The "new Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) movement" faced an early death after DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) convened party heavyweights on Saturday night for talks on recent controversies, and agreed that the movement should be silenced forever.
In the wake of flak from President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) over the new DPP movement, which advocates self-criticism and reforms, Su on Saturday convened an urgent meeting of party members from each faction to address recent quarrels among them.
Those who attended the meeting included Gao Jyh-peng (高志鵬), secretary-general of the Justice Alliance (正義連線), Chiu Chuei-chen (邱垂貞), chief of the Welfare State Alliance (福利國連線), Chen Sheng-hung (陳勝宏), convener of the Green Alliance (綠色連線), Tuan Yi-kang (段宜康), convener of the New Tide (新潮流) faction and other party higher-ups, including legislative caucus whips William Lai (賴清德) and Jao Yung-ching (趙永清), DPP Legislators Lee Wen-chung (李文忠) and Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘), and DPP Secretary-General Lee Yi-yang (李逸洋).
PHOTO: CNA
After about two hours of discussion, Su held a news conference at about 10pm and announced that a consensus had been reached on two points.
First, the DPP will fully support the six reforms pledged by the president during his National Day speech and the legislative caucus will propose concrete reforms with the administrative departments of the Executive Yuan. Second, the legislative caucus will establish a negotiation and communication mechanism to help carry out reforms, according to Su.
"Today's consensus is that the DPP will stick to reforms. And reforms will not influence consolidation. Our consolidation is for the sake of reforms," Su said on Saturday night.
Meanwhile, party officials also discussed the controversial new DPP movement, which has ignited internal feuds between the party's New Tide faction and other factions. Officials agreed that the factions should call a truce and never bring up the term "the new DPP movement" again.
Additionally, the airing of criticisms or rumors through the press is also prohibited, Su said.
Su added that he supported the spirit of the new DPP movement, but the title seemed inappropriate.
"There is no problem of the new DPP or the old DPP. There is only a problem of reforming or not." Su said. "We will not allow internal attacks among factions after this."
Other participants voiced similar views, saying that little communication had occurred before the movement had been proposed, and that its advocates had offered few practical measures for its implementation, which only hurt the DPP's image and unity.
In the face of criticism from Su and other party members, Tuan, one of the movement's advocates and also the convener of the New Tide faction, did not respond directly to it, saying only that Su's statement was the basis for any questions about the new DPP movement.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS