ARATS’ shady connections
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is ready to talk about corruption and violence with the opposition party. The latest events show that this is not such a bad idea, with Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Tainan City Councilor Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) the victim of an assault by pro-China gangsters.
Huang Ju-yi (黃如意), a suspected gangster, threatened Wang and admitted that Zhang Mingqing (張銘清), vice chairman of China’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS), was his friend.
In a few days Taiwanese leaders will meet ARATS Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林). Huang’s statement shows that Chen’s subordinate, Zhang, has close relations to gangsters.
So maybe it is not such a bad idea to talk about corruption and violence. Before Ma shakes hands with Chen, he should tell Taiwanese how concerned he is about the connections between gangsters and Chinese politicians and the violence and threats by pro-Chinese gangsters against a Taiwanese politician.
Before Ma strikes any deal with Chinese officials, he should let them know how ardent a fighter against corruption and violence he is and that he can’t be on the side of those who may be gangsters’ friends.
Hanna Shen
Taipei
In stores near you
In your insightful editorial on Tuesday (“Mao’s odd (and worrying) comeback,” Oct. 28, page 8), it was mentioned that images of Mao Zedong (毛澤東) are now appearing here and there around China, from Chongqing Medical University’s 20m high statue of Mao to large portraits of him at various Beijing sites during the Olympics. It is indeed an odd comeback for such a man.
I wonder if your editorial writer is aware that local 7-Eleven stores in Taiwan are now selling cute figurine dolls of Mao made by an outfit called Dong Jui International. Who in Taiwan would buy such dolls and why?
I didn’t see any dolls of Adolf Hitler on the counter.
Dan Bloom
Chiayi
The gutting of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA) by US President Donald Trump’s administration poses a serious threat to the global voice of freedom, particularly for those living under authoritarian regimes such as China. The US — hailed as the model of liberal democracy — has the moral responsibility to uphold the values it champions. In undermining these institutions, the US risks diminishing its “soft power,” a pivotal pillar of its global influence. VOA Tibetan and RFA Tibetan played an enormous role in promoting the strong image of the US in and outside Tibet. On VOA Tibetan,
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), the leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), caused a national outrage and drew diplomatic condemnation on Tuesday after he arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office dressed in a Nazi uniform. Sung performed a Nazi salute and carried a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf as he arrived to be questioned over allegations of signature forgery in the recall petition. The KMT’s response to the incident has shown a striking lack of contrition and decency. Rather than apologizing and distancing itself from Sung’s actions,
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By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then
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