Six in 10 Taiwanese oppose China trade pact: survey

Out of more than 1,200 polled earlier this month, 59.7 percent opposed the planned pact, known as the economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA), according to results released by National Taiwan University.

Only 34.7 percent supported the agreement, which Taiwan's China-friendly government has said will bring both higher growth and more jobs. Just over 54 percent said they had no faith that President Ma Ying-jeou could protect the interests of the Taiwanese people when negotiating with Beijing on the deal.

The government has been criticized for not explaining the agreement well enough, and the poll confirmed a high level of confusion about its implications.As many as 80.3 percent said they did not understand its content, against only 2.6 percent who felt confident they did.

Ma's government says the agreement will boost the flow of goods and personnel between the island and the mainland and hopes it will be signed early next year.

However, the opposition Democratic Progressive Party believes the pact would reduce Taiwan to the status of a local government in future talks with the mainland.

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