Lien Chan's (連戰) behavior over the weekend illustrates quite vividly why large swathes of the population now call him Lien Dai (
Lien appears to think that since Chen is so keen on independence, if he "had the guts" he would hold a referendum on it. What nonsense. Nobody wants a referendum on this topic and to do so might even spark war with China. So Lien is basically advocating a policy which could lead to war, just to show off his machismo.
Lien has once again demonstrated the total incoherence of his thinking. After all, Chen promised not to hold a referendum on this topic. So Lien is criticizing Chen for keeping his promise. He has also managed to give Chen an excellent opportunity to point out the current limits of the Referendum Law (
Not that Lien bothers much about the law any more -- and why should he? For four years his party has been conspiring with China to sell out Taiwan. Since March he has been involved in trying to overthrow the nation's democracy through both civil and military insurrection. Men have been labeled traitors and hanged for doing much less than Lien. If Chen "had the guts," he would prosecute Lien for treason.
But perhaps it's rather like having a mad beggar who hangs around making a nuisance of himself in your lane. You know quite well that a little intimidation will get him to clear off, but his condition is so wretched that you feel to use such tactics would make yourself contemptible.
But obviously for Chen there are more than moral considerations here. Lien is the best possible reason anyone could have to not vote for the pan-blues. If there are any wavering voters out there, all they have to do is look at the absolutely shambolic poltroon, incapable of logical or even rational thought, whose "leadership" has produced the vacuum that is the KMT's election strategy -- and whose denial of reality shows a clear need for serious psychological help.
Lien's antics can only help the pan-greens. But what does not help them are Chen's own. Last week he accused the pan-blues of trying to arrange a "soft coup." Those who have been identified, or identified themselves as the ringleaders of this alleged coup attempt have categorically denied that any such thing took place. Chen has said he has iron-clad evidence, but has not revealed any of it. By not doing so he risks being castigated for making the same groundless allegations that have always been a speciality of the pan-blues.
Those who believe that Chen has the goods have rationalized the wait over the last week by saying that Chen has been leading the blues further and further into denial so he can utterly destroy their credibility when he does release the evidence. We would like to believe this is true.
But we are worried. If Chen is waiting for the pan-blues to dig their own grave, then surely they have dug deep enough. This accusation is not just stupidity akin to the pan-blues' "bulletgate" nonsense. It calls into question something fundamental: whether the opposition is prepared to play by the rules of constitutional government. We need to see Chen's evidence and we need to see it now.
It is employment pass renewal season in Singapore, and the new regime is dominating the conversation at after-work cocktails on Fridays. From September, overseas employees on a work visa would need to fulfill the city-state’s new points-based system, and earn a minimum salary threshold to stay in their jobs. While this mirrors what happens in other countries, it risks turning foreign companies away, and could tarnish the nation’s image as a global business hub. The program was announced in 2022 in a bid to promote fair hiring practices. Points are awarded for how a candidate’s salary compares with local peers, along
China last month enacted legislation to punish —including with the death penalty — “die-hard Taiwanese independence separatists.” The country’s leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), need to be reminded about what the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has said and done in the past. They should think about whether those historical figures were also die-hard advocates of Taiwanese independence. The Taiwanese Communist Party was established in the Shanghai French Concession in April 1928, with a political charter that included the slogans “Long live the independence of the Taiwanese people” and “Establish a republic of Taiwan.” The CCP sent a representative, Peng
Japan and the Philippines on Monday signed a defense agreement that would facilitate joint drills between them. The pact was made “as both face an increasingly assertive China,” and is in line with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s “effort to forge security alliances to bolster the Philippine military’s limited ability to defend its territorial interests in the South China Sea,” The Associated Press (AP) said. The pact also comes on the heels of comments by former US deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger, who said at a forum on Tuesday last week that China’s recent aggression toward the Philippines in
The Ministry of National Defense on Tuesday announced that the military would hold its annual Han Kuang exercises from July 22 to 26. Military officers said the exercises would feature unscripted war games, and a decentralized command and control structure. This year’s exercises underline the recent reforms in Taiwan’s military as it transitions from a top-down command structure to one where autonomy is pushed down to the front lines to improve decisionmaking and adaptability. Militaries around the world have been observing and studying Russia’s war in Ukraine. They have seen that the Ukrainian military has been much quicker to adapt to