Zhang's agenda during visit to Taiwain indicates growing clout of DPP

The agenda of the mainland's cross-straits ambassador, Zhang Zhijun, on his visit to Taiwan signals the growing clout of the island's main opposition party.

During his trip, which starts today, Zhang is scheduled to meet Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu, a founding member of the Democratic Progressive Party, in southern Taiwan.

What's more, DPP chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen told the media that she was willing to meet Zhang at the the party's headquarters without any preconditions. The party has said that it "holds positive views about active normalisation of cross-strait relations".

Tsai is a likely DPP candidate for the 2016 presidential race. "Tsai has sensed that she needs to make adjustments to the party's cross-strait policy to increase her chances in the 2016 presidential elections," said Ma Chun-chieh, an associate professor of administrative management at National University of Tainan in southern Taiwan.

Unlike her predecessors, Tsai was willing to make concessions, Ma said.

There have been proposals from some DPP stalwarts for the party to drop its pro-independence platform, including a recent petition signed by more than 40 DPP scholars and party leaders, in an attempt to increase public support for the party.

The DPP's recent tactics contrast sharply with calls for mass protests against a trip by the mainland's top negotiator with Taiwan, Chen Yunlin , when he first visited the island in 2008. Chen was at one point forced to stay at a Taipei hotel for hours after having dinner with Kuomintang officials because of the violent protest outside the hotel.