BEIJING, June 28 (Xinhua) -- A mainland spokesperson on Friday slammed Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities' practice of political manipulation in the name of upgrading cross-Strait travel alertdowntheclownarcadegame.

The DPP authorities are undermining the Taiwan people's legal rights and interests and obstructing exchanges across the Taiwan Strait, said Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council.

Zhu made the remarks in response to a media query about the DPP authorities' recent move to upgrade the travel alert regarding the mainland.

This is a defamation of the mainland and a blatant intimidation against the people of Taiwan, she said.

The DPP authorities have disregarded the facts and intentionally distorted the judicial guidelines recently issued to impose criminal punishments on diehard "Taiwan independence" separatists for conducting or inciting secession, Zhu said.

She reiterated that the judicial guidelines do not target a majority of people in Taiwan but a very few diehard "Taiwan independence" separatists.

The DPP authorities have made up excuses to obstruct cross-Strait exchanges and incite confrontation between the two sides, she said.

Zhu said that the mainland welcomes and supports Taiwan compatriots in engaging in cross-Strait exchanges and cooperation and will protect their legitimate rights and interests in accordance with the law.

Taiwan compatriots should not have any concerns about traveling across the Strait, she noted.■