Unification might be a dream of Xi and the CCP, but with every passing year the idea becomes more of a nightmare for a majority of Taiwanese, except those as deluded — or as morally corrupt — as Beijing’s leadership. The plenum proposed upholding and improving “one country, two systems” and promised to protect the stability of Hong Kong — even though Beijing has ignored the commitments it made in its treaty with Britain on the future of the territory. In addition, the plenum vowed stronger centralized leadership and improved decisionmaking, which anyone with even a passing interest in post-1949 Chinese history could tell you is not only an oxymoron when it comes to the CCP, but has been a disaster in reality. The vow of the plenum to extend the CCP leadership’s authority even further is akin to those who would prop up an earthquake-damaged building by plastering over its cracks without checking if the foundation is even strong enough to support it. Party plenum communiques have traditionally been vague to the point of opaqueness, with details and additional policies announced later.

Source: Taipei Times November 01, 2019 16:07 UTC