Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers slammed the KMT at a press conference yesterday as being responsible for insisting that the Republic of China (ROC) withdraw from the UN 34 years ago and for letting Taiwan lapse into international isolation, while today it has become China's number one accomplice in seeking the unification of Taiwan with China.
DPP Legislator Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇) held a news conference yesterday to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the UN and urged people to learn the truth about how Taiwan got stuck in its present international fix and remember the historical lessons.
"Taiwan is the only nation that could not experience the joy of the UN's 60th anniversary as the rest of the world celebrated the day on Oct. 25," Tien said.
PHOTO: CHU PEI-HSIUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Tien pointed out that it was the KMT government that sacrificed Taiwan's interests and rights because of its "one China" illusion. It ignored the US and Japan's efforts to help and its actions eventually led to Taiwan being marooned in international isolation.
"People might think that it doesn't matter if Taiwan joins the UN or not," Tien said.
"But in fact, for any nation, it is increasingly important to be a member," especially in the face of the growing tide of globalization. Many matters concerning people's rights and economic development require statehood in order to enable participation," she said.
In organizations such as the IMF, the WTO and the World Health Organization (WHO), Taiwan has been obstructed from obtaining full member status, Tien said.
DPP caucus whip William Lai (
"However, as soon as it lost executive power, it gave up on this insistence and instead became the Chinese Communist Party's biggest helper in their unification war with Taiwan," Lai said. "The KMT is totally dishonest."
"KMT members line up to pay tribute to the Chinese authorities these days and promote the policies that attempt to sell-out Taiwan to China," Lai said.
"It should be held responsible for this period of history and learn to curb its evil intentions right away," he said.
Hong Kong singer Andy Lau’s (劉德華) concert in Taipei tonight has been cancelled due to Typhoon Kong-rei and is to be held at noon on Saturday instead, the concert organizer SuperDome said in a statement this afternoon. Tonight’s concert at Taipei Arena was to be the first of four consecutive nightly performances by Lau in Taipei, but it was called off at the request of Taipei Metro, the operator of the venue, due to the weather, said the organizer. Taipei Metro said the concert was cancelled out of consideration for the audience’s safety. The decision disappointed a number of Lau’s fans who had
A tropical depression east of the Philippines became a tropical storm early yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, less than a week after a typhoon barreled across the nation. The agency issued an advisory at 3:30am stating that the 22nd tropical storm, named Yinxing, of the Pacific typhoon season formed at 2am. As of 8am, the storm was 1,730km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, with a 100km radius. It was moving west-northwest at 32kph, with maximum sustained winds of 83kph and gusts of up to 108kph. Based on its current path, the storm is not expected to hit Taiwan, CWA
Commuters in Taipei picked their way through debris and navigated disrupted transit schedules this morning on their way to work and school, as the city was still working to clear the streets in the aftermath of Typhoon Kong-rey. By 11pm yesterday, there were estimated 2,000 trees down in the city, as well as 390 reports of infrastructure damage, 318 reports of building damage and 307 reports of fallen signs, the Taipei Public Works Department said. Workers were mobilized late last night to clear the debris as soon as possible, the department said. However, as of this morning, many people were leaving messages
A Canadian dental assistant was recently indicted by prosecutors after she was caught in August trying to smuggle 32kg of marijuana into Taiwan, the Aviation Police Bureau said on Wednesday. The 30-year-old was arrested on Aug. 4 after arriving on a flight to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Chang Tsung-lung (張驄瀧), a squad chief in the Aviation Police Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Division, told reporters. Customs officials noticed irregularities when the woman’s two suitcases passed through X-ray baggage scanners, Chang said. Upon searching them, officers discovered 32.61kg of marijuana, which local media outlets estimated to have a market value of more than NT$50 million (US$1.56