Around 1,600 people from various sectors in Taiwan region gathered on Saturday, calling for a distancing from "Taiwan independence" and expressing their desire and determination for peace, dialogue and reunification.

Most attendees wore coordinated jackets with the following message printed on the back: "Supporting the 1992 Consensus, caring for people's well-being, rejecting 'Taiwan independence,' and advocating cross-Straits peace and shared prosperity."

The event in New Taipei City involved a number of political parties and civil organizations.

The 1992 Consensus serves as the political foundation for mutual trust between the two sides of the Taiwan Straits, with its core meaning being that both sides belong to one China, said Hung Hsiu-chu, former chairperson of the Chinese Kuomintang party and chair of the Taiwan-based Chinese Cyan Geese Peace Education Foundation, at the event.

Hung criticized the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities for ignoring and distorting history, suppressing dissent on the island, clinging to the United States, and provoking confrontation with the mainland.

Calling on the two sides of the Straits to work together toward national reunification, she urged the residents in Taiwan, especially the youth, to understand and identify with Chinese history and cultural traditions, and to be aware of the historical mission they shoulder.

"I am Chinese and I am proud. As Chinese people, we should not be afraid to say it openly," said Wu Cheng-tien, chairman of the New Party, at the event.

For both sides of the Straits, there is no better path than peaceful reunification and residents in Taiwan bear the great responsibility to strive together for the cause, Wu added.

Wu Jung-yuan, chairman of the Labor Party in Taiwan, urged the residents in Taiwan to be highly vigilant given the current situation where Taiwan, through the collusion of "Taiwan independence" separatists and external forces, has been tied to a war machine –which is dragging the island toward the brink of conflict.

The event, at which participants stood up to voice opposition to war and "Taiwan independence" and show support for peaceful reunification, aimed to demonstrate that the "Taiwan independence" path is not supported by most residents in Taiwan, said Gao An-go, a retired military officer and one of the event's organizers.

"We all earnestly hope for a peaceful and stable environment, but right now, this beautiful island is rapidly slipping into a dangerous situation, and the residents in Taiwan feel a deep sense of fear and helplessness about the future," said Xiong Zi-jie, president of the Hunan Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan.

"This is why we must completely sweep 'Taiwan independence' separatists into the dustbin of history and restore a peaceful and prosperous Taiwan for its residents. Once the scourge of 'Taiwan independence' is removed, peaceful reunification will be within reach," he said.

(Cover: A view of New Taipei City, southeast China's Taiwan, October 5, 2017. /CFP)