News Reference Material
Date: August 16, 2022
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) issued the following statement today (Aug 16, 2022) to voice solemn protest and dissatisfaction against yet another round of undiplomatic sanctions imposed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on the so-called "Taiwan independence diehards." At a time when people of Taiwan firmly support the normal exchanges and interaction with the global community, it is clear that with these sanctions, the CCP seeks to vent the party’s frustration, intimidate Taiwan and the international society, and eventually erode democracy and freedom while provoking division and anxiety. These sanctions are completely illegitimate and reflect a wanton disregard of Taiwan’s public opinions; as a result, the CCP has only succeeded in further alienating Taiwan and the rest of the world from itself.
The MAC stressed that the two sides across the Taiwan Strait are not subordinate to each other. Taiwan is a society espousing values including democracy and the rule of law and has never been under the jurisdiction of the CCP, giving it no right to criticize our politicians or government officials regarding their handling of matters in line with their duties. The Beijing authorities have recently launched a series of high-intensity intimidation and retaliations against Taiwan that have severely undermined the cross-Strait status quo and destabilized regional security. Instead of showing repentance for their actions, the CCP chose to resort to extremely hostile actions such as the aforementioned blacklists that are harmful to cross-Strait relations with an ultimate aim of cracking down on opposition figures and forcing them to yield to its political demands. Beijing’s malicious actions have already sparked condemnation and antagonism among the international community; the people of Taiwan have also developed a clear understanding of the CCP’s true nature and vowed to never give in or back down.
The MAC indicated that, given the new normal of the CCP’s regular coercion, threats, and intrusion, our government pledges to carefully assess the developments of the situation and duly deliberate to take necessary responses or preventive actions. Meanwhile, we will examine the possible impact of the CCP’s use of cross-Strait exchanges and political maneuvers to interfere with business activity so as to properly safeguard our national security and people’s rights and interests. Moreover, we will also continue to actively cooperate with the international community to bring public attention to the CCP's aggression against and suppression of democratic Taiwan in hopes of curbing Beijing's belligerent behaviors. The MAC seriously warned the CCP not to further escalate tensions across the Taiwan Strait. The CCP should immediately stop its self-deceptive and irresponsible actions and bear all possible consequences arising from its own misjudgments.