Taipei- A Taiwan man set himself on fire Tuesday to protest President Ma Ying-jeou's moves to improve ties with China.

The man doused himself with petrol and set himself on fire at Liberty Square, where hundreds of students were staging a sit-in against a police crackdown on demonstrators during last week's visit by Chinese envoy Chen Yunlin.

As he collapsed on the ground engulfed in fire, some students poured water from drinking water bottles on him to douse the fire before rushing him to hospital with severe burns.

In a suicide note left at the scene, the man said his name is Liu Poh-yen and he is 80 and a member of Ma's Chinese Nationalist Party. He wrote that he wanted to protest Taiwan receiving Chen and police suppression of demonstrations against Chen.

"I feel ashamed by the government's overcourteous reception of Chen," the letter said. "If a higher-ranking Chinese official visits Taiwan, President Ma probably would get down on his knees to welcome him."

Chen was the highest-ranking Chinese official to visit Taiwan in 60 years.

While in Taiwan, he signed four pacts on expanding ties amid protests from members and supporters of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party who accused Ma of selling out Taiwan to China and shouted that Taiwan was not part of China.

Ma insisted that Taiwan is a sovereign country and that seeking reconciliation was necessary for the island's economy and would not hurt Taiwan's sovereignty. (dpa)