Former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator Lin Cho-shui (林濁水), who has been labeled as a guru of Taiwanese independence theory, yesterday called on the government to implement cross-strait direct transportation and lift the 40 percent ceiling on China investment.
"I don't see any reason to oppose the three direct links or why the [current China-bound investment] cap of 40 percent [of a company's net value], which I had ten years ago, is still in existence," Lin said at the launch of his his new book yesterday.
The three direct links refer to direct trade, transportation and postal services across the Taiwan Strait, which were completely suspended in 1949.
Different times
"Ten years ago, we were afraid that the opening of the three direct links and closer economic ties would do harm to a growing sense of Taiwanese consciousness. But now, this consciousness has been on the rise over the years," he said.
Add to this an era of globalization, during which businesses, especially from high-tech industries, have completed overall arrangements for both sides of the Taiwan Strait on the basis of the principle of comparative advantages, Lin said.
"Considering this, the negative impact of opening three direct links and relaxing investment barriers on Taiwan's economy would be negligible," Lin said.
Inconvenience
He added that maintaining current limitations on cross-strait interaction would only cause inconvenience for businesspeople crossing the strait.
Lin is well known for his interpretation of Taiwan's history with a view that Taiwan has never been part of China and for his legislative work in building Taiwan as an independent nation.
He resigned from the Legislature last month to protest the party's handling of the corruption scandal implicating President Chen Shui-bian (
The DPP's Hong Chi-chang (
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
RSS