Former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou departed for a tour of China on Monday, in what he called an attempt to reduce tensions a day after Taiwan lost one of its few remaining diplomatic partners to China.
The ex-president is visiting in a private capacity, bringing a delegation of academics and college students for exchanges, as well as members of his family, but the trip is loaded with political meaning.Ma's policies brought Taiwan and Beijing to their closest relationship ever, but his exit from office was overshadowed by massive protests against a trade deal with the mainland and his successor has focused on bolstering ties with the U.S.
Ma, a member of the opposition Nationalist Party , will land in Shanghai before starting his visit in nearby Nanjing. He is expected to tour the mainland from March 27 to April 7, stopping in Wuhan and Changsha, as well as other cities. He is bringing college students from Taiwan to meet with fellow students from Shanghai's Fudan University and Changsha's Hunan University.
A former mainland student leader in the 1989 Tiananmen square protests called on Ma to cancel his trip. "If you have even a strand of affection for Taiwan ... you should announce the cancellation of your trip," said Wang Dan, a Chinese dissident who previously lived in Taiwan, on his Facebook page.
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