An official from the Presidential Office said yesterday the government was upset by remarks early last month by the de facto Japanese ambassador on Taiwan’s status, but dismissed speculation that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has refused to see the Japanese envoy.
The official, who asked to remain anonymous, disputed a report by the Chinese-language Liberty Times (Taipei Times’ sister paper) yesterday that said Ma had refused to see Masaki Saito after the Japanese representative said that Taiwan’s status was “still unresolved.”
Saito made the comments at an annual meeting of the Republic of China (ROC) International Relations Association at National Chung Cheng University in Chiayi County. Saito’s remarks were made days after Ma declared that the 1952 Treaty of Taipei affirmed the transfer of Taiwan’s sovereignty from Japan to the ROC.
The Japanese representative later apologized for his remarks after Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Andrew Hsia (夏立言) lodged a protest and demanded an explanation.
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs press release announced that Hsia had met Saito, who said that it was his personal view that Taiwan’s status was unresolved and that his comment did not reflect the position of the Japanese government.
“[Ma and Saito] recently attended an event and had short exchanges,” the official said yesterday, dismissing the report, which said Ma was so furious that he planned to ask Tokyo to replace Saito.
“Although his remarks were indeed inappropriate and hurt the feelings of Taiwanese people, the president is not as angry as the media portrayed,” the official said. “The Presidential Office does everything with the country’s best interest in mind.”
The report said the government declined to describe Ma’s move as a “boycott” or a “reluctance to see” Saito, instead saying it was “inconvenient [for the two] to meet.”
No one knew exactly when Ma would be willing to see Saito, the report said.
The report also said Tokyo had no immediate intention to replace Saito and had recently given Taiwan’s representative to Japan, John Feng (馮寄台), the “cold shoulder” in retaliation.
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus on May 4 urged the Executive Yuan to declare Saito persona non grata and ask Tokyo to recall him.
At a separate setting yesterday, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) said he had no information on whether the KMT caucus was acting under instructions from the Presidential Office.
“Taiwan-Japan relations have been sound,” Wang said.
While the Ma administration was upset by Saito’s remarks, Taiwan independence supporters rallied in support of the Japanese representative to Taiwan, saying the Japanese government and Saito need not apologize because “they told the truth.”
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY SHIH HSIU-CHUAN AND STAFF WRITER
ANNOUNCEMENT: People who do not comply with the ban after a spoken warning would be reported to the police, the airport company said on Friday Taoyuan International Airport Corp on Friday announced that riding on vehicles, including scooter-suitcases (also known as “scootcases”), bicycles, scooters and skateboards, is prohibited in the airport’s terminals. Those using such vehicles should manually pull them or place them on luggage trolleys, the company said in a Facebook post. The ban intends to maintain order and protect travelers’ safety, as the airport often sees large crowds of people, it said, adding that it has stepped up publicity for the regulation, and those who do not comply after a spoken warning would be reported to the police. The company yesterday said that
NEW YEAR’S ADDRESS: ‘No matter what threats and challenges Taiwan faces, democracy is the only path,’ William Lai said, urging progress ‘without looking back’ President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday urged parties across the political divide to democratically resolve conflicts that have plagued domestic politics within Taiwan’s constitutional system. In his first New Year’s Day address since becoming president on May 20 last year, Lai touched on several issues, including economic and security challenges, but a key emphasis was on the partisan wrangling that has characterized his first seven months in office. Taiwan has transformed from authoritarianism into today’s democracy and that democracy is the future, Lai said. “No matter what threats and challenges Taiwan faces, democracy is the only path for Taiwan,” he said. “The only choice
CORRUPTION: Twelve other people were convicted on charges related to giving illegal benefits, forgery and money laundering, with sentences ranging from one to five years The Yilan District Court yesterday found Yilan County Commissioner Lin Zi-miao (林姿妙) guilty of corruption, sentencing her to 12 years and six months in prison. The Yilan District Prosecutors’ Office in 2022 indicted 10 government officials and five private individuals, including Lin, her daughter and a landowner. Lin was accused of giving illegal favors estimated to be worth NT$2.4 million (US$73,213) in exchange for using a property to conduct activities linked to the 2020 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential and legislative election campaigns. Those favors included exempting some property and construction firms from land taxes and building code contraventions that would have required
TECH CORRIDOR: Technology centers and science parks in the south would be linked, bolstering the AI, semiconductor, biotech, drone, space and smart agriculture industries The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a “Southern Silicon Valley” project to promote the development of an artificial intelligence (AI) and semiconductor industry in Chiayi County, Tainan, Pingtung County and Kaohsiung. The plan would build an integrated “S-shaped semiconductor industry corridor” that links technology centers and science parks in the south, Executive Yuan spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said yesterday after a Cabinet meeting. The project would bolster the AI, semiconductor, biotech, drone, space and smart agriculture industries, she said. The proposed tech corridor would be supported by government efforts to furnish computing power, workforce, supply chains and policy measures that encourage application and integration
RSS