Vice president-elect William Lai (賴清德) was invited to the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington because of his advocacy for freedom of religion and human rights, prominent Chinese-American pastor Bob Fu (傅希秋) said on Thursday.
Since Lai stepped down as premier in January last year, he has been deeply involved in the promotion of human rights, Fu said.
In particular, Lai’s efforts to champion religious freedom and support the victims of China’s religious persecution, including Tibetans, have been heartwarming, said Fu, a former victim of such persecution.
Photo: CNA
It was mainly for those reasons that he invited Lai to attend the annual prayer breakfast in a private capacity, said Fu, who founded the non-governmental China Aid Association, which provides legal aid to Christians in China.
Fu said that his invitation to Lai was not met with any opposition in the US, either from the White House or the US Department of State, despite Lai being elected vice president after the invitation was issued.
At the prayer breakfast on Thursday, Lai was seated at the same table as US Senator Lindsey Graham and next to the table where US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was sitting at the front of the Washington Hilton’s international ballroom.
US President Donald Trump and US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi addressed the gathering of religious and political leaders from around the world.
A member of Lai’s delegation said that Lai was at the event in a private capacity, as he has not yet taken office.
Lai is to be sworn in as vice president in May.
Former Democratic Progressive Party legislator Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) denied reports that Lai held discussions with US National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien during a visit to the US National Security Council on Wednesday.
The National Prayer Breakfast, a bipartisan event founded in 1953, aims to “unite individuals of different nationalities, religions and political perspectives through the power of prayer,” the formal invitation says.
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
RSS