the Taiwan compatriots from us, the more closely we have to unite with them," said Hu, calling the Taiwan people "our flesh-and-blood brothers".

"Under whatever circumstances, we shall always respect, trust and rely on the Taiwan compatriots, land ourselves in their position to think of their difficulties, and do everything we can to look after and safeguard their legitimate rights and interests," he added.

When talking about the marketing of Taiwan's farm produce in the mainland, Hu said the issue "involves the fundamental interests of the broad masses of the Taiwan farmers", and therefore must be addressed "in a down-to-earth manner".

Direct cross-Straits charter flights, which are now conducted on festivals and holidays, could gradually develop into a regular practice, while non-governmental civil aviation organizations of both sides could also exchange views on the issue of cross-Straits cargo charter flights, suggested Hu.

"Anything beneficial to the Taiwan compatriots and conducive to the promotion of cross-Straits exchanges..., we will do it with our utmost efforts and will do it well," pledged Hu. "This is our solemn commitment to the broad masses of the Taiwan compatriots."

Fourthly and finally, Hu said that the Chinese people will "never compromise in opposing the 'Taiwan independence' secessionist activities".

"Safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity is where a country's core interest lies. On no account shall the 1.3 billion Chinese people allow anyone to undermine China's sovereignty and territorial integrity," he stressed.

"We will not have the slightest hesitation, falter or concession on the major principle issue of opposing secession," said Hu.

Hu urged the "Taiwan independence" secessionist forces to abandon their secessionist stand and stop all "Taiwan independence" activities, saying that "we hope the leader of the Taiwan authorities could earnestly fulfill the 'five no's' commitment he reaffirmed on Feb. 24, as well as his commitment of not seeking ' legalization of Taiwan independence' through the 'Constitutional reform'."

"(We hope that he could) show to the world, through (his) own concrete action, that this was not an empty word or mere lip service which can be forsaken at will," Hu added.

Hu also emphasized that China is the home to the 1.3 billion Chinese people including the 23 million Taiwan compatriots, and both the mainland and Taiwan belong to the 1.3 billion Chinese people including the 23 million Taiwan compatriots.

"Any issue involving China's sovereignty and territorial integrity must be decided collectively by the entire 1.3 billion Chinese people," Hu stressed.