Opposition protests with slogan "One Taiwan, One China"

Top Chinese envoy Chen Yunlin arrived in Taichung Monday for cross-strait talks this week.The two sides were planning to sign four agreements on Tuesday, but one agreement preventing double taxation will not be signed. That's because of some technical issues that still have to be worked out. The other three agreements will be signed as scheduled. These include cooperation in the fishery industry, agricultural inspection, and certification standards.

Chen's arrival was met with protests by the opposition party. Chen remarked about his mixed welcome Monday.

"On the way here, I saw many people opposing my visit. They do not welcome me here," Chen said. "But I also saw many people welcoming me here. I hope that we can sit down and talk about the problems we face and find win-win ways to meet the interests of both sides. For those people with different opinions, we will definitely respect them."

The Secretary General of Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Kao Koong-lian said, "I hope that the two sides of the strait can put aside controversies and have pragmatic dialogue. Let's not over politicize things. I hope that China can have patience and wisdom and fully respect the thoughts of Taiwan's people. I hope that China can understand the differences across the strait and keep the big picture in mind."

President Ma Ying-jeou headed a security meeting Monday morning. He said he wants to protect citizens' right to protest. He said that any deals with China would be made in Taiwan's interests.

"These are all in the interests of Taiwan, including the cross-strait talks. We will stick to these principles. No need to worry," Ma said. "And we will try to be transparent with every step, there is no 'black box process' here. Everything can be made public. But some things will not be made public until we sign them. We can make the key points public in advance so that everyone can know what the government is doing."

The opposition has been staging a major protest with the slogan "Break the black box, keep our rice bowls". It protests a lack of transparency in deals with China and the threat that a trade pact with China may bring to Taiwan.

The two sides are planning to discuss a trade agreement and intellectual property protection in the next round of talks. But Kao said that does not mean that the trade pact will be signed next time.