Forum Held by Overseas Chinese Communities in New York ����This report. written by Our Staff Reporters Fu Fuyuan and Zhou Dewu stationed in New York, is about a forum held by American-Chinese and overseas Chinese communities in New York City to commemorate the fourth anniversary of the publication of President Jiang Zemin's speech entitled "Continuing to Strive for the Accomplishment of the Great Cause of Reunification of the Motherland" and the 20th anniversary of the publication of "the NPC Standing Committee's Message to Compatriots in Taiwan". Attendees talked freely about the great cause of reunification of the motherland and called on the Taiwan authorities to hold an early political negotiation with the mainland, aimed to put a formal end to the hostile situation under the "one China" principle. More than 200 American-Chinese and overseas Chinese from all walks of life in the east of the United States attended the forum. Nearly 20 people, including Chu Tien-chang, president of the Overseas Chinese Community Federation in New York and representatives and leaders of overseas Chinese from various circles spoke at the meeting. ����They indicated that over the past 20 years since the publication of the Message to Compatriots in Taiwan, particularly in the past four years since the publication of President Jiang Zemin's speech, the peaceful reunification of China has increasingly become a major event to the general concern of overseas Chinese. Along with increase in the cross-Straits exchange in the fields of economy, trade, culture, science, technology and sports, and contacts between personnel, and in an effort to help eliminate instability factors in the development of relations between the two sides and based on the current wishes of Taiwan compatriot for peace, stability, maintenance of the status quo and development of cross-Straits relations, the Chinese government has advanced the reasonable proposal for first starting political negotiation between the two sides. The Chinese government has also expressed the hope that the Taiwan authorities would, proceeding from the long-term benefits of people between the two sides of the Straits and from the general situation of the cross-Straits relations, face the reality squarely, comply with the tide and the will of the people, abandon their erroneous policy that obstructs development of cross-Straits relations, conduct political negotiation at the earliest possible date and realize the exchange of mail, trade and air and shipping services between the two sides. ����Leading official of Chinese Consulate General in New York expounded at the forum on the idea for solving the Taiwan issue in accordance with the principle of "peaceful reunification, one country, two systems" and various propositions for promoting the process of peaceful reunification of the motherland as embodied in the Message to Compatriots in Taiwan and President Jiang Zemin's speech. Sun Yafu, vice-president of the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS), who is now visiting New York, was invited to attend the forum. The meeting, he gave an introduction to the situation regarding the relations between the two sides of the Straits and the efforts made by the Chinese government for solving the Taiwan issue. ����Mr. Shen Ce, 92, former general of the Kuomintang, made a moving speech at the end of the forum. He said as an experienced hand, he personally felt that the Taiwan issue is a problem left over from the civil war between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, the country must be reunified, and the problem should be settled by the Chinese themselves. He added that no overseas Chinese who does not ardently wish reunification of the motherland, or do not hope for a unified, powerful China as the backing, the problem regarding reunification of Taiwan with the motherland can no longer be postponed indefinitely. ���� ���� ���� WorldNews 1999-01-22 Page6 Full Story in Chinese