The Presidential Office Building is at the center of a new tourism development program, with foreigners being offered a chance to spend the night in the building’s compound and become an “ambassador for Taiwan.”
The “Spend a Night at Taiwan’s Presidential Office Building” program is aimed at changing the building’s image as a former symbol of authoritarianism to mark its 100th anniversary and promoting Taiwan as “one of the friendliest nations in the world, the General Association of Chinese Culture (GACC), which is organizing the program, said in a statement.
The program “is the first of its kind in the world and demonstrates Taiwan’s democracy, freedom and openness,” Presidential Office spokesman Xavier Chang (張惇涵) said.
Photo: CNA
Applicants must be older than 20 and must make a video explaining why they want to visit Taiwan, what it is about Taiwan that attracts them and why they should be selected, Chang said.
The association said it plans to accept 10 groups of up to two people each in the first phase of the program, with one sleepover scheduled per week.
Guests would stay in a 14 ping (46.3m2) space in the Lixing Building with a view of the Presidential Office Building, which GACC described as a “true presidential suite.”
A personal housekeeper and breakfast would be provided, as well as an opportunity to attend the daily flag-raising ceremony and tour the Presidential Office Building, it said.
The stay would also include a customized itinerary, GACC deputy secretary-general Lee Hou-ching (李厚慶) said.
The first visitors would be welcomed in October, Chang said.
Those selected for the program would have to arrive before 10pm and leave no earlier than 5am the following day, for security reasons, the Presidential Office said.
A three-member panel would review the applications and select the winners: comedian and TV host Ugur Rifat Karlova, better known as Wu Feng (吳鳳); cultural commentator Chan Wei-hsiung (詹偉雄); and travel blogger Alston Hsu (許傑).
The reach of an applicant’s influence would be an important factor in the decision, Karlova said.
Hsu told reporters that applicants’ online visibility would be very important.
The application period began yesterday and will be open through the end of the month.
Applications can be submitted through the English-language Web site: www.nightattaiwan.tw/en.
Asked if Chinese nationals would be eligible to apply, Chang said the contest was open to all non-Republic of China (ROC) passport holders who meet the qualifications.
INSURRECTION: The NSB said it found evidence the CCP was seeking snipers in Taiwan to target members of the military and foreign organizations in the event of an invasion The number of Chinese spies prosecuted in Taiwan has grown threefold over a four-year period, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said in a report released yesterday. In 2021 and 2022, 16 and 10 spies were prosecuted respectively, but that number grew to 64 last year, it said, adding that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was working with gangs in Taiwan to develop a network of armed spies. Spies in Taiwan have on behalf of the CCP used a variety of channels and methods to infiltrate all sectors of the country, and recruited Taiwanese to cooperate in developing organizations and obtaining sensitive information
Seven hundred and sixty-four foreigners were arrested last year for acting as money mules for criminals, with many entering Taiwan on a tourist visa for all-expenses-paid trips, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said on Saturday. Although from Jan. 1 to Dec. 26 last year, 26,478 people were arrested for working as money mules, the bureau said it was particularly concerned about those entering the country as tourists or migrant workers who help criminals and scammers pick up or transfer illegally obtained money. In a report, officials divided the money mules into two groups, the first of which are foreigners, mainly from Malaysia
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
RSS