Democratic elections show Taiwan is ‘already independent’ from China, says presidential frontrunner

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Taiwan is already independent and sovereign as it elects its own president, the self-governed island’s presidential frontrunner said.

Vice president William Lai, who is leading in opinion polls to be elected the next pesident in the January elections, had previously said he could keep the peace with China if elected.

Beijing considers Taiwan to be a part of China and has pressed on the island to reunite with the mainland, by force if necessary. Taiwan has been self-ruled since it split from the mainland in 1949 following a civil war and maintains official diplomatic relations with 13 small nations.

In an interview with Japanese media, Mr Lai said he does not seek to change the status quo or Taiwan's name, which is formally the Republic of China.

He said Taiwan regularly elects leaders at all levels of government from the grassroots to the president, which shows the island is "sovereign and independent".

"If it is not sovereign and independent, how can there be a presidential election? Therefore, there is no need to declare Taiwan's independence again," he claimed, according to a transcript released by his campaign on Friday.

"My job is to protect Taiwan's sovereignty, enhance democracy, peace and prosperity."

In a commentary piece published in July, Mr Lai had vowed to "support the cross-strait status quo – which is in the best interests of both the Republic of China, as Taiwan is formally known, and the international community".

"I will never rule out the possibility of dialogue without preconditions, based on the principles of reciprocity and dignity," he added.

President Tsai Ing-wen has repeatedly offered talks with China but Beijing has refused.

Mr Lai angered Beijing in 2018 when he told parliament that he was a "Taiwan independence worker" and that his position was that Taiwan was a sovereign, independent country.

Taiwan's main opposition party Kuomintang, which traditionally favours close ties with China, has criticised Mr Lai for pushing an independence agenda and provoking China.

Mr Lai said Taiwan's people were clear this was "absolutely not" an election about choosing between war and peace. "It is a choice between democracy and dictatorship," he added.

Meanwhile, a Taiwanese security official on Wednesday warned against China's potential "very diverse" ways of interfering in Taiwan elections.

China can use military pressure, economic coercion or fake news to create a false choice between "war or peace" in the election to frighten voters, National Security Bureau Director-General Tsai Ming-yen told lawmakers.

"We are paying special attention to the Chinese Communists cooperating with opinion poll and public relations companies for the possibility of manipulating opinion polls and issuing them to interfere in the elections," he added, without naming any companies.

Prosecutors earlier this week indicted two leaders of the island’s tiny Taiwan People’s Communist Party on accusations they colluded with China in a bid to influence the upcoming elections.

With agency inputs