Mainland slams DPP move to dissolve reunification party in Taiwan

A Chinese mainland spokesman on Wednesday condemned the Democratic Progressive Party authorities' attempt to dissolve a political party that promotes reunification in Taiwan, calling the move an act of suppressing political opponents.

Chen Binhua, spokesman for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, made the remarks in response to media inquiries about the DPP authorities' recent move to seek the dissolution of the Chinese Unification Promotion Party, according to Xinhua News Agency.

Chen said advocating national reunification and opposing "Taiwan independence" separatism and external interference are justified and legitimate positions that serve the nation's fundamental interests and align with the course of history.

"We strongly condemn the DPP authorities' attempt to forcibly dissolve the party in order to suppress political opponents and intensify 'green terror', which stems from their 'Taiwan independence' nature," Chen said.

He called on all sectors of Taiwan society to recognize the DPP authorities' "Taiwan independence" nature and jointly oppose what he described as their abuse of power and political manipulation.

The comments came after Liu Shyh-fang, head of Taiwan's "interior affairs department", said at a news conference on July 30 that the authorities would formally submit an application to the island's "constitutional court" in early August seeking the dissolution of the Chinese Unification Promotion Party.

Liu claimed that several key members of the party had violated local regulations and that the party allegedly posed a threat to the island's "security".

More than 20 civic groups, including the Taiwan Labor Party, the Taiwan Political Victims Mutual Aid Association and the Cross-Strait Peaceful Development Forum, issued a joint statement on Sunday protesting what they described as the DPP authorities' abuse of power in seeking to dissolve the Chinese Unification Promotion Party.

The statement said advocating the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations and national reunification is a political position consistent with legal provisions. It accused the DPP authorities of labeling groups that support reunification as "agents of external forces" because of their political views, calling the move an abuse of power and a political purge.

The groups also accused the DPP authorities of using "green terror" and an authoritarian mindset to suppress political opponents.

According to the statement, the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations is closely linked to the livelihoods of people in Taiwan, and regular exchanges between civil groups across the Strait should not be routinely smeared.

The statement urged the DPP authorities to stop political manipulation and instead focus on addressing social and livelihood issues.

The Chinese Unification Promotion Party was founded in Taiwan in 2005. The DPP authorities previously sought to dissolve the party in 2022 and 2024, but both attempts were unsuccessful.