The Presidential Office yesterday confirmed that Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (
Chen, 69, has been a persistent Taiwan independence promoter since the 1970s, when he studied in the US. The prominent former overseas leader of the democratic movement headed the Taiwanese Association of America and the World Federation of Taiwanese Associations in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
He was also instrumental in establishing the Washington-based Formosan Association for Public Affairs in the early 1980s, which promoted democratization. It has been widely speculated by local media that his appointment to be the president's No. 1 man could be attributed to his strong sense of Taiwan consciousness, which is important in light of the cross-strait issues the president raised in his latest New Year address.
At a year-end gathering with the media yesterday, President Chen Shui-bian (
"You have to be loyal to yourself, your work, the land and the people here," the president said.
The Presidential Office yesterday also announced that Cabinet Spokesman Cho Jung-tai (
Huang will be officially designated as Minister of Foreign Affairs tomorrow. Since the president announced last Thursday that the new Cabinet will be led by former Democratic Progressive Party chairman Su Tseng-chang (
Controversy especially surrounded Huang and Minister of the Public Construction Commission Kuo Yao-Chi (
Opposition parties have criticized some new Cabinet members for not having adequate experience in the fields to which they have been designated. They have also expressed concern about the president's involvement in the composition of the Cabinet.
The president yesterday expressed deep appreciation to outgoing premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), who officially resigned yesterday. Recent public statements by Hsieh have indicated that the president has adopted a more reluctant attitude toward cross-strait issues.
"I hope that Hsieh will have a smooth future. However, all of us are in the same boat. None of us can be allowed to unbalance it," Chen Shui-bian said.
A number of former Cabinet members who had just resigned were designated fully-paid National Policy Advisers to the president yesterday. They include Lin Ling-san (
DEFENSE: The National Security Bureau promised to expand communication and intelligence cooperation with global partners and enhance its strategic analytical skills China has not only increased military exercises and “gray zone” tactics against Taiwan this year, but also continues to recruit military personnel for espionage, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday in a report to the Legislative Yuan. The bureau submitted the report ahead of NSB Director-General Tsai Ming-yen’s (蔡明彥) appearance before the Foreign and National Defense Committee today. Last year, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted “Joint Sword-2024A and B” military exercises targeting Taiwan and carried out 40 combat readiness patrols, the bureau said. In addition, Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s airspace 3,070 times last year, up about
A magnitude 4.3 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 8:31am today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was located in Hualien County, about 70.3 kilometers south southwest of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 23.2km, according to the administration. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County, where it measured 3 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 2 in Hualien and Nantou counties, the CWA said.
The Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC) yesterday announced a fundraising campaign to support survivors of the magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck Myanmar on March 28, with two prayer events scheduled in Taipei and Taichung later this week. “While initial rescue operations have concluded [in Myanmar], many survivors are now facing increasingly difficult living conditions,” OCAC Minister Hsu Chia-ching (徐佳青) told a news conference in Taipei. The fundraising campaign, which runs through May 31, is focused on supporting the reconstruction of damaged overseas compatriot schools, assisting students from Myanmar in Taiwan, and providing essential items, such as drinking water, food and medical supplies,
New Party Deputy Secretary-General You Chih-pin (游智彬) this morning went to the National Immigration Agency (NIA) to “turn himself in” after being notified that he had failed to provide proof of having renounced his Chinese household registration. He was one of more than 10,000 naturalized Taiwanese citizens from China who were informed by the NIA that their Taiwanese citizenship might be revoked if they fail to provide the proof in three months, people familiar with the matter said. You said he has proof that he had renounced his Chinese household registration and demanded the NIA provide proof that he still had Chinese
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