It's unbelievable that KMT Chairman Lien Chan urged his Peking University audience to unite against Taiwanese independence for all the world to see. Living on a democratic and self-ruled island, we can accept different voices, but how sad it is to see an outside power involving itself in our domestic affairs, especially with the help of our biggest opposition party.
What did Lien mean? He has run twice for the KMT in presidential elections, but now he denies that Taiwan is an independent country. What was the name of the post he ran for?
Lien still enjoys a number of ongoing perks from his vice presidency, including a generous "salary" totaling over NT$400,000 per month, paid for by the 23 million people living on Taiwan, Kinmen and Matsu. His "retirement salary" is even higher than that of President Chen Shui-bian.
He claims that his role is a civil one, and not that of a former vice president for this visit. But the talks in China included political issues. Is this a civil role? What he says he is doing and what he is really doing are different things. He has lied too much already.
On March 14, China passed the "Anti-Secession" Law, further threatening cross-strait peace. Hundreds of thousands of people in Taiwan protested the law on March 26. A number of countries also applied pressure on China. But where was the KMT? What did it have to say?
Most democratic countries support Taiwan over this matter. But the KMT echoed communist China. How extraordinarily democratic Taiwan is: It allows an opposition party leader to seek outside assistance to manipulate domestic affairs.
This is a farcical situation, and one that will impact heavily on the nation. But many news reports call Lien's visit a "historic" trip. People are brainwashed.
So, are you clear about what's going on? Then say something! Stand up, and let the world understand our true voice.
Gandalf Liu
Taiwan
Two weeks ago, Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh (楊紫瓊) raised hackles in Taiwan by posting to her 2.6 million Instagram followers that she was visiting “Taipei, China.” Yeoh’s post continues a long-standing trend of Chinese propaganda that spreads disinformation about Taiwan’s political status and geography, aimed at deceiving the world into supporting its illegitimate claims to Taiwan, which is not and has never been part of China. Taiwan must respond to this blatant act of cognitive warfare. Failure to respond merely cedes ground to China to continue its efforts to conquer Taiwan in the global consciousness to justify an invasion. Taiwan’s government
This month’s news that Taiwan ranks as Asia’s happiest place according to this year’s World Happiness Report deserves both celebration and reflection. Moving up from 31st to 27th globally and surpassing Singapore as Asia’s happiness leader is gratifying, but the true significance lies deeper than these statistics. As a society at the crossroads of Eastern tradition and Western influence, Taiwan embodies a distinctive approach to happiness worth examining more closely. The report highlights Taiwan’s exceptional habit of sharing meals — 10.1 shared meals out of 14 weekly opportunities, ranking eighth globally. This practice is not merely about food, but represents something more
In an article published on this page on Tuesday, Kaohsiung-based journalist Julien Oeuillet wrote that “legions of people worldwide would care if a disaster occurred in South Korea or Japan, but the same people would not bat an eyelid if Taiwan disappeared.” That is quite a statement. We are constantly reading about the importance of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), hailed in Taiwan as the nation’s “silicon shield” protecting it from hostile foreign forces such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and so crucial to the global supply chain for semiconductors that its loss would cost the global economy US$1
Concerns that the US might abandon Taiwan are often overstated. While US President Donald Trump’s handling of Ukraine raised unease in Taiwan, it is crucial to recognize that Taiwan is not Ukraine. Under Trump, the US views Ukraine largely as a European problem, whereas the Indo-Pacific region remains its primary geopolitical focus. Taipei holds immense strategic value for Washington and is unlikely to be treated as a bargaining chip in US-China relations. Trump’s vision of “making America great again” would be directly undermined by any move to abandon Taiwan. Despite the rhetoric of “America First,” the Trump administration understands the necessity of
RSS