A senior mainland official in charge of Taiwan affairs talked to journalists in Beijing Friday about what he called a "vicious and tarnishing" attacks made by a few "Taiwan independence" separatists on the proposed Anti-Secession Law.?

Chen Yunlin, director of the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the director of the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said that the Anti-Secession Law enacted by the National People's Congress (NPC) "gives full expression to our consistent position of doing our utmost efforts with maximum sincerity for a peaceful reunification and, at the same time, demonstrate the common will of the entire Chinese people to safeguard China's state sovereignty and territorial integrity while never allowing the 'Taiwan independence', thus winning universal agreement and support of the Chinese from home and abroad."

"However, a few separatists seeking "Taiwan independence" ulteriorly distort the Anti-Secession Law by all means, mislead and cheat the majority of the Taiwan compatriots, and stir up feelings against the mainland," he said.

"They even said to take further actions to sabotage cross-Straits relations," he said. According to Chen, the "Taiwan independence" separatist forces again attempted to push the cross-Straits relations to the dangerous edge, arousing indignation of the Chinese from home and abroad.

Chen quoted Chinese President Hu Jintao's speech on the cross-Straits relations made on March 4, saying that "The 1.3 billion Chinese people, including the Taiwan compatriots, all love peace and sincerely hope to maintain peace and live in peace. They share an even greater hope that the flesh-and-blood brother in one family can resolve their own problems peacefully."

"The people long for peace and the country needs stability. As long as there is still a ray of hope for peaceful reunification, we'll do our utmost to achieve it," Chen quoted President Hu as saying.

Chen said that the Anti-Secession Law is a law to strive for the peaceful solution to the Taiwan problem and the realization of China's peaceful reunification. It clearly defines that the realization of the national reunification by peaceful means best comply with the fundamental interests of compatriots across the Taiwan Straits. The State will show utmost sincerity and make utmost efforts to achieve peaceful reunification.

Most parts of the law encourage and promote the personnel exchanges and economic and cultural communications across the Taiwan Straits, promote the 'three direct links,' safeguard the legal interests of the Taiwan compatriots, actively push forward the equal consultation and negotiation across the Taiwan Straits, thus fully demonstrating the sincerity that all issues can be talked on the basis of the one-China principle, he said.

Wang Zhaoguo, vice-chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, made explanations on the Anti-Secession Law on March 8.

Chen quoted Wang's explanation as saying that:

"Taiwan compatriots are our own brothers and sisters. No one is more desirous of achieving a peaceful reunification than we are."

-- "Using non-peaceful means to stop secession in defense of our sovereignty and territorial integrity would be our last resort when all our efforts for a peaceful reunification should prove futile."

-- "Such means and measures would be completely targeted against the 'Taiwan independence' forces rather in any way against our Taiwan compatriots."

Chen said that "'Taiwan independence' forces do not represent Taiwan compatriots. We believe that the majority of the Taiwan compatriots can objectively and rationally understand the legislative purpose, and feel our pure-hearted wish to maintain cross-Straits peace, to improve cross-Straits relations, and to safeguard the mutual interests of compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Straits."

"People across the Taiwan Straits belong to the same family, sharing the same ancestral root and the same glory and humiliation. After experiencing sorrow and happiness, separation and reunion, they still cannot cut their recognition of the same blood bond," Chen said.
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The maintenance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits and the promotion of common development and prosperity conform to the common interests of the people across the Straits, he said. "Taiwan independence is a blind alley," Chen stressed.
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Thanks to concerted efforts made by compatriots on the both sides, the cross-Straits situation has shown signs of detente," he said. "We sincerely hope Taiwan compatriots and insightful people from all walks of life will not be cheated and bewitched by separatist forces seeking 'Taiwan independence'," he said.
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Instead, all should join hands and make common efforts so as to push forward the cross-Straits situation to move towards peace and stability, he said.
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"Only when the people across the Taiwan Straits can join in hands, unite together and remove disturbances, can the bright future for the improvement and development of the cross-Straits relations be created," he said.

(Xinhua News Agency March 12, 2005)