Environmental Protection Administration chief Lin Yun-yi (
"In the past, my opposition to nuclear energy was a way of opposing totalitarianism. Since totalitarian rule has disappeared, I can take the stance of not being opposed [to nuclear energy]," Lin said during a meeting of the Legislative Yuan's Sanitation, Environment and Social Welfare Committee yesterday.
Lin was responding to Chiang Yi-wen (
Chiang asked Lin if he would resign because of his environmental ideals if the Ministry of Economic Affairs decided to continue the construction of the plant.
Lin said he would not, because the procedure of policy-making in democratic politics is not the product of any individual insisting on his own opinions.
Lin's statement disappointed anti-nuclear legislators.
"You might still remember that you were called the `Father of anti-nuclear activists' (
Jao disagreed with Lin, arguing that the situation had not changed.
"The dictatorship still exists because the public is still kept in the dark about things; there are still administrative power struggles and departmental egoism, in addition to an overwhelming scientific hegemony," Jao said.
Anti-nuclear activists echoed Jao's remarks.
"How could he say that dictatorship has disappeared? I haven't seen any new public policy-making procedures taken up by the new Ministry of Economic Affairs for reviewing the controversial plant project," said Lai Wei-chieh (
Lai said the Alliance would visit the economic affairs ministry next week with local residents from Kungliao (
Lin made his comments yesterday just as his former anti-nuclear comrades from the Taiwan Environmental Protection Union were presenting a petition to the Control Yuan for a comprehensive investigation of the divisive nuclear power issue.
Members from the environmental union -- one of the oldest anti-nuclear groups in Taiwan -- pressed for a continuing investigation of two censures that were given for not completing environmental impact assessments on the plant.
"Making a statement like this really hurts our feelings," said Shih Shin-min (
"I agree with what Legislator Jao said because we still see a monopoly of energy in Taiwan," Shih said.
ACTION PLAN: Taiwan would expand procurement from the US and encourage more companies to invest in the US to deepen bilateral cooperation, Lai said The government would not impose reciprocal tariffs in retaliation against US levies, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, as he announced five strategies to address the issue, including pledging to increase Taiwanese companies’ investments in the US. Lai has in the past few days met with administrative and national security officials, as well as representatives from various industries, to explore countermeasures after US President Donald Trump on Wednesday last week announced a 32 percent duty on Taiwanese imports. In a video released yesterday evening, Lai said that Taiwan would not retaliate against the US with higher tariffs and Taiwanese companies’ commitments to
‘SPECIAL CHANNEL’: Taipei’s most important tasks are to stabilize industries affected by Trump’s trade tariffs and keep negotiations with Washington open, a source said National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) arrived in the US for talks with US President Donald Trump’s administration, a source familiar with the matter said on Friday. Wu was leading a delegation for a meeting known as the “special channel,” the Financial Times reported earlier. It marked Trump’s first use of the channel since returning to the White House on Jan. 20. Citing a source familiar with the matter, the Financial Times reported that Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) was also a part of the delegation. The visit came days after China concluded war games around Taiwan and amid Trump’s
CHIP EXCEPTION: An official said that an exception for Taiwanese semiconductors would have a limited effect, as most are packaged in third nations before being sold The Executive Yuan yesterday decried US President Donald Trump’s 32 percent tariff on Taiwanese goods announced hours earlier as “unfair,” saying it would lodge a representation with Washington. The Cabinet in a statement described the pledged US tariffs, expected to take effect on Wednesday next week, as “deeply unreasonable” and “highly regrettable.” Cabinet spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said that the government would “lodge a solemn representation” with the US Trade Representative and continue negotiating with Washington to “ensure the interests of our nation and industries.” Trump at a news conference in Washington on Wednesday announced a 10 percent baseline tariff on most goods
Intelligence agents have recorded 510,000 instances of “controversial information” being spread online by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) so far this year, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said in a report yesterday, as it warned of artificial intelligence (AI) being employed to generate destabilizing misinformation. The bureau submitted a written report to the Legislative Yuan in preparation for National Security Bureau Director-General Tsai Ming-yen’s (蔡明彥) appearance before the Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee today. The CCP has been using cognitive warfare to divide Taiwanese society by commenting on controversial issues such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) investments in the
RSS