Meeting on the eve of the August 23 Artillery War Memorial Day with former President of South Africa Frederik Willem de Klerk, President Ma Ying-jeou stated that Kinmen island has been transformed from a battleground into the place that experiences the most frequent interaction between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. He expressed his hope that former President de Klerk and the many ROC citizens planning to take part in commemorative activities to be held in Kinmen the following day would appreciate the efforts made by the ROC to help peace take root and forge a longstanding peace.
This marked the seventh visit to Taiwan by former President de Klerk, who traveled here this time at the invitation of the Republic of China Centenary Foundation to take part in the ROC Centennial Peace Day activities on August 23 at the Kinmen Peace Memorial Park. This special activity is part of a series of celebrations marking the ROC's centenary.
President Ma stated that since taking office in May 2008 he has strived to fulfill his pledges to the people of the ROC related to freedom, democracy, and peace. Over the past three years, he said, incipient signs of peace have emerged in the Taiwan Strait, and Taiwan and mainland China have signed 15 agreements, helping to gradually normalize relations between the two sides and reduce the chance for armed conflict. In looking back at what took place on August 23, 1958, the president remarked that mainland China during a period of over 40 days bombarded Kinmen with nearly 500,000 shells. However, each year over the past several years, more than one million trips have taken place between the two sides under a system allowing for direct transport between Kinmen and southeastern mainland China. What once was a battlefield has now become the place that features the most frequent contact between the two sides, he said.
President Ma stated that former President de Klerk in 1993 jointly received the Nobel Peace Prize with another former South African president, Nelson Mandela. After retiring, former President de Klerk founded the FW de Klerk Foundation to promote ethnic peace and bring attention to tribal culture. The work carried out by the foundation has been highly praised in both South Africa and the international community. President Ma commented that the ROC in the past has experienced ethnic issues. Fortunately, increased social prosperity, democratic progress, and higher levels of education have promoted greater understanding among people, helping to take the edge off of these issues, he said. President Ma added that the ROC and South Africa share many core values. He expressed his hope that during his visit to Taiwan, former President de Klerk will engage with people here and work to promote the common values shared by the two nations.
Former President de Klerk and FW de Klerk Foundation Executive Director David Whitefoord Steward were accompanied to the Presidential Office by Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Ssu-Tsun Shen (沈斯淳) and Republic of China Centenary Foundation CEO Emile C. J. Sheng (盛治仁) to meet with President Ma. Also attending the meeting was National Security Council Secretary-General Hu Wei-jen (胡為真).