A workshop was held at the Great Hall of the People, in central Beijing, Monday, to mark the ninth anniversary of an important speech on the reunification of China by then President Jiang Zemin, who is now chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC).

Present at the gathering were Jia Qinglin, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), along with a number of other senior officials including Liu Qi, Wang Gang and Tang Jiaxuan.

Tang Jiaxuan, a state councilor, made a keynote speech at the workshop, describing Jiang's speech "Continue to Strive for the Promotion of the Great Cause of the Reunification of the Motherland" as a guiding document for resolving the Taiwan Question.

Over the past nine years, Tang recalled, the Chinese mainland had firmly carried out the fundamental policy of "Peaceful Reunification, One Country and Two Systems" as well as the Eight-Point Proposal, by formulating and carrying out a series of active and practical policies and measures.

He criticized Taiwan Authorities for their refusal to accept the One-China Principle, denial of a consensus reached between the two sides in 1992, advocacy of separatism, attempts to realize gradual independence, and even a timetable for the independence of Taiwan.

At present, the real threats to Taiwan security came not from the mainland, but from Taiwan Authorities who had been wantonly engaged in separatist activities, he said.

Moreover, Tang reiterated the mainland's stance on the issue of Taiwan and said the Chinese mainland was willing to hold cross-strait talks and negotiations on the basis of the One-China Principle. The tension across the Taiwan Strait could be eased, once the two sides conduct dialogues or held talks and reached an agreement on ending the state of hostility across the Taiwan strait, on the basis of the One-China Principle and with a pragmatic approach and on equal footing, he noted.

The workshop was presided over by Chen Yunlin, director of both the CPC Central Committee Office on the Issue of Taiwan and the State Council Office on Taiwan Affairs.

The audience comprised more than 300 people, including vice chairpersons of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

(Xinhua News Agency January 19, 2004)