ISLAMABAD, March 18: The PML-Q president, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, has rejected the proposed Taiwan referendum being held on March 20. In a statement issued here, Chaudhry Shujaat said the PML and the government firmly believed that there was only one China and that Taiwan was a part of it.

He said the government and people of Pakistan had maintained friendly relations with the government and people of China in Beijing which were time-tested and a model of friendly relations with neighbouring states.

The PML has also established party-to-party relations with the Communist Party of China to strengthen their cooperation, he said. The PML-Q supported China's foreign policy of peace, he added.

"I will be leading a party delegation to China early next month to witness the great progress the Chinese have made in building their country and raising the standard of living," the PML president said.

He said: "We have witnessed with admiration the peaceful reunification of Hong Kong and Macao with the mainland. We strongly support the efforts of the Chinese leadership and people to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan state and to bring about peaceful reunification of Taiwan with the mainland.

"We are hopeful that efforts of the Chinese government for peaceful reunification of Taiwan will also be successful."