US Congressman David Wu (
In a statement, Wu, the only US congressman of Taiwanese descent, who has served five terms as a member of the House of Representatives, said that almost any person born and raised in Taiwan had the freedom to travel to the US.
But once a person is chosen as Taiwan's president through democratic elections, this freedom is inappropriately rescinded by the US government, he said.
"While the United States attempts to promote democracy around the world, we lock the doors of our capital city to the leaders of a fellow democracy," he said.
"Rather than symbolically shunning Taiwan's democratically elected leaders, we should welcome them," Wu said.
Wu, who was born in Hsinchu, pointed out that Taiwan, once a single-party state under martial law, made a peaceful transition during the late 1980s and early 1990s to a full-fledged democracy and a multi-party political system that respects human rights and the rule of law.
"For over 50 years, our two nations have fostered a close relationship, which has been of mutual political, economic, cultural and strategic advantage. However, one vital inequity exists that prevents the exchange of views at the highest political levels: The United States government continues to adhere to guidelines from the 1970s that bar the president, vice president, premier, foreign minister and defense minister of Taiwan from coming to Washington," he said.
"Why, when Taiwan is a key player in the Asia-Pacific region, do we prevent their highest-level decision makers from traveling to our nation's capital? This outdated policy severely limits our direct dialogue with world leaders," he said.
Civil society groups yesterday protested outside the Legislative Yuan, decrying Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) efforts to pass three major bills that they said would seriously harm Taiwan’s democracy, and called to oust KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁). It was the second night of the three-day “Bluebird wintertime action” protests in Taipei, with organizers announcing that 8,000 people attended. Organized by Taiwan Citizen Front, the Economic Democracy Union (EDU) and a coalition of civil groups, about 6,000 people began a demonstration in front of KMT party headquarters in Taipei on Wednesday, organizers said. For the third day, the organizers asked people to assemble
Taipei is participating in Osaka’s Festival of Lights this year, with a 3m-tall bubble tea light installation symbolizing Taiwan’s bubble tea culture. The installation is designed as a bubble tea cup and features illustrations of Taipei’s iconic landmarks, such as Taipei 101, the Red House and North Gate, as well as soup dumplings and the matchmaking deity the Old Man Under the Moon (月下老人), affectionately known as Yue Lao (月老). Taipei and Osaka have collaborated closely on tourism and culture since Taipei first participated in the festival in 2018, the Taipei City Department of Information and Tourism said. In February, Osaka represented
POOR IMPLEMENTATION: Teachers welcomed the suspension, saying that the scheme disrupted school schedules, quality of learning and the milk market A policy to offer free milk to all school-age children nationwide is to be suspended next year due to multiple problems arising from implementation of the policy, the Executive Yuan announced yesterday. The policy was designed to increase the calcium intake of school-age children in Taiwan by drinking milk, as more than 80 percent drink less than 240ml per day. The recommended amount is 480ml. It was also implemented to help Taiwanese dairy farmers counter competition from fresh milk produced in New Zealand, which is to be imported to Taiwan tariff-free next year when the Agreement Between New Zealand and
Taiwanese professional baseball should update sports stadiums and boost engagement to enhance fans’ experience, Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) commissioner Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) in an interview on Friday. The league has urged Farglory Group and the Taipei City Government to improve the Taipei Dome’s outdated equipment, including relatively rudimentary television and sound systems, and poor technology, he said. The Tokyo Dome has markedly better television and sound systems, despite being 30 years old, because its managers continually upgraded its equipment, Tsai said. In contrast, the Taipei Dome lacked even a room for referees
RSS