The election of the nationalist Chen Shui-bian as president in 2000 and his re-election in 2004 was a nadir in the relationship between Taiwan and the mainland.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
Taiwan is a budding democracy, and the people have participated in multi-party democratic elections since 1996.
The election is over, and even though there are people who have different ideologies and beliefs, from now on we must all embrace each other, creating a harmonious and unified new Taiwan through our love and tolerance.
Taiwan is democratic.
Moreover, as we live in an era of the ascendancy of democracy and human rights, we must see that Taiwan has been a vibrant democracy with a democratically elected president and legislature.
Taiwan politics certainly is colorful.
The PRC is the big brother in this relationship, and it has the capacity to be generous to Taiwan on this issue in a manner that might do much to defuse that issue internally in Taiwan.
In the 1999 resolution regarding Taiwan's future passed by the Democratic Progressive Party, it is stated very clearly that any change to the status quo of Taiwan must be decided by the people of Taiwan through referenda.
We sincerely ask the Beijing authorities across the Strait to view the election result from a positive perspective, to accept the democratic decision of the Taiwanese people.
Ma Ying-jeou tends to use cross-strait policy as an election tool and a political tool, too, and my position is that we don't use that as a political tool because that is an issue that is critical and essential to the interests of the Taiwanese people.
Taiwan and China are related ethnically and close neighbors geographically. There's no reason to resent or to fight against each other.