TAIPEI -- Taiwan's ruling party chief lit a torch for Tibet at a presidential campaign rally late Wednesday as he sought to pick up support three days ahead of the vote.

With China's crackdown on the Himalayan region overshadowing the election campaign here, Frank Hsieh denounced Beijing's handling of the unrest in Tibet and likened the situation to what might happen to Taiwan under Chinese rule.

"Taiwan's future should be decided by its people, and we support Tibetan people deciding their own future," he told the rally in a Taipei park of about 2,000 people.

"We oppose China's crackdown on Tibet and oppose China's threat to Taiwan," he added, as supporters waved "Free Tibet" placards.

The crisis in Tibet has focused a harsh spotlight on Taiwan's own fraught relations with China, which claims sovereignty over the self-ruled island.

Election frontrunner Ma Ying-jeou, who has vowed closer ties and a peace treaty with China, has been forced onto the defensive against Hsieh's charges that Taiwan could end up like Tibet.

"Today we can elect the president, but if we give up our sovereignty and admit we are not a country, and accept the 'one-China' principle, our future would be very miserable, just like Tibet's," Hsieh said.

Taiwan split from the mainland in 1949, and China has threatened to invade if it formally declares independence.