The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday declined to confirm speculation that Government Information Office Minister Vanessa Shih (史亞平) has been tapped for representative to Singapore, citing protocol.
“We never comment on personnel appointments until they have been completed. We will make an official announcement once it has been confirmed,” ministry spokesman Henry Chen (陳銘政) said, without providing dates.
A ministry official who spoke on condition of anonymity confirmed the rumor and said the ministry would make the announcement immediately after Singapore has given its approval.
The post has been vacant for three months since Kuo Shih-nan (郭時南), appointed by the previous administration, stepped down.
Rumors of Shih’s appointment have been circulating for weeks, but both the ministry and the GIO have declined to confirm it. The news finally leaked out late on Tuesday night when Chinese-language media reported that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) had removed Shih from her position and appointed her to Singapore.
If confirmed, Shih would be the country’s third female de facto ambassador, with former deputy minister of foreign affairs Katharine Chang (張小月) heading the office in London and Elizabeth Chu (朱玉鳳) serving as representative to Greece.
Shih, 47, a former deputy representative to Australia, is a graduate of National Chengchi University’s Department of Diplomacy.
Despite the absence of official ties, Singapore and Taiwan enjoy a close working relationship. The city-state is seen as a crucial partner for Taiwan and a strong advocate of Taipei’s attempt to increase Taiwan’s participation at regional events.
Singapore was the first country to send a congratulatory note to Ma following his win in the presidential election. At the UN General Assembly in September, Singapore’s representative at the UN, George Yao (楊榮文), for the first time publicly commended Taiwan’s efforts to alleviate cross-strait tension.
In October, the Legislative Yuan created the Taiwan-Singapore Parliamentary Friendship Association.
Shih declined to comment yesterday.
Later, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Kuo Su-chun (郭素春) also confirmed the news.
“I asked minister Shih minutes ago whether the news was true … she said she did not tell us earlier because she had not received the official assignment. But she confirmed she would be going to Singapore,” Kuo said.
Kuo praised Shih’s foreign language and communication skills, adding she had all the qualifications to be a representative.
Meanwhile, the Presidential Office declined to confirm that Ma would replace Shih with his former aide, Su Jun-pin (蘇俊賓).
Tsai Chung-li (蔡仲禮), director of the Public Affairs Department at the Presidential Office, told reporters yesterday that any personnel reshuffle would be dealt with by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Reports said Su, who served as Taoyuan County Government commissioner for the Environmental Protection Department, had been tapped by Ma to take over from Shih.
Su, 32, was hand-picked by Ma to serve as KMT spokesman and spokesman for Ma’s presidential campaign. Although it was widely speculated that he would follow Ma to the presidential office following his election in March, Su returned to his former post at the Taoyuan County Government.
“So far, the only thing that’s certain is my wedding [tomorrow] ... It’s still too early for me to say anything,” Su said yesterday.
Asked for comment on the appointment, Taoyuan County Commissioner Chu Li-lun (朱立倫) referred to Su as a young, talented official, adding that the county government would give its blessing if he took the new position.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY FLORA WANG
An undersea cable to Penghu County has been severed, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said today, with a Chinese-funded ship suspected of being responsible. It comes just a month after a Chinese ship was suspected of severing an undersea cable north of Keelung Harbor. The National Communications and Cyber Security Center received a report at 3:03am today from Chunghwa Telecom that the No. 3 cable from Taiwan to Penghu was severed 14.7km off the coast of Tainan, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) upon receiving a report from Chunghwa Telecom began to monitor the Togolese-flagged Hong Tai (宏泰)
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
Actor Lee Wei (李威) was released on bail on Monday after being named as a suspect in the death of a woman whose body was found in the meeting place of a Buddhist group in Taipei’s Daan District (大安) last year, prosecutors said. Lee, 44, was released on NT$300,000 (US$9,148) bail, while his wife, surnamed Chien (簡), was released on NT$150,000 bail after both were summoned to give statements regarding the woman’s death. The home of Lee, who has retreated from the entertainment business in the past few years, was also searched by prosecutors and police earlier on Monday. Lee was questioned three
RISING TOURISM: A survey showed that tourist visits increased by 35 percent last year, while newly created attractions contributed almost half of the growth Changhua County’s Lukang Old Street (鹿港老街) and its surrounding historical area clinched first place among Taiwan’s most successful tourist attractions last year, while no location in eastern Taiwan achieved a spot in the top 20 list, the Tourism Administration said. The listing was created by the Tourism Administration’s Forward-looking Tourism Policy Research office. Last year, the Lukang Old Street and its surrounding area had 17.3 million visitors, more than the 16 million visitors for the Wenhua Road Night Market (文化路夜市) in Chiayi City and 14.5 million visitors at Tainan’s Anping (安平) historical area, it said. The Taipei 101 skyscraper and its environs —
RSS