The National Unification Council was a nonstatutory governmental agency of the Republic of China on Taiwan established on 7 October 1990. Now defunct, its formal aim was to promote the reintegration of mainland China into the Republic of China.

In February 1991, the council drafted the Guidelines for National Unification, which outlined a three-phase approach for Chinese unification. The Guidelines called for the People's Republic of China to democratize and become more developed as the precondition for serious talks about steps toward eventual unification.

The council was suspended and ceased to function in early 2006 during the presidency of Chen Shui-bian, a member of the Democratic Progressive Party which has generally promoted Taiwanese nationalism.

Establishment

The National Unification Council was established under the direct oversight of the Office of the President by then-President Lee Teng-hui. It first met on 7 October 1990, with 30 members. Membership extended to government officials, political party leaders, industrialists, civic leaders, scholars and journalists.

In February 1991, the council drafted the Guidelines for National Unification, which outlined a three-phase approach for Chinese unification. This would later develop into the 1992 Consensus. On 27 February 2006, Chen formally announced that the council would "cease to function" and its guidelines would "cease to apply". President Chen Shui-bian declared that the Guidelines for National Unification had "ceased to apply" because they had been drawn up by an ad hoc presidential commission in the days before citizens had the right to elect their leader and make their voices effectively heard. Moreover, the framers of the guidelines had premised them on a "one-China principle" and the presumption of eventual unification without consulting the people of Taiwan.

<blockquote>The best and easiest way to show his sincerity is to reinstate the National Unification Council made to cease to function by President Chen. Or to sign a peace accord with Hu Jintao, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party.</blockquote>

No plans for the NUC's revival had been planned, but the DPP would later return to presidency in 2016 under Tsai Ing-wen and later, Lai Ching-te.

See also

  • Cross-Strait relations
  • Political status of Taiwan
  • Mainland Affairs Council, Republic of China
  • Taiwan Affairs Office, People's Republic of China

Similar agencies

  • Ministry of Unification, Republic of Korea
  • Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (disbanded in 2024)
  • Minister of Intra-German Relations, Federal Republic of Germany prior to 1990
  • State Ministry for Reconciliation and Civic Equality, Georgia
  • Ministry of Temporarily Occupied Territories and IDPs, Ukraine

References

  • Guidelines for National Unification at Wikisource