The Taiwan Work Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council issued a statement Saturday saying that the so-called "peace referendum" held by the Taiwan authorities goes against the will of the people and is doomed to failure.

The statement says: "On March 20, the Taiwan authorities willfully held the so-called 'peace referendum' in a provocative attempt to undermine cross-Straits relations and split the motherland. The 'referendum' turned out to be invalid. Facts have proven that this illegal act goes against the will of the people. Any attempt to separate Taiwan from China is doomed to failure."

"Referendum" in Taiwan vetoed by its people
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The so-called "March 20 referendum," which Taiwan leader Chen Shui-bian had willfully promoted despite strong opposition from home and overseas, ended on March 20 and turned out to be invalid because the number of voters taking part in the "referendum" failed to reach half of the total number of the eligible voters.

(Xinhua News Agency March 21, 2004)