Taiwan's main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) Vice-Chairman Wu
Poh-hsiung signed his name in support of Beijing's bid to host the
2008 Olympic Games during his visit to the Chinese capital on
November 23, 2000.
Wu
is the highest-level KMT official to visit the mainland since
1949.
The Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Bid Committee is thinking seriously
inviting Taiwan to co-sponsor the 2008 Olympic Games, said a
leading official with the committee's press and public affairs
department on Thursday on condition of anonymity.
The possibility of Beijing and Taiwan co-sponsoring the games
exists, and relevant departments are studying the situation, the
official said.
``If the 2008 Olympic Games is to be held in Beijing, some of the
mass events like soccer, baseball and basketball may be held in
Chinese cities including Shanghai and Guangzhou, but why not
Taiwan's Taibei?'' the official said.
Hong Kong and Taiwan press have been reporting on the likelihood of
the mainland and Taiwan co-hosting the 2008 Olympics. It is widely
believed that co-hosting will enhance reconciliation and
cooperation between the two sides of the Taiwan Straits, and at the
same time, add strong weight to Beijing's bid.
The official refused to say whether and when the committee will
send an official invitation to Taiwan, which, resulting from a
civil war between the Communist Party and the Kuomintang
(Nationalist) Party in the 1940s, is not unified with the mainland
yet.
According to a poll of 20 normal people in Taipei, Tainan,
Kaohsiung, Taichung and Taoyuan by the Taiwan daily Minsheng Pao,
most of them felt that Beijing's bid to host the 2008 Olympics was
a big event for Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Straits. If
Beijing does win the right to host the 2008 Olympics, it will be
the honor for the entire Chinese race so they should work hand in
hand to support Beijing's bid.
Taiwan basketball star Cheng Chilong and Mrs. Chen Sihan from
Taoyuan both felt that the motherland had a lot to offer,
especially since its athletic facilities have reached world-class
standards, Beijing has met all the conditions to host the Olympics
so we should give them our full support.
(China Daily 11/24/2000)