KMT chair mentions ROC, calls for cross-strait peace during China visit

Nanjing, April 8 (CNA) Kuomintang (KMT) Chairperson Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) on Wednesday paid tribute to Dr. Sun Yat-sen (孫中山) at his mausoleum in Nanjing during her ongoing visit to China, referring to the Republic of China in remarks focused on cross-strait peace.

Sun was revered not only for overthrowing the Qing Dynasty, but also for founding "Asia's first democratic republic -- the Republic of China (ROC)," Cheng said after paying tribute at the mausoleum on Wednesday morning.

The ROC is Taiwan's official name. In 1949, the ROC government, then led by the KMT, relocated to Taiwan after losing the Chinese Civil War to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which established the People's Republic of China (PRC) the same year.

Cheng said Sun loved nature throughout his life and encouraged tree planting, while noting that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), whom she referred to as CCP general secretary, also attaches great importance to ecological conservation and promotes tree planting.

"I hope that today we can plant the seeds of peace not only for Chinese people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, but for all humanity," said Cheng, leader of Taiwan's main opposition party.

Urging people not to forget Sun's dying words -- "The revolution has not yet succeeded; comrades must still strive on" -- Cheng said both sides should work together to promote cross-strait reconciliation and unity, and create regional prosperity and peace.

In response to Cheng's remarks, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), Taiwan's top government agency for handling cross-strait affairs, said Cheng had referred to the ROC "in a veiled manner," similar to past KMT chairpersons during their visits to China.

Such references to the ROC will not be reported by media in China, and can only serve as a way for Cheng to explain herself to the Taiwanese public, the MAC said in a statement.

The CCP has framed Sun as "a forerunner of the Chinese revolution" and portrays itself as his legitimate successor, while completely ignoring the fact that the ROC continues to exist to this day, the agency added.

Cheng, as KMT chairperson, "should have rejected such wording," MAC said.

Wednesday marked the second day of Cheng's six-day trip to China, which she is making at the invitation of the CCP Central Committee and Xi to lead a KMT delegation on a visit to Jiangsu Province, Shanghai and Beijing through Sunday.

Although Song Tao (宋濤), director of the China's Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO), received Cheng on her arrival in Shanghai on Tuesday, it remains unconfirmed whether she will meet Xi during the trip.

At a regular TAO news conference on Wednesday morning, spokesperson Zhu Fenglian (朱鳳蓮) said only that the Chinese side would make "proper arrangements" for the delegation's itinerary in China, without confirming media queries about whether a Cheng-Xi meeting would take place.