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As a matter of fact, the "one China" concept belies the facts of history. Chiang Kai-Shek, the former president of the Republic of China who retreated to Taiwan after the communist victory on the mainland, was as much responsible for the "one China" theory as was the communist government -- both saw themselves as the sole legitimate ruler of China.
After the successful revolution of Sun Yat-sen against the Qing Dynasty, the Republic of China was established in 1912. In 1927, the power struggle between the Communist Party and the Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang, began. The two formed an uneasy alliance to fight the Japanese until their defeat in 1945, when civil war broke out in earnest. Chiang's defeat by the communists and retreat to Taiwan left the nation clearly divided into two: the newly named People's Republic of China, with its capital in Beijing, and the Republic of China, with its capital in Taipei.
This situation was similar to that of the two Germanys and the two Koreas. However, neither Chiang nor the Chinese Communist Party wanted to acknowledge the separation, and each side insisted on the "one China" concept. The fact that neither side acknowledged the reality at the time of the split is the crux of the problem between the two sides today.
In the beginning Chiang used his international reputation, won by joining the Allies in World War II, to block international recognition of the PRC. He also insisted that the PRC should not join the United Nations. The United States tried to persuade Chiang that the two sides should recognize each other and join the United Nations together. Washington suggested this peaceful resolution of the conflict, holding out the possibility of unification in the future. But Chiang rejected the idea. He also succeeded in blocking U.N. membership for the PRC for over 20 years.
In 1971, international recognition switched from Taiwan to the PRC as the legitimate government of China. Beijing took Taipei's seat at the United Nations, including its status as a permanent member of the Security Council. From that time on, the PRC began to block international recognition of the ROC on Taiwan through the "one China" concept and policy. The PRC paid Chiang Kai-Shek back in his own coin. The struggle between the Communist Party and the Kuomintang continued as a diplomatic war.
In 1991, when Lee Teng-hui was elected president of the ROC, as head of the nation and the ruling Kuomintang, he announced an end to the "era of turbulence." The main political significance of this was that Taiwan unilaterally ended hostilities with the Chinese Communist Party, gave up its claim of sovereignty over mainland China, and recognized the ROC's territory as restricted to Taiwan Island and the Pescadore, Kinmen, and Matsu islands.
Most Taiwanese hoped Lee would replace their long-serving but dysfunctional Congressmen and promote democratic reforms; few realized the profound political significance of his unilaterally ending the state of civil war with the Chinese Communist Party. This was in fact a historical step forward for Taiwan. However, China's Communist Party continued to pursue the diplomatic war, using every means to deny Taiwan the status of a nation in the international community.
In 2000 the fledgling Democratic Progressive Party won the presidential election and replaced the KMT that had ruled since 1949. This shifted the nature of the conflict between the mainland and the island: The civil war had been a battle between the KMT and the Communist Party, but now one of the contending parties was no longer in power.
It is obvious that civil war split China into two countries which followed different ideologies, policies and systems. With the aim of eventual unification under its own sovereignty, each side labeled the other a "traitor," and both attempted to prevent the international community from recognizing the other side. Both positions were arbitrary, unreasonable and inappropriate, rooted in a hostile wartime attitude.
Now, however, Taiwan has changed that position and renounced war against China. The issue now is ensuring the freedom, democracy and human rights of the 23 million people of Taiwan. China can no longer justify its stance that it has the right to resort to violence to reclaim Taiwan. Any such action would be an invasion. China's claim that Taiwan is its "internal affair" is a mere fiction.
The time has come for the world community, led by the United States, to reflect upon the unreality of the "one China" theory and the invalidity of the view that China has the right to take over Taiwan. The United States should lead the way in recognizing the facts of history, which are that the two sides originally belonged to one Chinese nation, but were separated into two and remained separated largely because of the either/or, communist/democracy mindset of the Cold War.
The two Chinas should follow the example of the two Germanys and the two Koreas --the pursuit of unification based on peaceful negotiations in accordance with the wishes of the people of both sides. This is the best way to resolve the cross-straits issue.
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(Dr. Chang Chuan-fong is Asia Director of the International Educational Foundation, based in Macau, China, and former associate professor in the Department of Education at Minghsin University of Science and Technology, Taiwan.)
