Taiwan bids to avoid war with China
Taiwan’s opposition leader left today for China on a historic trip aimed at easing tensions between the two sides but that drew protests at home from egg-throwing activists who accused him of pandering to Beijing’s communist rulers.
Opponents of the trip scuffled with supporters of Nationalist Party Chairman Lien Chan at the airport, and about 1,000 police with batons and shields helped protect the former vice president as he boarded a jet for his week-long journey, which includes a meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao.
The trip marks the first time the leader of his Nationalist Party has set foot in the mainland since the party lost a bloody civil war to the Communists and fled to neighbouring Taiwan 56 years ago.
The 68-year-old Lien says his aim is to help Taiwan avoid a disastrous war with its Communist neighbour, just 100 miles to the west. Beijing has repeatedly threatened to attack Taiwan if the self-ruled, democratic island refuses to unify and seeks a permanent split.
But the hundreds of protesters at the airport opposed unification and accused Lien of pandering to communist leaders. Some threw eggs at police who tried to block them from enteing the departure terminal. Others tossed firecrackers at Lien supporters.
The rival groups shoved, kicked and punched each other. Lien supporters gripping flas tried to break through a police cordon but were pushed away.
As Lien drove to the airport, a taxi unsuccessfully tried to pass police cars and enter Lien’s motorcade. A person in the cab’s back seat held up a banner that said “Selling out Taiwan.”
Lien and his entourage entered the airport safely through a VIP entrance.
Lien’s visit would have been unthinkable not too long ago. The Nationalists - who ruled Taiwan for five decades until losing power in 2000 – often jailed people who were sympathetic to the Communists. Until the late 1980s, they banned Taiwanese from visiting the mainland.
But the Cold War tensions began to ease in the early 1990s, and Taiwanese tourists and businesses started flocking to the mainland.
After losing the presidency five years ago, the Nationalists began pushing for closer ties with China, supporting policies they once opposed – such as direct flights to the mainland.
