Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Vice Chairman Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) yesterday accused President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of “belittling the official title” of the nation by describing herself as the “President of Taiwan” during her first overseas state visit.
“The Republic of China, abbreviated as ROC, is the title of our nation. It is the official national title under which we have repeatedly endeavored to seek global recognition,” the fomer Taipei mayor wrote on Facebook.
Hau posted a photograph of the message Tsai left in a visitor’s book after touring the sluice gates of the expanded Panama Canal on Sunday, in which she wrote: “Witnessing the centennial achievement, jointly creating future prosperity,” and identifying herself as “President of Taiwan [ROC].”
Tsai is on a nine-day trip to Panama and Paraguay that includes two transit stops in the US. She stopped in Miami, Florida, on Saturday on her way to Panama and she is to stop in Los Angeles on her return home.
Hau said that before the Jan. 16 presidential elections, Tsai had said on multiple occasions that she was running for “president of the ROC.”
“However, when Tsai, who is president of the ROC, travels overseas to one of the nation’s diplomatic allies, the ROC becomes merely a side note in parentheses,” Hau wrote.
It is ironic that at a time when just over 20 nations recognize the ROC, “our own president belittles the nation’s official title while standing on the soil of one of the nation’s diplomatic allies,” Hau said.
“We all identify with the island of Taiwan and recognize ourselves as Taiwanese, but that does not mean we should forsake or belittle our national title. Besides, for our president to take the lead in doing so overseas is something I cannot accept,” Hau said.
KMT Legislator Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安), a great-grandson of former president Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石), on Sunday also took issue with Tsai’s message in the visitors’ book, criticizing it as “extremely inappropriate.”
He told TVBS that such a message could spark an outpouring of controversy and that it would be more appropriate for Tsai to use her “official title” when writing an inscription for someone or leaving similar messages.
However, the KMT lawmaker’s remarks drew a sharp retort on Facebook from New Power Party Legislator Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明), who late on Sunday vented his discontent, posting: “Is it really that humiliating and difficult for the descendants of the Chiang family to utter the word Taiwan?”
Accusing the KMT of acting schizophrenically, Hsu said that the KMT had lambasted Minister of Health and Welfare Lin Tzou-yien (林奏延) for not mentioning “Taiwan” in his speech at the World Health Assembly last month, yet the party has problems with Tsai describing herself as “president of Taiwan.”
“If Chiang Wan-an thinks it is extremely inappropriate for Tsai to describe herself as ‘president of Taiwan,’ does it mean the only befitting title for the president is ‘leader of the ROC, Taiwan area’ because it conforms to the ‘one China’ principle?” Hsu wrote.
He said that the KMT and its members should refrain from unreasonable invectives.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as