Taiwan independence movement

The Taiwan independence movement is a political movement advocating the Taiwan Area to become a de jure sovereign state, either as the Republic of China (ROC) or the hypothetical Republic of Taiwan. This position contrasts with support for Chinese unification under the One China stance advocated by the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Kuomintang (KMT), as well as with maintaining the status quo in cross-strait relations.

Taiwan's political status is ambiguous due to two historical issues—the competing claims of the PRC and ROC to the entirety of each other's territory due to the technically ongoingChinese Civil War, and the circumstances surrounding the Treaty of San Francisco, which relinquished Japanese control over Taiwan without officially granting sovereignty to any party. The meaning of "independence" is likewise contentious. Supporters may be referring either to Taidu, the notion of formally creating an independent state called the "Republic of Taiwan" by abolishing the ROC, or to Huadu, the notion that the ROC is already an independent state synonymous with the Taiwan Area. Debates on independence are intertwined with the history of colonization of Taiwan, particularly efforts by the KMT controlled ROC to sinicize Taiwan during the martial law era in the aftermath of World War II.

Regardless of Taiwan's current political status, the ROC exercises full autonomy in internal governance of the Taiwan Area and conducts official diplomatic relations with, and is recognized by, 11 member states of the United Nations and Vatican City. Since 2016 the government, led by the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), has asserted that formal independence is unnecessary as Taiwan is already an independent country called the Republic of China.

In present-day ROC politics, the KMT and the broader Pan-Blue Coalition seek to retain the ambiguous status quo of the ROC under the 1992 Consensus (One China, but different interpretations of China) or gradually reunify with mainland China under the ROC. They are opposed by the DPP and the Pan-Green Coalition, which support independence and argue that unification is a threat to Taiwan's sovereignty, regionalist identity, liberal democratic system and human rights. The Pan-Green Coalition also believes distancing from the concept of "China" and "Chinese identity" is needed for Taiwan to avoid conflation with the PRC and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Within the Pan-Green Coalition, Taidu activists advocate for de-Sinicization and Taiwanization of the island and society, while the establishment favors maintaining the status quo under the Huadu position.

Because the current ROC constitution includes mainland China as part of ROC territory, the process to separate Taiwan from mainland China per the ROC constitution must be initiated by one-fourth of the members of the Legislative Yuan, passed by the Legislative Yuan by a three-fourths majority with at least three-fourths of members attending, and then approved by half of all eligible voters in a referendum.

The Chinese Communist Party and the People's Republic of China strongly oppose Taiwanese independence, believing that both Taiwan and mainland China are part of their territory, and regard any moves toward independence as separatism which could trigger a military response under the Anti-Secession Law. The PRC also reject any notion of "Two Chinas", which under the PRC's political and legal framework, the ROC had ceased to exist as a legitimate sovereign state in 1949 when the PRC was established. Within PRC domestic law, the territory controlled by the ROC is designated as Taiwan Province, PRC. According to the PRC's interpretation, the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Declaration and United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 establish that Taiwan is part of the PRC under international law. The PRC has officially maintained its position of peaceful unification with Taiwan under the one country, two systems formula but does not rule out using military force, if necessary, to reunify the island should formal independence be declared. Under 2024 legal guidelines, the PRC regards advocating for Taiwan independence, regardless of jurisdiction, as a criminal offense—serious cases may result in capital punishment.