China’s cross-strait negotiator Wang dies at 90

Xinhua did not provide details on the cause of death for Wang, whose official title was president of the mainland-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait.

Wang’s death comes almost exactly a year after that of his Taiwan counterpart, Koo Chen-fu, head of the Straits Exchange Foundation, who died of cancer in January at the age of 87. The ARATS sent a contingent to Koo’s funeral earlier this year. The SEF’s incumbent chairman, Chang Chun-hsiung said he would also like to go to Shanghai to attend Wang’s funeral.

“We express deep condolences on the death of Wang Daohan, especially since Wang gave all he could to improve cross-straits relations and boost exchanges across the strait. We deeply regret his death,” said SEF Vice Chairman Michael You.

The Mainland Affairs Council, Taiwan’s Cabinet body in charge of China policy, said Wang’s death “is a loss for both sides of the strait.”

The MAC also called on Beijing to reopen talks suspended since 1999.

Born in 1915 in eastern China’s Anhui province, Wang rose to prominence during his tenure as mayor of Shanghai from 1980 to 1985, before going on to teach economics at major universities in both Shanghai and Beijing.

He would become a mentor of Shanghai Communist Party head Jiang Zemin, who himself would go on to become China’s most powerful man as national Communist Party chief and President.

Wang was instrumental in starting rapprochement between China and Taiwan — political rivals since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949 — in the early 1990s.

Wang and Koo held landmark talks in Singapore in 1993, after Beijing and Taipei agreed to their own interpretations of the “one China” principle in what is known as the 1992 consensus.

Official talks between the two sides have been suspended since 1999, when Taiwan’s then-president Lee Teng-hui redefined ties as “special state-to-state” relations.

Bilateral ties have been deadlocked since then as pro-independence Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian seeks to assert the island’s sovereignty.

China has not announced a replacement for Wang, but one analyst following China-Taiwan relations said former foreign minister Qian Qichen, is a front-runner for the position.

Ma Ying-jeou and James Soong, the leaders of Taiwan’s opposition “pan-blue” alliance, which advocates closer ties China, expressed their condolences to the family of Wang.

Asked whether his party will send an envoy to attend the funeral of Wang, Ma said that the KMT is considering the matter and will probably do so. Soong expressed the hope that there will be others in China who carry the same weight as Wang to promote bilateral relations.

Former KMT Chairman Lien Chan and Soong called on Wang during their separate visits to China early this year. Lien also expressed his condolences to Wang’s family.

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