BEIJING, May 18 (Xinhuanet) -- The government and the people share the same stance on top issues regarding the resolution of the Taiwan issue, the development of the cross-straits relations, and the reunification of the motherland.

    Yu Keli, director of the Taiwan Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), made the remark Tuesday at a briefing organized by the All-China Journalists Association, at which Yu and three other mainland researchers on the Taiwan issue answered questions by reporters from China's mainland, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao.

    The other scholars were Xu Bodong, director of the Taiwan Institute of Beijing Union University, Guo Zhenyuan, a research fellow of the China Institute for International Studies, and Sun Shengliang, an associate research fellow of the Taiwan Institute of the CASS.

    In their talks, these scholars showed strong support to the Taiwan Work Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council,who were authorized to issue a statement on the current relations between the mainland and Taiwan, now dubbed the "May 17 Authorized Statement".

    "To pro-independence activists, we are 'hawks', but to Taiwan people, we are 'pigeons'," said Xu Bodong. He said the mainland also welcomes those who have given up their wrong, pro-independence stance.

    The statement indicates that the mainland has not changed its fundamental stance on the issue of Taiwan and it is an integration of flexibility and fundamentality, Xu noted.

    Guo Zhenyuan criticized the Taiwan leaders for their "thinking in the way of gamblers". They are wrong, if they think that the mainland may not adopt decisive measures against "Taiwan independence", due to the coming Olympic Games in 2008, he said.

    These mainland scholars agreed that the statement is a kind of warning to the current situation as Chen Shui-bian has come to thebrink of "Taiwan independence". If he goes one step farther, it may lead to a situation the people on the two banks do not want tosee, they held.

    However, these scholars believe that the mainland still adheresto the principle of "peaceful reunification, and one country, two systems", though this wording did not appear in the statement.

    It is unnecessary that this wording should appear in every statement and document, Yu Keli explained. Enditem