DPP participation in China forum praised

Former DPP Legislator Hsu Jung-shu and Fan Cheng chung, a former chairman of the Cabinet-level Council of Agriculture under the previous DPP government, are taking part in the fifth cross-strait economic and cultural forum that was opened Saturday in Changsha, the capital of China's Hunan province.

The annual forum started in 2005 as a platform for talks between the then opposition Kuomintang (KMT), which is now the ruling party, and the Communist Party of China (CPC).

Hsu and Fang attended the event in defiance of threats of disciplinary action from their party, which sees the forum as a purely KMT-CPC gathering despite its having been extended into a platform for exchanges between Taiwan and China on a wide spectrum of issues.

A few days ago, the DPP leadership slapped a ban on party members who hold or who have held public office from attending the forum.

Liu Zhengtao, director of the Institute of Taiwan Studies at Beijing-based Tsinghua University, suggested that the DPP members' presence were not out of the ordinary, saying that Hsu and Fang were not the first DPP members to attend the forum.

Other DPP members had participated in the past, but they did not draw public attention because they were probably not as famous as Hsu or Fang, Liu told the Central News Agency on the sideline of the forum.

Liu said the conference was designed to be open to anyone regardless of political background and that the DPP members' presence makes it even more diverse and representative.

Meanwhile, Liu Xiangping, deputy director of Nanjing University's Institute of Taiwan Studies, admitted Hsu and Fang stood out among the 270 Taiwanese taking part in the Changsha event.

If, however, DPP heavyweights like former premiers Frank Hsieh and Su Tseng-chang had come to Changsha, it would have been a major breakthrough in cross strait relations, Liu Xiangping said.

He claimed that China has made rapid progress not only in the development of the economy but also in education and culture and even in the development of democracy.

Liu Xiangping acknowledged that China still has many areas that require effort and progress, but he said the country is different now than what it was two decades ago and suggested that DPP members visit China to see the change with their own eyes.

Their visits will not only help boost mutual understanding, but also strengthen mutual communications and exchanges, he said.

Before leaving Taiwan, Fan, who is now an adviser to President Ma Ying-jeou, said many people in Taiwan have criticized the ruling KMT for having “sold Taiwan out” by increasing engagements with Beijing.

“I want to take a look there (China) to find out whether the KMT has indeed sold Taiwan out,” Fan said.

Hsu noted that the forum is set to tackle a wide range of topics, including economic and cultural issues, making it an excellent platform for exchanges of opinions between Taiwan and China. She said she did not believe the DPP leadership would act on its threat of disciplinary action.

Both Fan and Hsu are attending the forum at the invitation of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

Outgoing KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung is leading a 270-strong delegation comprising members of various political parties, as well as scholars, at the forum.

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