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| Taiwan opposition seeks distance from China after poll defeat Click to SUBSCRIBE |
TAIPEI : Taiwan's main opposition party moved to distance itself from China after one of its most senior officials lost a highly charged recall election, as attitudes harden towards Beijing on the democratic island claimed by China.
The Kuomintang, or KMT, was already reeling from losing presidential and parliamentary elections in January, having failed to shake off accusations from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) it wanted to sell out Taiwan to China.
On Saturday, the KMT's defeated presidential candidate, Han Kuo-yu, lost by a wide margin a recall vote for his position as mayor of the southern port city of Kaohsiung.
Opponents portray Han and the KMT as doing China's bidding by supporting Beijing's "one country, two systems" model to get Taiwan to accept Chinese sovereignty. The KMT says it has never supported this.
Taiwan opposition seeks distance from China after poll defeat
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| Taiwan opposition seeks distance from China after poll defeat |
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After the recall, the KMT reasserted its opposition to Beijing, as well as a "Taiwan first" stance.
"Chairman Johnny Chiang of the KMT states firmly that the Party – opposed to communism and aimed at building a democratic, free, prosperous and united country – and its members have always put Taiwan first for the benefit of the people," the KMT said in a statement late on Saturday.
Han - who last year visited China and met its top Taiwan-policy maker and met in Hong Kong with its leader Carrie Lam before the Chinese-ruled city was engulfed in anti-China protests - has said he was simply trying to drum up investment for Taiwan and reduce the risk of conflict.
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