Amid rising complaints over reports on the soaring prices of daily necessities, Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (
Chang said official statistics showed that Taiwan's exports in September amounted to US$22.2 billion, "a new high" in the nation's export record.
Official records also showed growth in the nation's stock and real estate markets over the past two months, Chang said, adding that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government has been putting greater emphasis on both economic development and the nation's dignity.
"Over the past five months, we have indeed put more focus on these two agendas. We made efforts to raise Taiwanese consciousness and seek Taiwan's entry to the UN. We also announced one beneficial policy every week in a bid to fight for Taiwan's economic sustainability," Chang said.
"In our efforts to promote economic development, we also gave consideration to [the rights of] laborers, veterans and poor families, and to social justice," Chang said, adding that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and DPP presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) both give weight to these two issues.
SPECULATION
Chang made the remarks in response to a question from the press on whether Chen and Hsieh were at odds with each other over cross-strait economic policies.
The speculation came after Chen said on Tuesday that he would not relax the 40 percent cap on investment in China although Hsieh had just proposed to ease the regulations the previous day.
Chang dismissed the media speculation yesterday, saying that Hsieh had simply been stressing the economic issue on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus lashed out at Chen yesterday over his remark on Thursday in response to a protester who shouted at him during Chen's visit to an audio equipment exhibition in Taipei.
When Chen was speaking with reporters on the sidelines of the exhibition, a male protester nearby yelled: "People can barely make a living."
The president at the time responded that he would respect the voice of the people, but at a separate setting later, he fired back, saying that "if the person who can barely make a living can still visit the audio equipment exhibition, Taiwan is not bad [afterall]."
KMT legislators yesterday panned the president as a "fatuous and self-indulgent ruler" and urged him to "show more empathy" for the people.
KMT presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (
"The harsh remarks made by those politicians are ruining the country's core values. The government is living in its small world and has failed to understand the people's feelings and expectations," Ma said during a media gathering in Taipei.
As a political party that was developed from the grassroots, Ma said he was astonished to learn that the DPP has turned into a party that did not listen to the people's voice anymore.
Additional reporting by Mo Yan-chih
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS