Africa -China Review Africa -China Cooperation and Transformation
Published: September 26,2023
Compiled by Staff writer
In October 1971, during its 26th session the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 2758, which undertook “to rstore all its rights to the People’s Republic of China and to recognize the representatives of its Government as the only legitimate representatives of China to the United Nations, and to expel forthwith the representatives of Chiang Ki-shek from the place which they unlawfully occupy at the United Nations and in all the organizations related to it.”
This resolution settled once and for all the political, legal and procedural issues of China’s representation in the Un, and it covered the whole country, including Taiwan. It also spelled out that China has one single seat in the UN, so there is no such thing as “two China” or “one China one Taiwan.”
The specialized agencies of the UN later adopted further resolutions restoring to the PRC its lawful seat and expelling the representatives of the Taiwan authorities. One of these is Resolution 25.1 adopted at the 25th World Health Assembly in May 1972. It was clearly stated in the official legal opinions of the Office of Legal Affairs of the UN Secretariat that “The United Nations considers ‘Taiwan’ as a province of China with no separate status’ and the “authorities” in ‘Taipei’ are not considered to …enjoy any form of government status.” At the UN the island is referred to as “Taiwan, Province of China.”
Resolution 2758 is a political document encapsulating the One-China principle whose legal authority leaves no room for doubt and has been acknowledged worldwide. Taiwan does not have any ground, reason, or right to join UN, or any other international organization whose membership is confined to sovereign states.
In recent years, some elements in a small number of countries, the US foremost among them, have colluded with forces in Taiwan, to falsely claim that the resolution did not conclusively resolve the issue of Taiwan’s representation. Puffing up the illegal and invalid Treaty of San Francisco and disregarding the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Proclamation and other international legal documents , they profess that the status of Taiwan has yet to be determined, and declare their support for “Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the UN system.” What they are actually attempting to do is to alter Taiwan’s status as part of China and create “Two Chinas or “One China, one Taiwan” as part of a political ploy – using Taiwan to contain China. These actions in violation of Resolution 2758 and international law are a serious breach of political commitments made by these countries. They damage China’s sovereignty and dignity, and treat the basic principles of international law with contempt. The Chinese government has condemned and expressed its resolute opposition to them.
The one-China principle represents the universal consensus of the international community; it is consistent with the basic norms of international relations. To date, 181 countries including the United States have established diplomatic relations with the PRC on the basis of the one-China principle. The China-US Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations, published in December 1978, states, “The Government of the United States of America acknowledges the Chinese position that there is but one China and Taiwan is part of China.” It also states: “The United States of America recognizes the Government of the People’s Republic of China as the sole legal Government of China. Within this context, the people of the United States will maintain cultural, commercial, and other unofficial relations with the people of Taiwan.”
The Constitution of the People’s Republic of China adopted at the fifth Session of the fifth National People’s Congress (NPC) in December 1982, stipulates: “Taiwan is part of the sacred territory of the People’s Republic of China. It is the inviolable duty of all Chinese people, including our compatriots in Taiwan, to accomplish the great task of reunifying the motherland.”
The Anti-Secession Law, adopted at the Third Session of the 10th NPC in March 2005, stipulates: “There is only one Chia in the world. Both the mainland and Taiwan belong to one China. China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity is the common obligation of all Chinese people, the state shall never allow the ‘Taiwan independence’ secessionist forces to make Taiwan secede from China under any name or by any means.”
The National Security Law, adopted at the 15th meeting of the standing Committee of the 12th NPC in July 2015, stipulates: “The sovereignty and territorial integrity of China brook no violation or separation. Safeguarding national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity is the common duty of all Chinese citizens, including Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan compatriots.”
We are one China, and Taiwan is part of China. This is an indisputable fact supported by history and the law. Taiwan has never been a state; its status as part of China is unalterable. Any attempt to distort these facts and dispute or deny the one-China principle will end in failure.
Excerpts from a book; ‘The Taiwan Question and China’s Reunification in the New Era,” published by the People’s Republic of China, The Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council and the State Council Information Office. (Foreign Languages Press 2022).
