Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) yesterday urged the public to join the campaigns opposing an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China and calling for abolishing the Referendum Review Committee, saying an ECFA referendum would be a watershed in Taiwan’s democracy and a way to prevent Taiwan from being bartered away.
Describing the proposed accord as a “strategic arrangement conspired by the Chinese Nationalist Party [KMT] and Chinese Communist Party [CCP] for the annexation of Taiwan,” Lee said the two parties sought to use the trade pact to pave the way for ultimate unification with China.
“The way the government pushes the planned accord is very much like that of an authoritarian regime,” he said in a speech at an ECFA forum organized by the Taiwan Advocates, founded by Lee. “It turns a deaf ear to people’s concerns and the Referendum Review Committee joins in the chorus of the administration that submits to China.”
Calling for an immediate revision to the Referendum Act (公民投票法), Lee yesterday also signed the petition initiated by the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) to propose another referendum on the ECFA after the first one was recently rejected by the Referendum Review Committee.
Lee said President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration likes to say it cares for the people’s plight, but it seemed to him that the more miserable the people, the happier the Ma administration.
“I never saw such a government and national leaders,” he said. “The Taiwanese people elected a president who does not love Taiwan. It is pathetic to see him love China more than he loves this land.”
Lee said the planned cross-strait deal was a political and economic arrangement for the future of Taiwan. The nation’s sovereignty should lie in the hands of its 23 million people, and not the KMT, the CCP or the US, he said.
Taiwan will follow in the footsteps of Hong Kong and see its economic bubble burst if the Ma administration continues to ignore the impact of the free flow of manpower, capital, goods, technology and services across the Taiwan Strait, he said.
If Taiwanese do not come out and oppose the proposed pact, the international community will think the Taiwanese public is allowing the Ma administration to pursue its agenda this way, he said, warning that if the KMT and CCP manage to sign a peace treaty in the future, they will realize their goal of making Taiwan part of China.
“If the Taiwanese people don’t strive for their right to speak now, they will forever be taken advantage of by the KMT government, which seeks to eventually sell out Taiwan,” he said. “The ECFA issues is a watershed of deepening Taiwan’s democracy and determining our own future.”
Also at the forum, Chen Ming-siang (陳銘祥), a public administration professor at Tamkang University, said a referendum would be an effective way to compensate for the deficiency of the representation system, which he said was flawed because the minority has a hard time electing someone representing their interests.
EXPRESSING GRATITUDE: Without its Taiwanese partners which are ‘working around the clock,’ Nvidia could not meet AI demand, CEO Jensen Huang said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and US-based artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer Nvidia Corp have partnered with each other on silicon photonics development, Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) said. Speaking with reporters after he met with TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) in Taipei on Friday, Huang said his company was working with the world’s largest contract chipmaker on silicon photonics, but admitted it was unlikely for the cooperation to yield results any time soon, and both sides would need several years to achieve concrete outcomes. To have a stake in the silicon photonics supply chain, TSMC and
SILICON VALLEY HUB: The office would showcase Taiwan’s strengths in semiconductors and artificial intelligence, and help Taiwanese start-ups connect with global opportunities Taiwan has established an office in Palo Alto, one of the principal cities of Silicon Valley in California, aimed at helping Taiwanese technology start-ups gain global visibility, the National Development Council said yesterday. The “Startup Island Taiwan Silicon Valley hub” at No. 299 California Avenue is focused on “supporting start-ups and innovators by providing professional consulting, co-working spaces, and community platforms,” the council said in a post on its Web site. The office is the second overseas start-up hub established by the council, after a similar site was set up in Tokyo in September last year. Representatives from Taiwanese start-ups, local businesses and
‘DETERRENT’: US national security adviser-designate Mike Waltz said that he wants to speed up deliveries of weapons purchased by Taiwan to deter threats from China US president-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for US secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, affirmed his commitment to peace in the Taiwan Strait during his confirmation hearing in Washington on Tuesday. Hegseth called China “the most comprehensive and serious challenge to US national security” and said that he would aim to limit Beijing’s expansion in the Indo-Pacific region, Voice of America reported. He would also adhere to long-standing policies to prevent miscalculations, Hegseth added. The US Senate Armed Services Committee hearing was the first for a nominee of Trump’s incoming Cabinet, and questions mostly focused on whether he was fit for the
SHARED VALUES: The US, Taiwan and other allies hope to maintain the cross-strait ‘status quo’ to foster regional prosperity and growth, the former US vice president said Former US vice president Mike Pence yesterday vowed to continue to support US-Taiwan relations, and to defend the security and interests of both countries and the free world. At a meeting with President William Lai (賴清德) at the Presidential Office in Taipei, Pence said that the US and Taiwan enjoy strong and continued friendship based on the shared values of freedom, the rule of law and respect for human rights. Such foundations exceed limitations imposed by geography and culture, said Pence, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time. The US and Taiwan have shared interests, and Americans are increasingly concerned about China’s
RSS