Taipei, Feb. 2 (CNA) President Chen Shui-bian said Wednesday that seeking consensus is the spirit of the groundbreaking "Koo-Wang talks" of 1993 and also the most precious legacy left to the people across the Taiwan Strait by the late Koo Chen-fu, who once served as Taiwan's top negotiator with mainland China.
The president made the remarks at the memorial service held at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipei Wednesday for Koo, who died Jan. 3 at the age of 88. Koo, a respected business tycoon known for his diplomatic acumen, served as the chairman of the intermediary Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) from 1991 to 2004.
In 1993, Koo met with Wang Daohan, president of the Beijing-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS) , in Singapore for the first formal cross-strait contact in more than four decades, better known as the landmark "Koo-Wang talks."
At the memorial service, President Chen offered his condolences to Koo's family and praised Koo's exceptional contributions to Taiwan's economic prosperity as well as cross-strait exchanges.
Chen said that as SEF chairman, Koo had been on the frontline of dialogue and communications with mainland China, helping usher cross-strait exchanges onto a regular track.
The 1993 "Koo-Wang talks" were an unprecedented ice-breaking rendezvous between top negotiators authorized by the governments of the two sides, while the 1998 "Koo-Wang meeting" was a historical event representing a step-forward in cross-strait relations, Chen said.
The president lamented the fact that cross-strait dialogue was suspended indefinitely later in 1998 as a result of changes in the political climate on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.
He quoted Koo as saying at the 10th anniversary of the "Koo-Wang talks" in April 2003 that because of political differences, it is imperative that the two sides continue to engage in dialogue based on respect for each other's differing opinions.
He added that bearing Koo's legacy in mind, the two sides should re-start the long-stalled dialogue and thus unveil a new era in cross-strait relations, which will pave the way for eventual peace across the Taiwan Strait.
Alluding to Koo's renowned career as an amateur Peking opera singer, Chen noted that the current cross-strait impasse is like a drama on stage. He said the key point is whether the leaderships of the two sides will have the wisdom and insight to jointly face the cross-strait situation and try to resolve their differences so that they can, in the words of Koo, "leave the audience impressed when they leave the stage."
Finally, Chen said that he was told by Koo during their last brief meeting late last year that one thing which always preoccupied him was not being able to meet with Wang again.
In this spirit, Chen said that he extends his personal invitation to Wang in the hope that Wang will come to visit Taiwan at anytime in the future at his convenience.
Chen also offered his welcome to the two ARATS senior officials -- Vice President Sun Yafu and Secretary-General Li Yafei -- who arrived in Taipei Tuesday to pay their last respects to Koo on behalf of ARATS President Wang Daohan. Sun is also currently deputy director of the Taiwan Affairs Office of the mainland's State Council.
Officials and dignitaries also on hand at Wednesday's memorial service included Vice President Annette Lu, Premier Frank Hsieh, Democratic Progress Party Chairman Su Tseng-chang, opposition Kuomintang Chairman Lien Chan, People First Party Chairman James Soong, Taiwan Solidarity Union Chairman Su Ching-chiang, and Douglas Paal, director of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Taipei Office, as well as more than 50 Japanese politicians and business executives.