Taiwan’s economy might expand 3.1%, bank saysBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterTaiwan’s economy might expand 3.1 percent next year, faster than the 1.1 percent growth estimated for this year, as inventory adjustments would end this quarter, allowing restocking demand to increase, Standard Chartered Bank Taiwan said yesterday. Taiwan’s economy might expand 3.1 percent next year, Standard Chartered Bank Taiwan said yesterday. Chinese tourists would contribute to Taiwan’s tourism sector if the two sides allow greater civilian exchanges after Taiwan’s presidential election next month, he said. The domestic property market would also come out of the woods next year after dodging a hard landing this year, Phoo said. The property market’s resilience has much to do with relatively low borrowing costs and prudent financial planning by homebuyers, he said.

Lai was marking the 44th anniversary of the Formosa Incident, also known as the Kaohsiung Incident. The Formosa Incident was a pro-democracy demonstration organized by Formosa Magazine employees on Dec. 10, 1979 — Human Rights Day. “We must not forget the pioneers of the Taiwan democracy movement. “We must again march shoulder to shoulder and united together as one to safeguard our democracy,” he said. “If we accept such policies, that state that Taiwan belongs to China, then Taiwanese sovereignty would no longer exist,” he said.

2024 Elections: With nod to Tsai’s US, defense policies, Ko vows moderate local, China approachBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterTaiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday said that while he would reference President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) US and national defense policies, his policies on domestic affairs and cross-strait relations would be more moderate and rational if elected. After Ko on Wednesday said during an interview that he would pursue Tsai’s national defense and foreign policies, a number of people have questioned why they should not just vote for Vice President William Lai (賴清德), the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential candidate who has pledged to follow Tsai’s direction for his foreign policies. Tsai has been devoted to improving relationships with allies and bolstering Taiwan’s military self-reliance, which he recognizes and would continue to seek, but the deadlock in cross-strait relations should be re-examined, he said. Ko said if Lai is no longer a pragmatic political worker for Taiwanese independence due to pressure from the US, then he thinks that Lai is essentially a “Taiwanese independence liar” that has used the claim to deceive supporters and garner votes. Ko said he would reference Tsai’s US and national defense policies, heading toward Taiwan’s autonomy, but seek a moderate and rational path for internal affairs and cross-strait relations, resuming communication with the other side of the Taiwan Strait and establishing a trustworthy dialogue system between the two countries if elected.

The red-light elephant in the roomBy Shiao Fu-song 蕭福松The Chiayi City Council passed a motion to assess the possibility of establishing a regulated red-light district in the city. However, the truth is that the sex industry has existed for a long time in society. In Europe, red-light districts have been established in cities including Germany’s Hamburg and Amsterdam in the Netherlands. In Taiwan, the issue of establishing regulated red-light districts has been discussed for years. The issue of setting up red-light districts must be discussed and considered in a rational and constructive manner.

Chu hid KMT assets: KoBy Lee I-chia, Lin Che-yuan and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporters, with staff writerTaiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday accused Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) of using NT$180 million (US$5.4 million) of hidden ill-gotten party assets as an election war chest. In 2015, Chu liquidated KMT assets and transferred it to privately owned foundations out of fear that the Ill-gotten Party Assets Settlement Committee would seize wealth it acquired during the Martial Law era, Ko said. Taiwan People’s Party Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je, center, speaks to reporters in Taipei yesterday. In an open letter to TPP members on Friday, Ko said that the KMT presidential campaign was rapidly heading down a pro-China path and had no chance of winning in January. He said the reason why the DPP and KMT have abandoned their beliefs is because their supporters are too kind and believe them too easily.

Nothing is deep-green about KoBy Lai Yen-cheng 賴彥丞Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) recently reiterated that he is “deep-green at heart,” a remark that pro-Taiwan supporters found dubious or even held in disdain. The “deep green” faction is a pro-indigenous force that promotes Taiwanese sovereignty by putting Taiwan’s interests first. There is no way Ko is “deep green” at heart, and his comments are no more than a ploy to save his flagging polling numbers and campaign. If Ko considers himself “deep green,” why would he vow to transcend the KMT and DPP, establish the Taiwan People’s Party and run for president in the first place? By messing up the “blue-white alliance,” Ko is now reverting back to “deep green” supporters to make up for his lost support from the pan-blue camp.

EDITORIAL: Countering CCP cognitive warfareMinister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) on Tuesday called on democracies to cooperate on countering China’s cognitive warfare efforts. Cognitive warfare was one of the items discussed in the meeting. “Unlike US defense documents and strategic thinkers, the People’s Liberation Army puts cognitive warfare on par with the other domains of warfare like air, sea and space, and believes it key to victory — particularly victory without war,” he wrote. Wu described Taiwan as “a testing ground for China’s cognitive warfare,” and for this reason, Taiwan would ideally serve as a base of operations for joint efforts to counter Chinese interference and aggression. The government should hold talks with senior representatives of other democracies on the possibility of an alliance to combat Chinese cognitive warfare and espionage.

Denmark and Sweden experienced a series of public protests this year where anti-Islam activists burned or otherwise damaged copies of the Koran, triggering demands that the Nordic governments ban the practice. More than 500 demonstrations that included burnings of the Koran or flags were registered since July, Danish Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said. Domestic critics in Sweden and Denmark have argued that any limitations on criticizing religion, including by burning Korans, undermine hard-fought liberal freedoms in the region. “History will judge us harshly for this, and with good reason,” said Inger Stojberg, leader of the anti-immigration Denmark Democrats party. Sweden is also considering how to prevent burning of the Koran, but is looking at whether police should factor in national security when deciding on protest applications rather than a ban.

The US and the UK are aligned on key challenges they face in the Indo-Pacific region, including “ensuring peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” Blinken told a news conference after he met with Cameron in Washington. Countering “Chinese cyberattacks and other hostile acts” are crucial for the UK and the US, Cameron said, while calling for closer cooperation between allies to deal with Beijing. The UK not only has to protect itself and its systems against cybercrime and other threats posed by China, but also “align better with our allies,” he said. “The EU reaffirmed its consistent one China policy and expressed concerns about increased tensions in the Taiwan Strait,” the European Council said in a press release after the meetings. Regional and global prosperity and security are threatened by increased instability in the East and South China seas, the press release said.

Consequently, elections are the best showcase for observing politicians and parties as they try to make the best possible impression. Biden, who succeeded in preventing Trump from getting re-elected, won a slim majority of young people’s votes — 55 percent, according to polls. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) leaders might not agree with this phenomenon of the party going back to its origins. These wishful calculations do not take into account the problem that the KMT and the TPP are by no means alike. Can the members of today’s KMT get their act together and make up for the failings of their forebears?

Wu’s office spokesman, Chen Yu-cheng (陳宥丞), said the candidate encountered unforeseen difficulties disclosing her husband’s finances due to being suddenly thrust into the campaign. She is also the first vice presidential nominee to have a foreign spouse, complicating the reporting of her family’s properties, Chen said, adding that Wu’s attorneys are working closely with the CEC to resolve the situation. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator and vice presidential candidate Cynthia Wu hosts a meeting at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei on Monday. Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times“We emphasize that the offices of Wu and [TPP Chairman and presidential candidate] Ko [Wen-je (柯文哲)] will handle the matter according to law,” he said. Ko owns nine plots of land and six properties in Taipei, Hsinchu City and Penghu County, bank deposits totaling NT$24.6 million, NT$950,000 in fund benefit certificates and seven life insurance savings policies.

Ko slammed for misleading commentsBy Chen Yu-fu and Jonathan ChinStaff reporters, with staff writerPan-green politicians yesterday slammed Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) presidential candidate Ko Wen-je’s (柯文哲) misleading comments about COP28, after the former Taipei mayor claimed that tripling nuclear power was a consensus reached at the climate conference. “The most important conclusion in the past few days [at COP28] is that nuclear energy should be increased three times by 2050, using 2020 as a baseline,” Ko wrote on Facebook on Tuesday. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hung Sun-han is pictured in an undated photograph. These countries pledged to triple nuclear power to attract international bank loans, which Ko untruthfully construed as a COP28 mandate to build nuclear plants, he said. Ko’s comments are irresponsible as the view that nuclear energy is a form of green energy remains disputed, said Lim Hak-yan (林學淵), the deputy secretary-general of Taiwan Environmental Protection Union.

China’s credit rating downgraded over debt fearsAFP, BEIJINGRatings agency Moody’s yesterday downgraded the outlook on China’s credit rating to “negative” from “stable” on the back of rising debt in the world’s second-largest economy. The move “reflects the increased risks related to structurally and persistently lower medium-term economic growth and the ongoing downsizing of the property sector,” it added. China’s vast property sector is mired in a deep debt crisis, with some of the nation’s biggest developers owing hundreds of billions of dollars and facing bankruptcy. Construction and real estate account for about a quarter of China’s GDP. The Chinese Ministry of Finance said it was “disappointed with Moody’s decision.”“Moody’s concerns about China’s economic growth prospects and fiscal sustainability are unnecessary,” a ministry spokesperson said, adding that China’s macroeconomy has continued to recover.

Chinese denied visas due to lack of details: officialsNO RELIGIOUS VISIT: The interior minister said visas were not issued for 218 applicants for a tour of Taiwan organized by a temple due to their own non-response Chinese who had sought to enter Taiwan for a religious event were not granted visas because they were not “religious personnel” and planned to visit places not listed on their group tour’s itinerary, then never supplied supplemental information upon request, the Ministry of the Interior and the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Visas were not issued for 218 of the 239 applicants, as they did not provide additional information or explanations as requested, Minister of the Interior Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) told a committee at the legislature in Taipei. Multiple groups, including the Taiwan Matsu Fellowship, had signed a petition that soughtBy Cheng Ching-yi,Chen Yu-fu and Jake Chung

KMT-TPP alliance talks under probeWHEELING AND DEALING? “Hou and Ko, with Chu and Ma acting as mediators, were wheeling and dealing on who gets to control which government ministry or other government position. Huang said this contravened Article 84 of the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act (總統副總統選舉罷免法). The talks broke down as the parties bickered over the use of public surveys and other issues, with the principals refusing to back down from their positions. We will not back down and shall continue to create ... a better political culture for our future generations,” she said.