Special non-state-to-state relations
Encyclopedia
Special Non-State-to-State Relations is a term used by Ma Ying-jeou
, the President of the Republic of China
(often called "Taiwan") to describe the nature of relations
between the Taiwan Area and the Mainland China Area
. President Ma has used the term at least once, although to describe the term as a concept or policy would be premature, especially as it describes those relations loosely in terms of what they are not (rather than what those relations are).
Departing from the former presidents Lee Teng-hui
's Special state-to-state relations and Chen Shui-bian
's One Country on Each Side
in which both define the Republic of China
(ROC) and the People's Republic of China
(PRC) as states and the relationship between the two as one between two states, Ma Ying-jeou defines the relations as a special relationship between two areas within one state. The ROC government considers that state as the ROC, while the PRC government considers that state as the PRC. While the governing authority in one area cannot recognise the authority in other area as a legitimate government, neither would deny the other side being the de facto governing authority of one area of the state. According to this view the relations between the two areas are special and laws relating to international relations cannot be applied.
and Taiwan
are "special," but "not that between two states", because neither the Constitution of the People's Republic of China
nor the Constitution of the ROC
allows for another state to exist in their respective claimed territory. He conceded the sovereignty issues between the two cannot be resolved at represent, but citing the 1992 Consensus
as a temporary measure for the issues, as both accept the One China principle but agrees to differ on the definition of that one "China".
Presidential Office spokesman Wang Yu-chi later elaborated the president's statement and said that under the 11th amendment of the ROC Constitution and the "Statute Governing the Relations Between the Peoples of the Taiwan Area and Mainland Area", the relationship between Taiwan and mainland China is one between two regions of one country. From the ROC's perspective, that country is the ROC.
Ma Ying-jeou was interviewed by a Japan based magazine "World" on 7 October 2008. In answering questions relating to the "Special non-state-to-state relations", he said that the ROC "definitely is an independent sovereign state", and under its constitution, mainland China is part of the territory of the ROC. The ROC cannot recognise the existence of another state in its territory, nor does the People's Republic of China want to recognize the ROC. In other words, the ROC does not consider the PRC a state. Accordingly, laws relating to international relations cannot be applied regarding the relations between Taiwan and mainland China.
In an interview with the Central News Agency
on 25 October 2008, Ma Ying-jeou clarified that conceptualising Taiwan and mainland China as "two areas" was not his invention, but believed the framework offered a way for the two sides of the Taiwan Strait
to sidestep sovereignty questions in pursuing closer ties as long as each side did not deny the other's existence. Ma said consultations between the two sides' intermediary bodies have been conducted under such a "mutual non-denial" framework. According to Ma, the "two areas" concept could be dated back to 1991, when then-President Lee Teng-hui
announced the termination of the Period of National Mobilisation for Suppression of the Communist Rebellion to acknowledge the fact that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are under separate rule. The move symbolised that the communist regime established on 1 October 1949 in mainland China is no longer considered by the ROC as a "rebellious group," but "a governing authority that has de facto rule of the mainland," Ma said. Over the past 17 years, several other concepts have been put forth by the country's leaders to try to define Cross-Strait relations
, but none has been proven feasible, he said. These include the special state-to-state relations proposed by Lee in 1999, and the one country on each side
theory raised by then President Chen Shui-bian in 2002, Ma noted.
Ma Ying-jeou
Ma Ying-jeou is the 12th term and current President of the Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan, and the Chairman of the Kuomintang Party, also known as the Chinese Nationalist Party. He formerly served as Justice Minister from 1993 to 1996, Mayor of Taipei from 1998 to 2006, and Chairman...
, the President of the Republic of China
President of the Republic of China
The President of the Republic of China is the head of state and commander-in-chief of the Republic of China . The Republic of China was founded on January 1, 1912, to govern all of China...
(often called "Taiwan") to describe the nature of relations
Cross-Strait relations
Cross-Strait relations refers to the relations between People's Republic of China and the Republic of China , which lie to the west and east, repectively, of the Taiwan Strait in the west Pacific Ocean....
between the Taiwan Area and the Mainland China Area
Mainland China
Mainland China, the Chinese mainland or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term that refers to the area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China . According to the Taipei-based Mainland Affairs Council, the term excludes the PRC Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and...
. President Ma has used the term at least once, although to describe the term as a concept or policy would be premature, especially as it describes those relations loosely in terms of what they are not (rather than what those relations are).
Departing from the former presidents Lee Teng-hui
Lee Teng-hui
Lee Teng-hui is a politician of the Republic of China . He was the 7th, 8th, and 9th-term President of the Republic of China and Chairman of the Kuomintang from 1988 to 2000. He presided over major advancements in democratic reforms including his own re-election which marked the first direct...
's Special state-to-state relations and Chen Shui-bian
Chen Shui-bian
Chen Shui-bian is a former Taiwanese politician who was the 10th and 11th-term President of the Republic of China from 2000 to 2008. Chen, whose Democratic Progressive Party has traditionally been supportive of Taiwan independence, ended more than fifty years of Kuomintang rule in Taiwan...
's One Country on Each Side
One Country on Each Side
One Country on Each Side was a concept espoused by Chen Shui-bian, the former President of the Republic of China , regarding the political status of Taiwan...
in which both define the Republic of China
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
(ROC) and the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
(PRC) as states and the relationship between the two as one between two states, Ma Ying-jeou defines the relations as a special relationship between two areas within one state. The ROC government considers that state as the ROC, while the PRC government considers that state as the PRC. While the governing authority in one area cannot recognise the authority in other area as a legitimate government, neither would deny the other side being the de facto governing authority of one area of the state. According to this view the relations between the two areas are special and laws relating to international relations cannot be applied.
Background
President Ma Ying-jeou on 2 September 2008 stated in an interview with the Mexico based press, Sol de Mexico, that the relations between mainland ChinaMainland China
Mainland China, the Chinese mainland or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term that refers to the area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China . According to the Taipei-based Mainland Affairs Council, the term excludes the PRC Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and...
and Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
are "special," but "not that between two states", because neither the Constitution of the People's Republic of China
Constitution of the People's Republic of China
The Constitution of the People's Republic of China is the highest law within the People's Republic of China. The current version was adopted by the 5th National People's Congress on December 4, 1982 with further revisions in 1988, 1993, 1999, and 2004. Three previous state constitutions—those of...
nor the Constitution of the ROC
Constitution of the Republic of China
The Constitution of the Republic of China is the fundamental law of the Republic of China . Drafted by the Kuomintang as part of its third stage of national development , it established a centralized Republic with five branches of government...
allows for another state to exist in their respective claimed territory. He conceded the sovereignty issues between the two cannot be resolved at represent, but citing the 1992 Consensus
1992 Consensus
The 1992 Consensus or Consensus of 1992 is a term describing the outcome of a meeting in 1992 between the semi-official representatives of the People's Republic of China in mainland China and the Republic of China in Taiwan...
as a temporary measure for the issues, as both accept the One China principle but agrees to differ on the definition of that one "China".
Presidential Office spokesman Wang Yu-chi later elaborated the president's statement and said that under the 11th amendment of the ROC Constitution and the "Statute Governing the Relations Between the Peoples of the Taiwan Area and Mainland Area", the relationship between Taiwan and mainland China is one between two regions of one country. From the ROC's perspective, that country is the ROC.
Ma Ying-jeou was interviewed by a Japan based magazine "World" on 7 October 2008. In answering questions relating to the "Special non-state-to-state relations", he said that the ROC "definitely is an independent sovereign state", and under its constitution, mainland China is part of the territory of the ROC. The ROC cannot recognise the existence of another state in its territory, nor does the People's Republic of China want to recognize the ROC. In other words, the ROC does not consider the PRC a state. Accordingly, laws relating to international relations cannot be applied regarding the relations between Taiwan and mainland China.
In an interview with the Central News Agency
Central News Agency (Republic of China)
The Central News Agency is the state news agency of the Republic of China. It was founded in Guangzhou, China on April 1, 1924 and was relocated to Taipei, Taiwan during the Chinese Civil War when the Republic of China government relocated to Taiwan....
on 25 October 2008, Ma Ying-jeou clarified that conceptualising Taiwan and mainland China as "two areas" was not his invention, but believed the framework offered a way for the two sides of the Taiwan Strait
Taiwan Strait
The Taiwan Strait or Formosa Strait, formerly known as the Black Ditch, is a 180-km-wide strait separating Mainland China and Taiwan. The strait is part of the South China Sea and connects to East China Sea to the northeast...
to sidestep sovereignty questions in pursuing closer ties as long as each side did not deny the other's existence. Ma said consultations between the two sides' intermediary bodies have been conducted under such a "mutual non-denial" framework. According to Ma, the "two areas" concept could be dated back to 1991, when then-President Lee Teng-hui
Lee Teng-hui
Lee Teng-hui is a politician of the Republic of China . He was the 7th, 8th, and 9th-term President of the Republic of China and Chairman of the Kuomintang from 1988 to 2000. He presided over major advancements in democratic reforms including his own re-election which marked the first direct...
announced the termination of the Period of National Mobilisation for Suppression of the Communist Rebellion to acknowledge the fact that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are under separate rule. The move symbolised that the communist regime established on 1 October 1949 in mainland China is no longer considered by the ROC as a "rebellious group," but "a governing authority that has de facto rule of the mainland," Ma said. Over the past 17 years, several other concepts have been put forth by the country's leaders to try to define Cross-Strait relations
Cross-Strait relations
Cross-Strait relations refers to the relations between People's Republic of China and the Republic of China , which lie to the west and east, repectively, of the Taiwan Strait in the west Pacific Ocean....
, but none has been proven feasible, he said. These include the special state-to-state relations proposed by Lee in 1999, and the one country on each side
One Country on Each Side
One Country on Each Side was a concept espoused by Chen Shui-bian, the former President of the Republic of China , regarding the political status of Taiwan...
theory raised by then President Chen Shui-bian in 2002, Ma noted.
See also
- Political status of TaiwanPolitical status of TaiwanThe controversy regarding the political status of Taiwan hinges on whether Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu should remain effectively independent as territory of the Republic of China , become unified with the territories now governed by the People's Republic of China , or formally declare...
- Two ChinasTwo ChinasThe term Two Chinas refers to the two states with "China" in their official names: People's Republic of China , commonly known as "China", established in 1949, controlling mainland China and two special administrative regions, Hong Kong and Macau...
- Special state-to-state relations
- One Country on Each SideOne Country on Each SideOne Country on Each Side was a concept espoused by Chen Shui-bian, the former President of the Republic of China , regarding the political status of Taiwan...