Taiwan’s government says it respects the Holy See’s reassurances in the past that its agreement with China on bishop appointments “does not touch on diplomatic or political matters,” after it was announced that the compromise provisional deal will be extended for the second time.
The Holy See is one of 14 sovereign entities that maintain full diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and is the only European state to do so, but its relations with Beijing have warmed under the leadership of Pope Francis in recent years.
The Vatican and China announced Saturday that they have agreed to extend their agreement on the appointment of bishops for another two years, despite widespread criticism that Beijing has waged crackdowns over the years on religious believers.
The agreement allows the Pope to have the final say on the appointment of bishops in China and is an attempt by the Vatican to have influence over Chinese state-controlled Catholic churches.
Before the agreement was established in 2018, only underground churches pledge their loyalty to the Pope but under the deal, state churches also recognize the pontiff as the supreme leader of the church, according to foreign media.
In a brief statement issued on Saturday, the Holy See announced the latest, two-year renewal of the arrangement, underlining that it is committed to “constructive dialogue” with China on implementing the accord and in improving bilateral relations “with a view to fostering the mission of the Catholic Church and the good of the Chinese people.”
The deal is seen as a breakthrough, with some people speculating that it could ultimately lead to full scale diplomatic recognition of Beijing by the Vatican, in which case Taiwan would lose its official ties with the Holy See.
Beijing’s “one China” policy requires the Vatican to sever ties with Taipei as a prerequisite to establishing diplomatic relations.
Taiwan’s responses
In response, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Saturday reiterated its previously-stated stance on the historic agreement.
A MOFA press release says the Holy See has publicly stated on numerous occasions that the provisional agreement “only deals with pastoral issues and does not touch on diplomatic or political matters.”
“Taiwan highly values this solemn commitment and has maintained close contacts with the Holy See, expressing our concern and position,” it said.
MOFA said Taiwan, a country that fully respects religious freedom, has always hoped that the deal can help improve the worsening situation of religious freedom in the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
“Unfortunately, as the PRC government has stepped up measures to persecute local Catholic communities, such as further suppressing believers who resist being controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and forcing many bishops to join the CCP-controlled Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association. Religious freedom and human rights in China have continued to deteriorate,” it said.
The so-called “sinicization of religion” in the PRC has become “nationalization of religion,” it stressed.
The ministry added that Taiwan will closely monitor related developments and continue to advance cooperation with the Holy See and the Catholic Church to jointly safeguard the core values of religious freedom so as to steadily enhance its longstanding values-based diplomatic partnership with the Holy See.
A scholar’s view
Meanwhile, an Italy-based scholar familiar with Vatican-Beijing relations told CNA that Pope Francis again agreed to extend the agreement probably because to the Holy See, “a bad deal is still better than no deal.”
The agreement is the only way to continue Vatican-Beijing dialogue and to promote religious freedom in China, he said.
Also, since the deal gives the Pope the final say on bishop appointments in China, it solidifies his position as a leader in the Chinese Catholic community, which the Vatican sees as a major diplomatic breakthrough, according to the scholar.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel