Ko Wen-je’s bad or daft historical referencesBy Hong Tsun-ming 康駿銘Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), whose online influence has waned, has made another startling remark. Most historical events had their distal causes, proximal causes and triggers, rather than being isolated events that happened all of a sudden. This sequence of events was the key to Hitler’s monopoly of power and the death of the Weimar Republic. In each case, China’s rulers use one-sided, decontextualized and unsubstantiated statements to fan up populist support for whatever they do. The silliest label the two parties use is “green communist.” If the KMT and the TPP think communism is so evil, why do they keep sucking up to the Chinese Communist Party?

Traveler with name similar to TSP lawmaker questioned in HKBy Lin Nan-ku and Kayleigh Madjar / Staff reporter, with staff writerA Taiwanese traveler whose name sounds similar to former Taiwan Statebuilding Party (TSP) legislator Chen Po-wei (陳柏惟) was reportedly held and questioned when entering Hong Kong. Police officers walk past the China and Hong Kong flags as the territory marks the 27th anniversary of its return to Chinese rule in Hong Kong today. Photo: APDemocratic Progressive Party Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) on Saturday reiterated the story to reporters, saying it does not matter whether traveling through China, Hong Kong or Macau, they all pose a danger. The comments come after Beijing announced new legal guidelines aimed at punishing “Taiwanese independence diehards” with penalties as severe as execution. Taipei on Thursday last week raised its travel advisory for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange,” suggesting against nonessential travel.

Cathay Securities Investment Trust Co (國泰投信) chairman Jeff Chang (張錫) said the TAIEX is expected to face technical headwinds in the third quarter after a high-flying first half of the year. In particular, TSMC is expected to challenge the critical threshold of NT$1,000, meaning the stock could face volatility in the third quarter, Fan said. Meanwhile, many stocks on the main board would go ex-dividend in the third quarter, which is expected to cut about 600 points from the TAIEX, he said. Fan said that AI-related stocks are expected to attract buying in the fourth quarter amid ample liquidity. AI development has extended from cloud applications to end-user gadgets including AI PCs and AI phones, he said.

India win tight T20 World Cup finalGOING OUT STRONG: Virat Kohli, who is retiring from the format, had struggled during the tournament, but was thrilled to lead his team to victory when it matteredAFP, BRIDGETOWNIndia on Saturday won the ICC T20 World Cup title in dramatic and emotional fashion with Virat Kohli starring in a thrilling seven-run victory over South Africa at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown. South Africa ended on 169-8, with Hardik Pandya taking 3-20 for India — another reminder of his outstanding ability, particularly in “death bowling.”India’s Virat Kohli, left, Hardik Pandya, center, and Arshdeep Singh celebrate their win against South Africa in the ICC T20 World Cup final at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown on Saturday. Photo: APThe win is the second T20 World Cup title for India following their triumph in the first edition in 2007 and it also ends their 11-year wait for a major title going back to the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy. That meant South Africa needed 20 from the final two overs and Arshdeep Singh bowled a masterful length to allow just four. It was a bitter end for South Africa who had reached their first World Cup final after ending a streak of seven defeats in semi-finals in both World Cup formats.

Keelung mayor recall hits thresholdSTRUGGLE FOR KEELUNG: The KMT would organize a task force in the coming days to deal with the recall challenge, party Secretary-General Justin Huang saidBy Weng Yu-huang And Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writerA campaign to recall Keelung Mayor George Hsieh (謝國樑) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) has garnered 36,000 signatures, passing the signature threshold required to initiate a recall vote, campaign spokeswoman Lee Yen-jung (李晏蓉) said yesterday. To make room for clerical errors, organizers aim to obtain 40,000 signatures before submitting the petition on Friday next week to the Keelung City Election Commission, she said. Keelung Mayor George Hsieh, second left, poses with event guests at the Nuannuan Waterfront Park festival in Keelung yesterday. The Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法) stipulates that a recall election process for the mayor of an administrative region can be initiated if at least 10 percent of the jurisdiction’s voters signed a petition for it. The Keelung City Government estimated that if the petition is valid, a recall election would be held between September and December.

The UN is betraying Afghan womenThe international community must abandon the idea that the rights of women can be traded offBy Ruth Pollard / Bloomberg OpinionIt is the ultimate act of bad faith. An egregious breach of trust — one that places security and counterterrorism concerns above the rights of women, girls and minorities. Importantly, Bennett says that nations should “avoid normalization or legitimization of the de facto authorities” until the human rights situation improves, especially for women and girls. Human Rights Watch Women’s Rights Division associate director Heather Barr said it is “enraging” that the UN has done this. “This is one of them.”Not surprisingly, Afghan women and human rights defenders are calling for nations to boycott this meeting.

China is planning ‘major’ economic reforms, Xi saysAFP, BEIJINGChinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday said that the Chinese Communist Party was planning and implementing “major” reforms, ahead of a political conclave that is expected to put economic recovery high on the agenda. Chinese policymakers have struggled to reignite growth since late 2022, when restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic were lifted. Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing yesterday. Photo: APPolicymakers “are planning and implementing major measures to further deepen reform in a comprehensive manner,” Xi said in a speech at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. “We will ... form a more market-oriented, legal and international business environment.”“China’s door will only open wider and wider, and will never be closed,” he added.

An Indian army camp is pictured last month in Eastern Ladakh. “The Indian army stops us from going there,” Namgyal said, pointing to treeless, ice-streaked peaks. Armored vehicles of the Indian army are parked last month at a military camp in Eastern Ladakh. But the herders say they are the losers, caught in a conflict not of their making. However, having pulled troops back, India and China are bolstering their defense infrastructure in other ways.

This in turn brings us to the focal question: How and to what extent has the meeting between the US lawmakers and the Dalai Lama underlined a change in the US policy toward Tibet, and how would the shift in US policy impact China’s claim over Tibet? Subsequently, Washington’s policy toward Tibet witnessed a dramatic change in the backdrop of a rapprochement between China and the US in the 1970s. In this context, a new US bill — Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute — that awaits US President Joe Biden’s assent is seen as a paradigm shift in US policy toward Tibet and China. After all, the shift in the US’ Tibet policy would greatly help India to allow more freedom to the Tibetan government-in-exile on its soil. Moreover, the Biden administration’s policy toward Tibet strongly reciprocates Modi’s approach to Tibet.

Airports to close for Han KuangBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterThe airspace around Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) is to be closed for an hour on July 25 and July 23 respectively, due to the Han Kuang military exercises, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The annual exercise is to be held on Taiwan proper and its outlying islands from July 22 to 26. A plane takes off from Taipei International Airport with Taipei 101 in the background on May 1. The purpose of implementing such a measure is for the “annual military exercise and training involving the use of helicopters,” with a flight altitude below 1,500 feet, the bulletin states. The tradition of having Special Operations Forces and the Marine Corps play the role of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army or imaginary enemy during the Han Kuang exercise has also been canceled, he said.

The need to protect Taiwan’s news mediaBy Chen Chi-nung 陳啟濃It has been reported that a Chinese correspondent has been involved in the production of a pro-China Taiwanese political talk show and supervising the filming. Some news media and political programs in Taiwan are already speaking on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Independent Legislator May Chin (高金素梅) recently referred to Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) as “our President Xi.” Pro-China media in Taiwan even openly mimic Xi’s words and try to brainwash Taiwanese. Pro-China media in Taiwan reported that the Philippines was challenging China’s powerful People’s Liberation Army Navy, and ended up embarrassing itself. Only when we banish “red media” from Taiwan can we genuinely appreciate the value of democracy.

UN-backed Kenyan police land in Haiti to face gangsThe first UN-backed contingent of foreign police arrived in Haiti on Tuesday, nearly two years after the troubled Caribbean country urgently requested help to quell a surge in gang violence. Members of a Kenyan police force, part of a new security mission, stand at the airport after disembarking, in Port-au-Prince on Tuesday. Photo: ReutersThe Kenyans’ arrival marks the fourth major foreign military intervention in Haiti. He was accompanied by Kenyan National Security Adviser Monica Juma. “We stand united in our commitment to support Haiti’s National Police to restore public order and security,” she said.

The core idea of the summit of the future is that humanity is facing a set of unprecedented challenges that can only be solved through global cooperation. The statement on the summit of the future is chapter 1 of this year’s Sustainable Development Report. Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals — including the fight against poverty, hunger, disease and environmental degradation — requires sizeable public investments. Most importantly, the summit of the future is an invitation to intensive global brainstorming on how to make our deeply interconnected world fit for sustainable development in the 21st century. Jeffrey D. Sachs, a professor and director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University, is president of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

Up to 1,000 Indian workers to arrive in first phase: ministerBy Kayleigh Madjar / Staff writer, with CNAThe manufacturing industry would be the first to accept workers from India, starting with no more than 1,000 no sooner than a year from now, Minister of Labor Ho Pei-shan (何佩珊) said today. Photo: CNAThe first phase would involve only a small number of workers, Workforce Development Agency Director-General Tsai Meng-liang (蔡孟良) said. Effort would also be made to ensure the incoming workers do not “destabilize” the country and adapt to its language and culture, he added. According to the MOU, Taiwan is to decide on the number of workers that may be hired and quotas per industry. The number of workers brought in for the initial trial phase would not exceed 1,000, Ho said.

Photo: CNAThe US urges China to “engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan,” Miller said, adding that “threats and legal warfare will not achieve peaceful resolution to cross-strait differences.”Under the guidelines, courts in China would be allowed to try “Taiwan independence separatists” in absentia. Strengthening Taiwan’s security is strengthening regional security, Lai said, adding that his administration would continue to improve the resilience of Taiwan’s self-defense to face any possible challenges. “We are here to learn today ... to learn how we can deepen [the bilateral] relationship” and “support you and your effort ... as you take on a more aggressive China,” commission chairperson Robin Cleveland said. China has been weaponizing its domestic laws as a means to expand authoritarianism, Wu said, citing the recent passage of China Coast Guard Regulation No. 3, and the guidelines passed on Friday last week as examples that would put Taiwanese and international friends of Taiwan at risk of arrest in China.