Editor's note: Chen Guiqing, a special commentator for CGTN, is a research fellow at the Institute of Taiwan Studies, and deputy director of the Department of Foreign Affairs Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

In early October, Shen Pao-yang, a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate for the Taipei mayoral election – who had previously criticized the Shanghai-Taipei City Forum for its "low efficacy" and its role as a "conduit for infiltration from the mainland," advocating for its termination – abruptly shifted his stance, claiming that the framework could be "retained" to facilitate purely economic or substantive exchanges, provided there are "no political preconditions."

Founded in 2010, the Shanghai-Taipei City Forum has forged ahead for more than a decade. It has signed 49 memorandums of understanding on exchanges and cooperation, which have delivered a host of tangible, verifiable cooperative projects in science and technology, healthcare, elderly care, transportation, and other livelihood sectors, genuinely benefiting ordinary citizens of both cities.

In healthcare, the two cities have regularly hosted sub-forums and have engaged in in-depth cooperation regarding the use of smart medicine. Shanghai and Taipei have engaged in two-way learning, with Shanghai's AI-assisted diagnosis and smart ward technologies complementing Taipei's mature experience in community-based primary health management and the human-centered medical model of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital. Medical experts from Shanghai and Taipei conduct regular mutual visits and exchanges. Taiwan-funded institutions such as Hexin Hospital have set up operations in Shanghai, offering diversified rehabilitation and healthcare services to people on both sides and promoting experience-sharing in traditional Chinese medicine and pharmaceutical administration.

In elderly care, amid the shared challenge of population aging, the two cities use the "Healthy and Happy Senior Life" sub-forum to exchange practical plans covering care for seniors with cognitive disorders, community meal services, age-friendly renovation, and training for care workers. Shanghai's smart elderly care platforms and its "Internet hospital + nursing home" model complement Taipei's long-term care system, offering high-quality elderly care options for the "silver generation" in both cities.

In science, technology, and urban governance, the forum focuses on AI, digital governance, rail transit, and other topics. Taipei's 1999 citizen hotline and Shanghai's 12345 government service hotline have learned from each other's experiences in using AI to make public services more convenient. Taiwan's business delegations participate in the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai, enabling young people and industry practitioners on both sides to expand cooperation channels and seek development opportunities.

In addition, arrangements such as reciprocal marathon entry quotas and direct flights that build a "one-day living circle" continue to bring people across the Strait closer.

Facts speak volumes: the Shanghai-Taipei City Forum is by no means a hollow "publicity stunt." It is a dialogue platform rooted in local governance and dedicated to people's daily well-being. It plays an irreplaceable positive role in promoting cross-Strait people-to-people contacts, easing tensions across the Taiwan Strait, safeguarding cross-Strait peace, and protecting the vital interests of Taiwan compatriots.

Regrettably, some DPP politicians including Shen Pao-yang had insisted on politicizing such grassroots livelihood exchanges. The Shanghai-Taipei City Forum is essentially a channel for the two cities to swap experience on public services and livelihood challenges, free from ideological confrontation. Yet these politicians had deliberately distorted the forum's positioning, amplified confrontational narratives, hyped up alleged risks, and denied the livelihood value of cross-strait urban exchanges.

Their underlying logic is plain: During election cycles, they exploit cross-Strait issues and stoke confrontation and antagonism to grab media attention, consolidate their core support base with radical rhetoric, and win votes. 

The fundamental mission of local governance has never been to create conflict and manipulate ideology, but to steadily improve residents' lives, lower livelihood costs, expand development opportunities, and safeguard urban peace. If the electoral interests of a handful of politicians lead to the artificial severing of cross-Strait urban communications and the closing of windows for mutual learning on governance experience, Taipei citizens' stable lives, young people's development prospects, and room for improvement in medical and elderly care will all be gambled away in political adventurism. When cross-Strait tensions rise, ordinary Taipei families, grassroots workers, and young people will ultimately bear the costs of price fluctuations, hampered trade, and shrinking exchange opportunities – not the politicians who peddle confrontational rhetoric on the campaign trail.

The aspiration for peace and exchanges is shared by the majority of people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. The continuous operation of the Shanghai-Taipei City Forum and steady progress in livelihood cooperation themselves prove the simple truth that dialogue beats confrontation and engagement is better than isolation.

The year-end Taipei mayoral election will become not only a test of urban governance capacity but also a choice concerning the path of cross-Strait exchanges. Never should the political interests of a handful of politicians be paid for by the general public.

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