The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) held a national congress yesterday to endorse the party's presidential campaign ticket featuring President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮).
Addressing the convention, staged as a gala-like campaign event, Chen raised three questions he would like to put to Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤):
? Why can't Taiwan and China go their separate ways since they have antithetical political systems?
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
? Why can't China dismantle its missiles used to intimidate democratic Taiwan?
? And why can't Taiwan enter the World Health Organization?
"If the Beijing authorities can't provide answers to these questions, I believe the people of Taiwan will give their own answers on March 20," Chen said, reiterating his stance to hold a "defensive referendum" on the same day as the election.
Chen said that it was not his desire to hold a referendum which was the destabilizing factor in the region, but China's attempts to intimidate Taiwan, its missile build up and its refusal to renounce the use of force.
"It is China's military threat that would change the cross-strait status quo, not Taiwan's democratic practice of holding a referendum."
Chen stressed that the referendum was not intended to be provocative, but to safeguard Taiwan's security and that it would certainly not be cancelled as a result of threats by China.
"No matter how hegemonic China is and how much pressure Taiwan faces from such a power, Taiwan must insist on following the path of democracy," Chen said.
Speaking in his capacity as the DPP's flag-bearer, Chen yesterday also pledged to conduct a "fair, positive, and quality" campaign.
He also said he was willing to reconcile with the opposition parties, after a long period of inter-party feuding, for the sake of political harmony after the election.
"It is foreseeable that after the election next year, the domestic political situation is bound to have a new look due to the reintegration of party elements. The DPP is willing to attempt reconciliation with supporters of all political stripes to allay the negative effects of election feuding," Chen said.
The DPP's national congress yesterday also honored a total of 626 senior party members for their contribution to the process of Taiwan's democratization.
To gear up full support for Chen's re-election, seven counties and municipalities yesterday convened a campaign meeting prior to the national congress, with each administrative unit pledging to increase the DPP's total vote by 10 percentage points compared with the 2000 presidential election.
In Chiayi County yesterday, former President Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) extended his support for Chen's reelection bid and vowed to mobilize one million people on Feb. 28 for an island-wide rally.
Lee made the comments at the establishment of the Taiwan Solidarity Union's (TSU) Chiayi County Chapter. Lee founded the TSU in 2001, which has since become a strategic partner of the DPP.
Later yesterday the DPP staged a 100,000-people rally in Taipei County's Erchung Waterfront Park.
Chen and Lu, as well as the DPP's five major campaign leaders -- Premier Yu Shyi-kun, Presidential Secretary General Chiou I-jen (邱義仁), Taipei County Magistrate Su Chen-chang (蘇貞昌), Kaohsiung City Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) and DPP Secretary General Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) -- all attended the rally.
Also See Stories:
Taiwanese shouldn't be pessimistic: Lu
Strong personality the making of Lu
Auckland rang in 2026 with a downtown fireworks display launched from New Zealand’s tallest structure, Sky Tower, making it the first major city to greet the new year at a celebration dampened by rain, while crowds in Taipei braved the elements to watch Taipei 101’s display. South Pacific countries are the first to bid farewell to 2025. Clocks struck midnight in Auckland, with a population of 1.7 million, 18 hours before the famous ball was to drop in New York’s Times Square. The five-minute display involved 3,500 fireworks launched from the 240m Sky Tower. Smaller community events were canceled across New Zealand’s
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said it is closely monitoring developments in Venezuela, and would continue to cooperate with democratic allies and work together for regional and global security, stability, and prosperity. The remarks came after the US on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who was later flown to New York along with his wife. The pair face US charges related to drug trafficking and alleged cooperation with gangs designated as terrorist organizations. Maduro has denied the allegations. The ministry said that it is closely monitoring the political and economic situation
‘SLICING METHOD’: In the event of a blockade, the China Coast Guard would intercept Taiwanese ships while its navy would seek to deter foreign intervention China’s military drills around Taiwan this week signaled potential strategies to cut the nation off from energy supplies and foreign military assistance, a US think tank report said. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted what it called “Justice Mission 2025” exercises from Monday to Tuesday in five maritime zones and airspace around Taiwan, calling them a warning to “Taiwanese independence” forces. In a report released on Wednesday, the Institute for the Study of War said the exercises effectively simulated blocking shipping routes to major port cities, including Kaohsiung, Keelung and Hualien. Taiwan would be highly vulnerable under such a blockade, because it
UNRELENTING: China attempted cyberattacks on Taiwan’s critical infrastructure 2.63 million times per day last year, up from 1.23 million in 2023, the NSB said China’s cyberarmy has long engaged in cyberattacks against Taiwan’s critical infrastructure, employing diverse and evolving tactics, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday, adding that cyberattacks on critical energy infrastructure last year increased 10-fold compared with the previous year. The NSB yesterday released a report titled Analysis on China’s Cyber Threats to Taiwan’s Critical Infrastructure in 2025, outlining the number of cyberattacks, major tactics and hacker groups. Taiwan’s national intelligence community identified a large number of cybersecurity incidents last year, the bureau said in a statement. China’s cyberarmy last year launched an average of 2.63 million intrusion attempts per day targeting Taiwan’s critical
RSS