With Taiwan authorities stepping up a series of pro-independence moves, the mainland is intensifying its global efforts to promote national reunification.

The Beijing-based China Council for the Promotion of Peaceful National Reunification organized a two-day symposium over the weekend to encourage more overseas Chinese to join in the work against separatism and the push for reunification.

The event was attended by more than 70 leaders and representatives of associations promoting peaceful national reunification from 30 countries and regions.

Wan Guoquan, president of the council, highly praised the positive role of such overseas organizations in defending the one-China policy and opposing pro-independence activities.

"Through their joint efforts, these organizations have contributed a lot to the battle against separatist attempts and the development of cross-Straits ties on the international level," he said on Saturday.

So far, a total of 120 associations for the promotion of peaceful national reunification have been set up in 80 countries and regions around the world.

They have held a number of influential international conferences in cities such as Tokyo, Berlin and Sydney over the past few years, promoting widely the peaceful cross-Straits reunification drive in the world community.

Wan, however, called for harder work from these associations against the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party administration on the island, which is making every effort possible to drum up support for the separatist cause.

Since taking office in May 2000, Taiwan leader Chen Shui-bian has refused to accept the one-China principle, which states that there is only one China in the world and that both the mainland and Taiwan are parts of China.

Instead, his administration has sped up the separatist drive through a series of creeping pro-independence steps featuring advocacy of independence in the cultural and education fields.

Tomas C. Tiu, president of the European Association for the Promotion of Peaceful Reunification of China, strongly condemned Chen's conspiracy to split the island from the motherland.

"His separatist move goes against the will of most of the Chinese people, including 23 million Taiwanese compatriots, 1.3 billion mainland people and more than 35 million overseas Chinese around the world," said Tiu.

(China Daily September 29, 2003)