Muneo Suzuki’s Russian missteps
Muneo Suzuki’s Russian misstepsBy Chen Yung-chang 陳永昌At the beginning of this month, Japanese Councilor Muneo Suzuki, who is known for his pro-Russia stance, visited Moscow. Although it was his opinion, Suzuki’s controversial statement could become propaganda for Russia. His daughter, Takako Suzuki, who has been a Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker for four terms, is also an important figure. The Yomiuri editorial said that Muneo Suzuki had more than once advocated for appeasing Russia, but his party did nothing to intervene or discipline him. As the editorial said, it was precisely because of the cadre in the JIP that Muneo Suzuki was given free rein, allowing him to become increasingly arrogant and opinionated.
Source:Taipei Times
October 20, 2023 03:41 UTC
‘Great god of the cave’
Four tips to prevent osteoporosisSUNLIGHT AND CALCIUM: The Health Promotion Administration offered four tips to help people slow the loss of bone mass in observance of World Osteoporosis Day Ahead of World Osteoporosis Day, the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) yesterday said that people reach their peak bone mass around age 30 and it might slowly begin to drop afterward, so it offered four tips for people to maintain bone mass and prevent osteoporosis. World Osteoporosis Day is marked on Oct. 20 each year and this year’s campaign theme is “Building Better Bones Throughout Life,” the HPA said, adding that developing a higher peak bone mass at a younger age provides better protection against osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is considered a “silent” disease, which causes bones to become weak and brittle with lowerBy Lee I-chia
Source:Taipei Times
October 19, 2023 20:05 UTC
US academic wrong about Taiwan
US academic wrong about TaiwanBy Gerrit van der WeesOn Monday, the New York Times published an analysis piece by Stanford University academic Oriana Skylar Mastro, titled “This is what America is getting wrong about China and Taiwan.”Regrettably, Skylar Mastro herself got some fundamentals wrong. Skylar Mastro is right that a delicate balance of deterrence and reassurance has been upset, but her solution of “easing China’s concerns” is headed in the wrong direction. One other important aspect is that Skylar Mastro presents her case as if the US and China can decide the fate of Taiwan between themselves only. A Taiwan controlled by China would represent an undesired sea change for those countries. Beijing needs to accept Taiwan as it is, and the international community needs to work harder to bring Taiwan into the family of nations, from which it has been excluded unfairly and unjustly.
Source:Taipei Times
October 19, 2023 16:55 UTC
Ex-minister apologizes for bad-mouthing mask firms
Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua (王美花) yesterday said it was imperative that her ministry and the mask companies alleged to have received kickbacks received justice. Former minister of the interior Lee Hong-yuan speaks at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei in an undated photograph. Photo: Chen Cheng-yu, Taipei TimesAppearing on a livestream with Internet celebrity Holger Chen (陳之漢) on Sept. 26, Lee said the government-appointed mask companies received a massive amount of kickbacks. Wang said the ministry would investigate whether it should launch a defamation suit against Lee. The associations demanded that Lee apologize and urged the public not to put stock in statements made by those with ulterior motives.
Source:Taipei Times
October 18, 2023 22:21 UTC
Limits of China’s sway in Israel
Limits of China’s sway in IsraelBy Sumit KumarThe killing of more than 1,300 innocent Israelis and other nationals in an unprecedented brutal terrorist attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, as well as the kidnapping of more than 150 soldiers and civilians, including women and children, has shaken the world. The genesis of the conflict between Israel and Palestine goes back to 1948, when the creation of Israel as an independent nation out of the British Mandate for Palestine led to the first Arab-Israel war. Although the international community has remained a votary of the establishment of an independent and sovereign state of Palestine, Hamas’ outrageous terrorist act has drawn worldwide condemnation. It is in this context that Taiwan has established a working group to draw lessons from the Hamas attack. While lessons from the Hamas attack can help Taiwan’s retaliatory capabilities, China’s cold-handed approach to the crisis in the Middle East and the US-led global support to Israel will be a big deterrent for Taiwan against China.
Source:Taipei Times
October 18, 2023 21:39 UTC
Former envoys disciplined over sexual harassment
Former envoys disciplined over sexual harassmentUNWELCOME ADVANCES : A former representative to Manila was given a major demerit, while a former envoy to Thailand’s case is to be referred to the Control YuanStaff writer, with CNAFormer representatives to the Philippines and Thailand faced disciplinary action after the government said that sexual harassment allegations against them were credible, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. Former representative to the Philippines Michael Hsu (徐佩勇) was given a major demerit after the ministry’s sexual harassment complaint review committee found that an allegation against him from his tenure in Manila was credible, ministry spokesman Jeff Liu (劉永健) said. Former representative to the Philippines Michael Hsu is pictured in an undated photograph. Former representative to Thailand Chuang Suo-hang is pictured in an undated photograph. Chuang has denied engaging in sexual harassment.
Source:Taipei Times
October 18, 2023 06:21 UTC
EDITORIAL: Transparency in party politics
EDITORIAL: Transparency in party politicsRepresentatives of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) met on Saturday to discuss a possible “blue-white alliance” to defeat the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in January’s presidential election. Transparency is a good thing, and the two sides were certainly being transparent about their intentions. His party stands to gain more legislative seats, and therefore political influence, if he makes a moral stand as an independent candidate. If Hou is the vice presidential candidate, the KMT would have become the third party, a corroboration of its terminal decline. For the KMT, Ko taking the presidential ticket is a non-starter; it would almost certainly prefer to walk away from the alliance.
Source:Taipei Times
October 17, 2023 17:49 UTC
India court declines to legalize gay marriages
India court declines to legalize gay marriagesAFP, NEW DELHIIndia’s top court yesterday declined to legalize same-sex marriages, but said the country had a duty to acknowledge LGBTQ relationships and to protect them from discrimination. A five-judge constitutional bench — set up to consider important questions of law — began hearing submissions seeking the legalization of same-sex marriages in April, with arguments completed in May. LGBTQ community supporters leave the Supreme Court after it ruled against legalizing same-sex marriages in New Delhi yesterday. “It lies within the domain of parliament and state legislatures to determine the law on marriage,” Supreme Court Chief Justice D.Y. However, the Hindu nationalist government of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has staunchly opposed same-sex marriage, and said that any change was up to parliament, not the courts.
Source:Taipei Times
October 17, 2023 17:49 UTC
Ecuador’s youngest-ever president vows to ‘restore peace’
Ecuador’s youngest-ever president vows to ‘restore peace’AFP, QUITOCar horns in Quito blared in celebration on Sunday as banana empire heir Daniel Noboa, 35, became Ecuador’s youngest-ever president-elect, vowing to “restore peace” to a country ravaged by a bloody drug gang war. Supporters of Ecuadoran presidential candidate Daniel Noboa celebrate the results of the presidential runoff in Quito on Sunday. On Sunday, Noboa told supporters in his home town of Olon in the southwest his goal was “to restore peace ... to bring back education to the youth” and create jobs. Noboa is the son of one of Ecuador’s richest men, who himself has five failed presidential bids to his name. The president-elect, whose only political experience is two years as a lawmaker, calls himself “center-left,” but embraces neoliberal economic thinking.
Source:Taipei Times
October 17, 2023 07:37 UTC
Four tips to prevent osteoporosis
Four tips to prevent osteoporosisSUNLIGHT AND CALCIUM: The Health Promotion Administration offered four tips to help people slow the loss of bone mass in observance of World Osteoporosis DayBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterAhead of World Osteoporosis Day, the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) yesterday said that people reach their peak bone mass around age 30 and it might slowly begin to drop afterward, so it offered four tips for people to maintain bone mass and prevent osteoporosis. World Osteoporosis Day is marked on Oct. 20 each year and this year’s campaign theme is “Building Better Bones Throughout Life,” the HPA said, adding that developing a higher peak bone mass at a younger age provides better protection against osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is considered a “silent” disease, which causes bones to become weak and brittle with lower bone mass, and people are typically unaware that they have the disease until they break a bone, it said. The HPA offered four tips for maintaining bone mass: keeping a healthy diet with plenty of calcium, exercising, getting sufficient sunlight exposure and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. In addition, the HPA encouraged people to maintain a healthy body weight, avoid smoking and cut back on alcohol consumption to slow bone mass loss and reduce the risk of osteoporosis.
Source:Taipei Times
October 17, 2023 07:36 UTC
Politics and endangered languages
He said that although the enactment of the Development of National Languages Act (國家語言發展法) in 2019 had already ensured the national status of all local languages, the government should continue to make more constructive plans to keep these languages alive and thriving. This policy aims to guarantee students’ right to choose any national language they wish to learn, including Taiwan Sign Language. He said that as Taiwanese Hoklo, Hakka and all indigenous languages have already been declared national languages, public institutions should provide services in these languages to promote language equality. In February last year, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) promised to make all national languages more commonly spoken among families and local communities. All major political parties unanimously agree that local languages need saving.
Source:Taipei Times
October 16, 2023 21:40 UTC
China’s connection to Israel attacks
China’s connection to Israel attacksBy Antonio GraceffoThe recent Hamas attack on Israel, with indirect financial support tied to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), raises questions about China’s positioning in the Middle East. It also highlights the ongoing significance of international backing for nations such as Taiwan, Israel and Ukraine. Furthermore, in addition to financial support from Iran, Hamas imposes taxes on all imports and exports in Gaza, further complicating the livelihoods of its citizens. In addition to providing military aid to Israel and Taiwan, the US has been funding the defense of Ukraine. Therefore, backing all three nations — Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan — becomes a highly effective strategy for upholding global peace.
Source:Taipei Times
October 16, 2023 21:40 UTC
Look to India on Chinese infiltration
Look to India on Chinese infiltrationBy Paul Lin 林保華On Oct. 3, police in New Delhi raided and searched the residences of several staff members of the NewsClick online news site and detained several of them for interrogation. It is one of the most active countries with respect to blocking suspicious Chinese companies. Consequently, the safest and most effective way for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to spread its propaganda in India is through US citizens. They are not economically and militarily strong enough to resist Chinese infiltration. If it were not for the US’ support, Taiwan would long ago have ceased to exist as a country, as Chinese infiltration would have turned it into something else.
Source:Taipei Times
October 16, 2023 06:40 UTC
Siraj rises from rickshaw driver’s son to Cup star
Siraj rises from rickshaw driver’s son to Cup starAFP, AHMEDABAD, IndiaPaceman Mohammed Siraj said he feared his humble roots as the son of an auto-rickshaw driver would shatter his dreams of playing at the ICC Cricket World Cup. He dismissed opener Abdullah Shafique lbw for 20 and later claimed the prize wicket of Pakistan captain Babar Azam who had made 50. India’s Mohammed Siraj, left, celebrates after taking the wicket of Pakistan captain Babar Azam, right, during the ICC Cricket World Cup match in Ahmedabad, India, on Saturday. “To be honest I never thought that I would play a World Cup because I have come from so low” background, Hyderabad native Siraj told reporters. Siraj, whose rickshaw-driving father died in 2020, rose from his humble beginnings to play in the cash-soaked Indian Premier League.
Source:Taipei Times
October 16, 2023 03:31 UTC
Guermantes Lailari On Taiwan: A look at the new submarine
On Sept. 28, Tsai launched the first of a new class of Republic of China (ROC) Navy SSKs, designated the Hai Kun class (SS-711). The Huilong weighs about 100 tonnes compared with the 2,500 to 3,000-tonne IDS vessels, and is 30m long and 3.6m wide compared with the IDS vessels, which are 70m long and 8m wide. With up to eight new ROC Navy submarines to be launched, it could wreak havoc on hostile forces around Taiwan, including its outlying islands. In a hypothetical PLA joint firepower strike operation, the submarines could target PLA Navy ships and submarines that could launch missiles at Taiwan. They could help protect Taiwan’s territorial waters by patrolling and sinking PLA Navy vessels that enter.
Source:Taipei Times
October 15, 2023 21:41 UTC