That was followed by another statement from the Foreign Ministry stating that “China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity brook no division”.
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Garnering 6.89 million votes, or 56.12 percent, Tsai defeated Eric Chu of the ruling Kuomintang by 3.08 million votes.
“The Chou Tzu-yu incident was a “Trojan Horse”, designed by Tsai Ing-wen”, argues commentator Wu Fatian in a microblog posting. In the meantime, it did not mention any other “external forces” responsible for this outcome – such as a backlash against current President Ma Ying-jeou’s cross-strait policies.
Chinese state media lashed out swiftly in the wake of the victory, saying that Taiwan should abandon its “hallucination” of independence.
While China has been relatively measured in its response, repeating its standard line about opposing independence, great uncertainty lies ahead. An editorial carried on China’s official Xinhua news agency said there was no denying that the DPP’s return rule poses grave challenges to cross-strait relations.
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Emotional supporters of Tsai Ing-wen after her 2012 defeat.
The outside world should not underestimate the continued importance of Taiwan to the Chinese leadership, said a senior Western diplomat, citing recent conversations with Chinese policymakers on Taiwan. We should bear in mind that Beijing passed an anti-secession law a decade ago that is aimed squarely at Taiwan.
“I have always felt proud to be Chinese”, she says, looking chastened and bowing deeply in apology.
“Now more than ever, we must stand with Taiwan and reaffirm our commitment to their security”, he said in a statement. The closer economic relationship clearly benefits both sides, and although Xi and his colleagues may not know much about democracy, they probably realise that they need to be able to deal with both of Taiwan’s major parties. Her economic agenda is focused an industrial policy, aiming to (1) strengthen Taiwan’s global competitiveness through innovation, (2) strengthen domestic industries to support growth momentum and (3) emphasise on onshore economic development.
She wrote a recommendation letter in the Chinese version of Park’s memoir published in Taiwan in 2012.
“Taiwan and China need to keep some distance”, said Willie Yao, a computer engineer who said he backed Tsai. She thanked the United States and Japan for their support and vowed Taiwan would contribute to peace and stability in the region. Lee won by a landslide.
But it stopped short of the kind of political invective it once levelled at the last DPP president, Chen Shui-bian.
In 2006, the DPP’s then deputy leader Wang Shu-hui actually ate a bill that was under discussion in Parliament that proposed to open up transport links with China, in order to prevent it being discussed.
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The election took place amid concerns that the island’s economy is under threat from China and broad opposition to Beijing’s demands for political unification. Her Democratic Progressive Party won 68 of 113 parliamentary seats, giving it its first majority in the assembly long-dominated by the Nationalists.
