Beijing, Jan 4 (EFE).- China accused Taiwan’s current vice president and the ruling party’s presidential candidate, William Lai, of “spreading rumors” against the mainland on Thursday. <\/p>
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson Chen Binhua, at a press conference, claimed that attacking China during the island\u2019s regional elections was an old trick of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).<\/p>
DPP politicians have no moral integrity, they lack self-discipline, and when their “corrupt and immoral” acts are exposed, they divert attention by spreading rumors about Chinese intervention in elections, he said.<\/p>
Chen’s reaction comes after Lai alleged Chinese electoral interference and said Taiwan will resist the mainland’s efforts to influence the Jan. 13 elections.<\/p>
Taiwan’s Foreign Minister, Joseph Wu, said the island was “taking measures to counter China’s interference and is documenting its experiences,” according to a publication in The Economist.<\/p>
Joseph said Taiwan would release documents on Chinese interference after the elections, which Beijing has referred to as a crucial choice “between war and peace.”<\/p>
The term of the ruling DPP under the leadership of the current president, Tsai Ing-wen – who is ineligible for a third term – has been marked by heightened tensions with China.<\/p>
If Lai wins, island experts predict he will maintain a close relationship with Washington in search of protection and support against Beijing’s growing military and diplomatic intimidation.<\/p>
China has labeled the ruling PDP as a separatist party and has cut off communications with it since it won the elections in 2016. <\/p>
China considers the island, governed autonomously since 1949, a breakaway part of its territory.<\/p>
Beijing says it reserves the right to use force to reunify Taiwan, even though a peaceful merger would be its first choice.<\/p>
The island was the refuge of the Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang) forces after losing the civil war with the Communists, who, since then, have claimed sovereignty over the territory. EFE <\/p>
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