Fu could have said ‘no’
After Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (?) led KMT party members to Beijing to meet with Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference Chairman Wang Huning (王滬寧), China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) Director Song Tao (宋濤) and others, the TAO announced that it would donate modular housing units to areas devastated by the April 3 earthquake, to be delivered through cross-strait Red Cross organizations.
Minister of the Interior Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) responded on April 28 that the central government and civic groups’ donations were more than adequate, and that moreover, religious charitable organizations in Hualien County were already providing modular housing, and whether disaster survivors needed modular housing units would be looked into.
Lin’s response could not have been swifter or more on point. There is no need for housing provided by the outside world. We are holding our own just fine.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative caucus secretary-general Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said that 25 years ago, modular housing was an option of last resort.
From rebuilding to management to tearing them down, such housing units were a massive challenge. The aftermath of the Hualien earthquake is far different from the 921 Earthquake of 1999.
With 25 years of experience, there are far better ways to help survivors get back on their feet such as bills to provide rent stipends.
Wu then urged Fu to say so to China, and to tell them to stop sending fighter jets to harass our airspace, and to stop exporting toxic food and products to our country.
What Taiwan actually needs is a seat at the World Health Assembly, but the official Web site of China’s permanent representative to the UN in Geneva claims that China’s “one China principle” has become a widespread consensus of the international community.
It further claimed that Taiwanese do not have any reason or right to participate in UN bodies and other international organizations. China’s position is exasperating.
Tsai Mei-chu
Taipei
The gutting of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA) by US President Donald Trump’s administration poses a serious threat to the global voice of freedom, particularly for those living under authoritarian regimes such as China. The US — hailed as the model of liberal democracy — has the moral responsibility to uphold the values it champions. In undermining these institutions, the US risks diminishing its “soft power,” a pivotal pillar of its global influence. VOA Tibetan and RFA Tibetan played an enormous role in promoting the strong image of the US in and outside Tibet. On VOA Tibetan,
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), the leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), caused a national outrage and drew diplomatic condemnation on Tuesday after he arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office dressed in a Nazi uniform. Sung performed a Nazi salute and carried a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf as he arrived to be questioned over allegations of signature forgery in the recall petition. The KMT’s response to the incident has shown a striking lack of contrition and decency. Rather than apologizing and distancing itself from Sung’s actions,
US President Trump weighed into the state of America’s semiconductor manufacturing when he declared, “They [Taiwan] stole it from us. They took it from us, and I don’t blame them. I give them credit.” At a prior White House event President Trump hosted TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家), head of the world’s largest and most advanced chip manufacturer, to announce a commitment to invest US$100 billion in America. The president then shifted his previously critical rhetoric on Taiwan and put off tariffs on its chips. Now we learn that the Trump Administration is conducting a “trade investigation” on semiconductors which
By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then