THE Chinese military would by no means tolerate “Taiwan independence” or allow anyone to make Taiwan secede from China by any means, a general of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) said Monday.

“If such a thing (Taiwan’s secession from China) happens, we will effectively perform our glorious mission of safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity in accordance with the will of the motherland and the wishes of the people,” said General Guo Boxiong, vice chairman of China’s Central Military Commission.

However, Guo added that the mainland will “strive for the prospects of peaceful reunification.”

Guo’s call came on the heels of the latest “Taiwan independence” remarks of Taiwan leader Chen Shui-bian, who said at a gathering in Taiwan on Sunday that he wanted “Taiwan independence” and a “new constitution.”

Also on Monday, a spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of China’s State Council lashed out at Chen’s “deliberate provocation of the mainland.”

“Chen has replaced the ‘four noes’ pledge with a ‘four wants’ policy, which shows once again that Chen is a faithless politician,” the official said.

When he took office in 2000, Chen pledged to adhere to the “four noes,” namely no declaration of “Taiwan independence,” no incorporation of the “two states” remarks into the “constitution,” no change of the island’s name and no referendum on “Taiwan independence.”

Chen’s attempt to seek “Taiwan independence” through constitutional reform posed a huge threat to peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits and to Asia and the Pacific, said the official.

The U.S. State Department reiterated Monday that the United States “does not support independence for Taiwan” in an official response to the pro-independence statements by Chen.

In another development, Taiwan’s “vice president” Annette Lu announced yesterday that she was campaigning to be the island’s first female “president.”

But analysts said Lu’s chances of winning next year’s elections are slim, and many doubt she has enough support to win her party’s primary — which already includes three other solid candidates, the island’s “premier” Su Tsen-chang, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Yu Shyi-kun and former Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh, all of whom announced their candidacies last month.

(SD-Xinhua)