Ma Foundation Dispute Rooted in Ma's Cross-Strait Remarks, Analyst Claims

Internal strife within the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation is escalating, with a political commentator pointing to former President Ma Ying-jeou's remarks during his 2025 meeting with Xi Jinping as the potential catalyst.

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Ma Ying-jeou stepped on the red line of cross-strait relations, which may be the root of all this, and can explain why Hsiao Hsu-tsen and Wang Kuang-tzu wanted to break the years-long balance and send Ma Ying-jeou home, and at the same time explain why China is so satisfied with Cheng Li-wen.

Commentator Lee Cheng-hao suggests that Ma's off-script statement, emphasizing that "democracy must be respected by the 23 million people of Taiwan" regarding cross-strait peace and unification, crossed a red line for Beijing. This deviation reportedly led to a subsequent downgrade in the protocol for Ma's meetings, as indicated by a subsequent statement from Song Tao, head of China's Taiwan Affairs Office, asserting that Taiwan's future should be decided by "all Chinese children on both sides of the strait."

Lee questions the motives of Ma's associates, Hsiao Hsu-tsen and Wang Kuang-tzu, who allegedly sought to isolate Ma and even remove him from his chairmanship. He argues that maintaining the status quo, where Ma appeared to have influence while his associates managed the foundation, offered more benefits with less risk. The decision to disrupt this balance, Lee posits, must stem from a significant, underlying reason, which he believes is Ma's perceived transgression against China's core interests.

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Cross-strait peace, democracy, and unification. Peace is not important, unification is not important, democracy must be respected by the 23 million people of Taiwan.

This internal conflict and the alleged fallout from Ma's remarks to Xi Jinping also appear to explain China's reported satisfaction with politician Cheng Li-wen, suggesting a complex interplay of political maneuvering and cross-strait sensitivities.

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Taiwan is the Taiwan of the Chinese people on both sides of the strait, and the future and destiny of Taiwan should be jointly decided by all Chinese children on both sides of the strait.