Taiwan's Lien feels "historic responsibility" ahead of Hu meeting
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-04-28 19:12

BEIJING - Taiwanese opposition leader Lien Chan said he felt a "historic responsibility" to bring peace between China and Taiwan, as he arrived in Beijing for talks with President Hu Jintao.

Lien, the 68-year-old leader of Taiwan's Nationalist Party or Kuomintang (KMT), flew into the capital from the eastern city of Nanjing to prepare for Friday's meeting, the latest stop of his "peace journey" through China.

Lien said Friday's meeting would focus on trying to bring peace to the Taiwan Strait now, rather than dwelling on the past.

"The focus of the Kuomintang and this delegation is on the present," Lien told reporters.

"Everyone is concerned about cross-strait relations and how we can establish a peaceful, win-win future through the process of reconciliation and dialogue.

"This is a common hope for both sides of the strait and is a historic responsibility that we must all undertake."

The United States has welcomed the meeting between Hu and Lien as a positive step.

The Hu-Lien talks are expected to be carefully scripted as both Beijing and the KMT are eager to influence a Taiwanese electorate that has given Chen's pro-independence views a presidential mandate in 2000 and 2004 elections.

Preparatory talks were aimed at paving the way for regular discussions between KMT officials and Chinese communist party leaders.

"We aim to create a mechanism for future exchanges and interaction between the two parties," said Chen Yunlin, director of the Communist Party's Taiwan Work Office.

The KMT, which ruled China from 1912 until the civil war after toppling the Qing dynasty, for many years favoured the reunification of Taiwan and a democratic China. It now says the choice should be left to future generations.

Lien met Thursday with Beijing Communist Party chief Liu Qi before having dinner with politburo member Jia Qinglin, the number four in the Communist Party pecking order.

In Nanjing on Wednesday, Lien was mobbed by thousands of well-wishers as he visited the tomb of Sun Yat-sen, the founder of China's first republic.

Leading a 70-strong delegation, Lien began his eight-day visit on Tuesday.

Lien's visit has drawn a mixed response in Taiwan, where hundreds of thousands of people protested on March 26 against China's anti-secession law and threats to invade the island.

President Chen has reversed previous criticism of Lien's visit, reportedly under pressure from Washington.

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