Taiwan is a multiethnic country and there is no issue of ethnic identity aside from whether or not one identifies with this land, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said yesterday.
"Despite diverse ethnicity, a country is a single unit. Regardless of what national name one identifies oneself with in their heart -- be it Taiwan or Republic of China [ROC] -- a national title is only a symbol," Chen said.
"The most important thing is whether you harbor feelings toward the land and identify yourself with the land," he said.
Chen made the remarks yesterday while receiving Kim Young-oak (金容沃), a South Korean academic, at the Presidential Office.
"Whether the official name of the nation is ROC or Taiwan, `democracy, peace and defending Taiwan' is a common language, and the greatest common denominator for the 23 million people who live on this soil," the president told his guest, who is an expert in Chinese philosophy.
"Zeal for democracy, a yearning for peace and a determination to safeguard Taiwan are what closely unite the 23 million of Taiwan," Chen added.
Expressing his delight at meeting Kim, Chen said he remembered the last time he spoke with Kim, in Aug. 2003. Kim had predicted that Chen would be re-elected in last year's presidential election.
"[Kim's remarks] then drew criticism from my opponent, who berated professor Kim as a monk from South Korea who fabricates stories. But the prediction was later proven true," Chen said. "Those people failed to recognize a great person, and called a world-class philosopher a mere Korean monk."
Kim holds a doctoral degree from Harvard University in comparative philosophy and founded the Korean Institute for Classical Studies in Seoul. He is known in South Korea for his versatility.
Kim has also been called "The King Maker" because of his election campaign strategies that helped South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun get elected two years ago. Kim is currently serving as one of Roh's key advisers.
Kim told Chen that he wishes to gain a deeper understanding of Taiwanese and Hakka cultures during his visit in Taiwan.
In Taiwan on an eight-day visit, Kim was invited by the Council of Cultural Affairs to tour the nation. He will travel to Taitung to see local Aboriginal tribes.
Kim will also visit Kaohsiung and Tainan and meet artists and cultural figures.
Kim plans to make a documentary series of the Korean independence movement during his trip. He will visit the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) archives and Academia Historica to collect documents about the movement.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
A woman who allegedly attacked a high-school student with a utility knife, injuring his face, on a Taipei metro train late on Friday has been transferred to prosecutors, police said yesterday. The incident occurred near MRT Xinpu Station at about 10:17pm on a Bannan Line train headed toward Dingpu, New Taipei City police said. Before police arrived at the station to arrest the suspect, a woman surnamed Wang (王) who is in her early 40s, she had already been subdued by four male passengers, one of whom was an off-duty Taipei police officer, police said. The student, 17, who sustained a cut about
RSS