The reshuffle at the government-sponsored Taiwan Foundation for Democracy (TFD) reflects the current political distribution in Taiwan and it was carried out in a democratic manner, Minister of Foreign Affairs Francisco Ou (歐鴻鍊) has told the US-based National Endowment for Democracy (NED).
Ministry Spokesman Henry Chen (陳銘政) told a press briefing yesterday that Ou wrote a letter to NED president Carl Gershman who, along with some members of Congress, had expressed concern over the recent reshuffle at the foundation and asked President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) not to interfere in the foundation.
In the letter dated June 29, Ou said Article 8 of the foundation’s charter stipulates that half of its board members must come from political parties that occupy 5 percent or more of the seats in the Legislative Yuan and therefore, the TFD board changes after each legislative election.
Ou appealed to the US to respect the sovereignty and the rule of law of different nations. He also said he hoped that the NED, under Gershman’s leadership, would show similar deference to Taiwan’s due process.
Gershman wrote to Ma last month to urge him not to interfere with the foundation’s structure and the policies after it was reported that under Beijing’s influence, the Ma administration planned to make major changes to the foundation’s governing board and to prevent it from offering financial support to pro-democracy movements in China, Tibet and Cuba.
“It has come to my attention through reports in the press that broad changes are being proposed for the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy. I am concerned that such an overhaul could well compromise both the Foundation’s independence and the quality of its work,” Gershman wrote.
While the NED was the only organization to react so strongly, a number of other Washington-based groups — including Freedom House and the Formosan Association for Public Affairs — are known to be concerned about reports of Ma’s alleged plans to interfere with and restrict the foundation.
Several members of the US Congress are also worried about the situation, but have decided to wait until Ma officially makes his plans known before reacting.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
A woman who allegedly attacked a high-school student with a utility knife, injuring his face, on a Taipei metro train late on Friday has been transferred to prosecutors, police said yesterday. The incident occurred near MRT Xinpu Station at about 10:17pm on a Bannan Line train headed toward Dingpu, New Taipei City police said. Before police arrived at the station to arrest the suspect, a woman surnamed Wang (王) who is in her early 40s, she had already been subdued by four male passengers, one of whom was an off-duty Taipei police officer, police said. The student, 17, who sustained a cut about
RSS