Premier Chang Chun-hsiung's (張俊雄) decision to halt construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant is the first step toward a nuclear-free country, nuclear opponents said yesterday.
The government must also do more to reform the nation's energy policies and adopt renewable energy sources, the activists said.
"The DPP-led government has kept pace with international trends" when it comes to energy policy, Pan Han-chiang (
Chang's announcement was also applauded by anti-nuclear residents in Kungliao township (
As parents of young children, residents said at a press conference yesterday that they have a responsibility to fight for a better environment for future generations.
"The decision will prevent the environment along the northeastern coast from being destroyed by the plant's construction," said Chen Ching-tang (
Anti-nuclear activists said that concerns surrounding nuclear energy have been fully debated by the public, and that discourse could be used to answer other public policy questions.
"The way of arriving at a final decision to abandon the project for the plant could also be applied to other important public development projects in the future," said Wu Wen-tung (吳文通), a Kungliao resident.
Meanwhile, Kungliao builders who do contract work for Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) said the premier's decision was a sudden one.
Wang Wen-bin (
"I believe that some Kungliao residents will start to worry about their future, because the decision" will hurt Kungliao economically, Wang said.
As a result of the decision, he said, many residents will be forced to look for jobs elsewhere.
Lin Chu-wan (林居萬), Taipower's site manager for the Lungmen Construction Office (龍門施工處) in Kungliao, said that some major construction projects have already been halted as a result of the government's announcement yesterday.
But Lin said that Taipower employees working at the site were still waiting for further instruction from their supervisors.
Hsia Der-yu (夏德鈺), chairman of the Atomic Energy Council, said yesterday he respected the premier's decision and that the council would now focus on operating the nation's three nuclear plants.
"I don't feel that Premier Chang disrespects the nuclear energy profession, and I believe that the decision was based on a comprehensive consideration," Hsia said.
Meanwhile, the first wave of the DPP's anti-nuclear campaign appeared yesterday in the form of advertisements in the evening newspapers.
DEATH THREAT: A MAC official said that it has urged Beijing to avoid creating barriers that would impede exchanges across the Strait, but it continues to do so People should avoid unnecessary travel to China after Beijing issued 22 guidelines allowing its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death “Taiwan independence separatists,” the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday as it raised its travel alert for China, including Hong Kong and Macau, to “orange.” The guidelines published last week “severely threaten the personal safety of Taiwanese traveling to China, Hong Kong and Macau,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) told a news conference in Taipei. “Following a comprehensive assessment, the government considers it necessary to elevate the travel alert to orange from yellow,” Liang said. Beijing has
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday said that the Chinese Communist Party was planning and implementing “major” reforms, ahead of a political conclave that is expected to put economic recovery high on the agenda. Chinese policymakers have struggled to reignite growth since late 2022, when restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic were lifted. The world’s second-largest economy is beset by a debt crisis in the property sector, persistently low consumption and high unemployment among young people. Policymakers “are planning and implementing major measures to further deepen reform in a comprehensive manner,” Xi said in a speech at the Great Hall
CIVIL DEFENSE: More reservists in alternative service would help establish a sound civil defense system for use in wartime and during natural disasters, Kuma Academy’s CEO said While a total of 120,000 reservists are expected to be called up for alternative reserve drills this year, compared with the 6,505 drilled last year, the number has been revised to 58,000 due to a postponed training date, Deputy Minster of the Interior Ma Shih-yuan (馬士元) said. In principle, the ministry still aims to call up 120,000 reservists for alternative reserve drills next year, he said, but the actual number would not be decided later until after this year’s evaluation. The increase follows a Legislative Yuan request that the Ministry of the Interior address low recruitment rates, which it made while reviewing
DETERRENCE: Along with US$500 million in military aid and up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees, the bill would allocate US$400 million to countering PRC influence The US House of Representatives on Friday approved an appropriations bill for fiscal year 2025 that includes US$500 million in military aid for Taiwan. The legislation, which authorizes funding for the US Department of State, US foreign operations and related programs for next year, passed 212-200 in the Republican-led House. The bill stipulates that the US would provide no less than US$500 million in foreign military financing for Taiwan to enhance deterrence across the Taiwan Strait, and offer Taipei up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees for the same purpose. The funding would be made available under the US’ Foreign Military