Taiwan’s Opposition Chief Begins China Tour
Taiwan’s opposition leader arrived in China on Tuesday, becoming the island’s most prominent political figure to visit the mainland since the two sides split in 1949 after the civil war.
Nationalist Party leader Lien Chan has said his eight-day trip is aimed at easing tensions between Taiwan and China, which has threatened to attack if the self-ruled island officially declares independence. Lien’s visit includes a meeting Friday with Chinese President Hu Jintao.
Today, Lien visited the tomb of Sun Yat-sen, the revolutionary claimed by his party and its former Communist enemies as a hero of Chinese history. Hundreds of spectators, many of them elderly, cheered as Lien climbed the mausoleum’s steps.
Relations between the Nationalists and Communists have warmed in recent years as they united in opposition to Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian, whose party favors independence.
Nationalist supporters seeing Lien off at the airport in Taipei, Taiwan’s capital, scuffled with backers of Chen. The two sides detonated fireworks and blew air horns while shoving, kicking and punching each other.
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