KMT needs to recognize US’ shift on Taiwan ties
KMT needs to recognize US’ shift on Taiwan tiesBy Tommy Lin 林逸民On April 14, a delegation of retired US officials arrived in Taiwan for a three-day visit. The next day, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga met with US President Joe Biden at the White House for a leaders’ summit. These events point toward a new era of US-Japan “strategic clarity” on Taiwan, characterized by explicit support for Taipei. The Biden administration has clearly decided to retain much of the China policy it inherited from former US president Donald Trump. Although unable to annex Taiwan, China takes advantage of every opportunity to vocalize its claim to it.
Source:Taipei Times
April 26, 2021 15:56 UTC
TPP establishes Kaohsiung base, eyes council seats
TPP establishes Kaohsiung base, eyes council seatsBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporter, with CNAThe Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) yesterday established a Kaohsiung chapter, with a pledge to win at least three city councilor seats in elections next year. TPP Legislator Jang Chyi-lu (張其祿) doubles as the head of the chapter, which is headquartered on Sandao 2nd Road in Cianjhen District (前鎮). It is also Jang’s service office. From second left, Taiwan People’s Party’s (TPP) Legislator Jang Chyi-lu, Taipei Mayor and TPP chairman Ko Wen-je and TPP Taipei chapter head Lin Kuo-cheng take part in a ceremony to inaugurate the party’s Kaohsiung chapter, which doubles as Jang’s service office, at a ceremony in the city’s Cianjhen District yesterday. The Kaohsiung mayoral election is a single-seat, single-vote system, so it would be difficult for a small party to win, Jang said, adding that the office would focus on councilor seats next year.
Source:Taipei Times
April 24, 2021 15:56 UTC
Taiwan in Time: The ‘communist rebellion’ finally ends
The six-day Wild Lily Student Movement of March 1990 called for Taiwan’s democratization, including the abolishment of the temporary provisions. The May 1, 1991 edition of the Liberty Times announces the repeal of the temporary provisions. After deliberating, they decided to add the temporary provisions, which were adopted on May 10, 1948 and set to expire two years later. Most importantly, with the repeal of the temporary provisions, the Chinese Communist Party would no longer be seen as a rebel group. After deliberation, they decided to add the temporary provisions, which were adopted on May 10, 1948 and set to expire after two years.
Source:Taipei Times
April 24, 2021 15:56 UTC
Learning from China’s diplomacy
Learning from China’s diplomacyBy Paul Lin 林保華April 10 marked the 50th anniversary of the US and China’s “Ping-Pong diplomacy.” Washington and Beijing issued statements to mark the occasion, which betrayed a sense that both sides, like lovers apart, still hold a fondness for their previous relationship. The US should not at all be sentimental, as Ping-Pong diplomacy was a trap — a triumph of deceit and subterfuge for Beijing, and a five-decade strategic disaster for Washington. It began in 1971 when Beijing extended an invitation to US table tennis players to visit China. To mark the Ping-Pong diplomacy anniversary, Chinese Ambassador to the US Cui Tiankai (崔天凱) released a recorded speech in which he called on both sides to carry forward the spirit of Ping-Pong diplomacy and seek common ground. The global order bears an uncanny resemblance to ancient China’s Records of the Three Kingdoms (三國志).
Source:Taipei Times
April 23, 2021 16:11 UTC
Groups hail labor hazards act
Groups hail labor hazards actPAYOUTS: The Labor Occupational Hazard Insurance and Protection Act says that workers have to be insured, and minimum premiums are tied to the minimum wageBy Chen Yun, Peng Wan-hsin and Jake Chung / Staff reporters, with staff writerMore than 10 million people are to be affected after disability premiums and mandatory insurance rules were overhauled yesterday, as the Legislative Yuan passed the Labor Occupational Hazard Insurance and Protection Act (勞工職業災害保險及保護法). Members of labor rights groups hold placards outside the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday. Anticipating the act’s passage, legislators and labor rights groups earlier yesterday held a news conference in front of the Legislative Yuan in Taipei. Taiwan Occupation Safety and Health president Liao Hui-fang (廖蕙芳) said that the act, once promulgated, would be the first law providing a legal basis for occupational hazards disputes. Labor rights organizations would keep a close watch on the government as the regulations are implemented, she said.
Source:Taipei Times
April 23, 2021 15:56 UTC
Line Bank crash draws commission’s ire
Line Bank crash draws commission’s ireOVERLOAD? The virtual bank launched its banking service, integrated into the messaging app Line offered by its affiliate Line Taiwan Ltd (台灣連線), at about 5pm on Thursday, but users said they could not access the service. A screen shot taken on Thursday shows that services were temporarily unavailable due to a system crash after Line Bank started operation on that day. Calling the bank’s debit card “the best debit card in Taiwan,” Huang said it would reward cardholders with Line points immediately after they make payments using the card. The card could be used as a iPass card and be linked to Line Pay Money, an electronic payment service offered by the virtual bank’s affiliate LINE Biz+.
Source:Taipei Times
April 23, 2021 15:56 UTC
KMT complains about cameras
KMT complains about cameras‘POLICE STATE’: The lack of CCTV devices outside the DPP office down the corridor suggests the installation was politically motivated, KMT Legislator Alex Fai saidBy Chen Yun, Shih Hsiao-kuang and Jake Chung / Staff reporters, with staff writerThe Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday accused the government of conducting “surveillance of the opposition” after the installation of CCTV cameras in front of its office in the Legislative Yuan in Taipei. KMT Legislator Alex Fai (費鴻泰) told a conference outside the legislative chamber that the cameras — which have facial recognition and sound recording capabilities — were installed without the caucus’ assent. You asked Legislative Yuan Secretary-General Lin Chih-chia (林志嘉) to halt installations until the matter is looked into and a report is delivered within 10 days. Cameras were installed in 2012 following a request by the KMT caucus, which at the time was concerned about possible break-ins at office, Lin said. The KMT caucus is free to sign a statement that it does not wish the installation to continue, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
April 23, 2021 15:56 UTC
Putting it together
IN FOCUS: China’s drills near Taiwan take aim at US‘AN EXCUSE’: The intent of Beijing’s incursions was ‘intimidation and coercion,’ a senior US official said, adding that China was using the US to justify its actions Chinese carrier drills and stepped-up incursions into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone in the past few weeks are meant to send a message to Washington to stand down and back off, security sources in Taipei said. The increased activity — which China, unusually, described as “combat drills” on Wednesday — has raised alarm in both Taipei and Washington, although security officials do not see it as a sign of an imminent attack. Rather, at least some of the exercises are practicing “access denial” maneuvers to prevent foreign forces from coming to Taipei’s defense in a war, one official familiar with Taiwan’s securityBy Ben Blanchard and Yimou Lee
Source:Taipei Times
April 23, 2021 15:56 UTC
Invasion of Taiwan not imminent
One area of particular concern is the almost daily incursions by Chinese warplanes into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ). The unprecedented size and volume of Beijing’s incursions have raised concern in Washington over a pending invasion of Taiwan. Even with a fully modernized and capable army, the topography of Taiwan makes it extremely challenging for the amphibious invasion necessary to succeed, especially when Taiwan has had decades to prepare its defensive posture. Starting a potentially protracted war over Taiwan ahead of the Winter Olympics would be ill-considered. No, the invasion of Taiwan is not imminent.
Source:Taipei Times
April 22, 2021 16:04 UTC
Five-year plan a challenge for Tibet
Five-year plan a challenge for TibetBy Dolma TseringFrom March 4 to 11, China held its annual “two sessions”: the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. On March 24, the Tibet Autonomous Region presented a work report containing comprehensive details about the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and the government agenda under the 14th Five-Year Plan and goal for 2035. The government set four key agenda under the new five-year plan: ensure national security and regional stability; boost national income; ecological protection; and consolidation of border security and defense. Under the 14th Five-Year Plan, the government said that income in the tourism and construction sectors would boom — industries in which Chinese migrants dominate. Second, the five-year plan would continue to expand the construction of a border defense village, which started in 2015, including increasing subsidies to expand the population.
Source:Taipei Times
April 22, 2021 16:03 UTC
KMT urges recall of envoy to Japan
KMT urges recall of envoy to JapanBy Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporterThe Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday urged President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to remove Representative to Japan Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) from office over comments on the Japanese government’s plan to release processed wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant into the ocean. “From my personal standpoint, protesting Japan’s release of wastewater from the nuclear power plant is a very simple and natural thing,” Hsieh wrote on Facebook on the day after theannouncement. Wang also cited Taiwan Power Co as saying on Tuesday that the radioactive contamination of the water from the Fukushima plant was much higher. In Taiwan, the release of water is part of normal operations, while in Japan, it is in reaction to an incident, she said. The KMT on Wednesday filed a complaint over the envoy’s statement with the NPA, committee deputy director-general Huang Tzu-che (黃子哲) said.
Source:Taipei Times
April 22, 2021 16:00 UTC
Tsai Ing-wen sets carbon neutrality goal for 2050
Tsai Ing-wen sets carbon neutrality goal for 2050LEGAL REQUIREMENT: The act on greenhouse gas reduction should be amended with the goal to keep pace with the global consensus on climate change, Premier Su saidBy Lee Hsin-fang and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerTaiwan should follow the global trend and strive for net-zero carbon emission by 2050, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday. Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei TimesAchieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 is a big challenge, Tsai said, adding that many domestic firms see opportunities in the nation’s energy transformation. “We must own our responsibility and make more efforts to [combat] climate change,” she said. The government should consider amending the act to stay abreast of global efforts to fight climate change, he said. The Environmental Protection Administration is planning to amend the act, including changing its name to “Climate Change Response Act, and add the net-zero emissions goal, Su said.
Source:Taipei Times
April 22, 2021 15:56 UTC
Cabinet bill seeks stiffer negligent homicide penalties
Cabinet bill seeks stiffer negligent homicide penaltiesBy Jason Pan / Staff reporterThe Executive Yuan yesterday approved a draft amendment that would stiffen penalties for offenders convicted of negligent homicide, amid controversy that Lee Yi-hsiang (李義祥), who was indicted after the Taroko Express derailment killed 49, might only face a five-year term. The punishments laid out in the law must be proportionate to the crimes committed, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) told a Cabinet meeting yesterday. The entrance to the Cingshuei Tunnel, the site of the Taroko Express derailment, is pictured in Hualien County on Sunday. The Cabinet’s draft amendment would change the sentence for a serious offense of negligent homicide to one to seven years in prison, while it would impose a prison sentence of 10 years to life for intentional homicide and a sentence of seven years to life for intentional injury. However, legal experts say that amendments cannot be applied retroactively, so Lee, if convicted of negligent homicide, would only receive a sentence of up to five years in prison.
Source:Taipei Times
April 22, 2021 15:56 UTC
Crafting a present from the past
“This setup lets viewers experience first-hand the challenges that traditional crafts face in the real world,” the placard reads. But there’s still some intriguing takeaways, especially the emphasis on preserving traditional crafts and promoting sustainability. A guanjiangshou temple troupe performer paints his face in the main exhibition of the Taiwan Creative Expo’s culture section. Photo: Han Cheung, Taipei TimesThere’s also a special zone for sustainable, recycled products, where I briefly chat with a vendor who has been making seed paper for about a decade. That also rings true for the traditional crafts.
Source:Taipei Times
April 22, 2021 15:56 UTC
Fukushima monitoring plans unveiled
The statement came after Japan on Tuesday last week announced that it plans to release processed wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant into the ocean in several years. However, the council said that it had made preparations for such a move ahead of Tokyo’s announcement. Atomic Energy Council Minister Hsieh Shou-shing speaks in Taipei about the council’s plans to monitor Japan’s release of treated wastewater from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant. Photo: Yang Mian-chieh, Taipei TimesFour years ago, its Radiation Monitoring Center was tasked with monitoring the waters, while a three-pronged strategy would be adopted in the future, the council said. In case the IAEA rejects Taiwan’s bid, he hopes that the agency would share data from its monitoring operations with the nation, Hsieh said.
Source:Taipei Times
April 22, 2021 15:56 UTC