Veteran pro-localization advocate and former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator Wang Tuoh (王拓), who had been hospitalized since July 30 after a heart attack, died yesterday. He was 72.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who is also DPP chairperson, said Wang’s death saddened the party.
“His continued efforts to improve Taiwan will forever be something that party members aspire to,” she said.
Photo: CNA, courtesy of Tsai Shih-ying’s legislative office
Wang, a Formosa Incident victim, served as legislator for three consecutive terms and chairman of the then-Council of Cultural Affairs in former president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) administration.
He also served as DPP secretary-general when Tsai first assumed leadership of the party in 2008, following the party’s massive defeat in the legislative and presidential elections that year.
The DPP said that Wang volunteered to take on the position of secretary-general for free in 2008, sacrificing time with his family.
Wang’s devotion to the party during a time of difficulty was impressive, the DPP said, adding that during his tenure, he eased the party’s financial burden by paying off NT$150 million (US$4.8 million) of the party’s debts.
“Wang’s courage in the face of hardship and his selfless sacrifice set an example for the party,” the DPP said.
DPP Secretary-General Hung Yao-fu (洪耀福) visited Wang’s family and offered the party’s assistance.
DPP Legislator Tsai Shih-ying (蔡適應), the head of Wang’s office for eight years, said Wang was like a father to him and he was greatly saddened by his passing.
Aside from being a political figure, Wang was also a renowned writer.
His novel Wang Jun Zhao Gui (望君早歸), describing life in Keelung’s Badouzih Township (八斗子), has been cited as a model literary representation of life in Taiwanese fishing villages. His other works, such as Jin Shui Shen (金水嬸), are representative of “nativist literature” (鄉土文學).
Wang was not a prolific writer, but his works were solid and his diction clean, writer Chu Yu-hsun (朱宥勳) said.
There are few writings on life in Taiwanese fishing villages, which is one reason Wang became the representative figure of this subject, Chu said.
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)
EVA Air is prohibiting the use of portable chargers on board all flights starting from Saturday, while China Airlines is advising passengers not to use them, following the lead of South Korean airlines. Current regulations prohibit portable chargers and lithium batteries from check-in luggage and require them to be properly packed in carry-on baggage, EVA Air said. To improve onboard safety, portable chargers and spare lithium batteries would be prohibited from use on all fights starting on Saturday, it said. Passengers are advised to fully charge electronic devices before boarding and use the AC and USB charging outlets at their seat, it said. South
WAR SIMULATION: The developers of the board game ‘2045’ consulted experts and analysts, and made maps based on real-life Chinese People’s Liberation Army exercises To stop invading Chinese forces seizing Taiwan, board gamer Ruth Zhong chooses the nuclear option: Dropping an atomic bomb on Taipei to secure the nation’s freedom and her victory. The Taiwanese board game 2045 is a zero-sum contest of military strategy and individual self-interest that puts players on the front lines of a simulated Chinese attack. Their battlefield game tactics would determine the theoretical future of Taiwan, which in the real world faces the constant threat of a Chinese invasion. “The most interesting part of this game is that you have to make continuous decisions based on the evolving situation,
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
RSS