【明報專訊】IN TAIWAN, Lai Ching-te has been sworn in as the new leader of the government. His inaugural speech was full of indications of Taiwan independence, stressing only that the Republic of China (ROC) and the People's Republic of China (PRC) are not subordinate to each other. He evaded the notion of "one China" included in the ROC constitution and made little mention of terms like "cross-strait relations". He directly referred to the mainland as "China", while remarking that Taiwan can be a "country name". Although Lai claims he wants to "maintain the status quo", his inaugural speech is in actuality an advocation of a "new two-state theory" and an attempt to further segregate the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. Lai positions himself as a "pragmatic worker for Taiwan's independence" and even describes the ROC constitution as a "disaster". His stance on cross-strait relations is unacceptable and would only jeopardise peace in the Taiwan Strait.