China's top legislature, the National People's Congress (NPC), ratified the Anti-Secession Law with an overwhelming vote of 2,896 to nil in Beijing Monday, setting the legal framework to prevent Taiwan from being seceded from China and to promote peaceful national reunification.
  
Chinese President Hu Jintao signed a presidential order for the immediate promulgation of the law at Monday's session. The law became effective upon promulgation.
  
The law, which consists of ten articles, provides for the legislative purpose and scope of application of the legislation, the nature of the Taiwan issue, achieving national reunification through peaceful means, and taking non-peaceful means to stop Taiwan's secession from China by the "Taiwan independence" secessionist forces.
  
Top legislator Wu Bangguo hailed the high support rate of NPC deputies for the law demonstrated the "common will and strong resolve" of the entire Chinese people.
  
"The Anti-Secession Law, adopted with a high support rate from NPC members, has legalized policy guideline of the central authorities on Taiwan, and given full expression to China's consistent position of doing the utmost with maximum sincerity for a peaceful reunification," said Wu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, after the law was ratified.
  
He said the adoption of the law also demonstrated the "common will and strong resolve" of the entire Chinese people to safeguard China's sovereignty and territorial integrity and never to allow the "Taiwan independence" forces to make Taiwan secede from China under any name or by any means.
  
"The promulgation and implementation of the law have major practical and far-reaching historical impact on the development of cross-Strait relations, peaceful reunification of the motherland, and opposing and checking Taiwan's secession from China by secessionists in the name of 'Taiwan independence'," Wu said.
  
It is also important to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits, and to safeguard China's sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as the fundamental interests of the Chinese nation, said Wu.
  
China has said the law is by no means a so-called "law on the use of force against Taiwan" or a so-called "war mobilization order." China would only use "non-peaceful means" to stop Taiwan's secession should all efforts for a peaceful reunification prove futile, Wang Zhaoguo, vice-chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, told NPC last week.

(Xinhua News Agency March 14, 2005)