A German parliamentary delegation would visit Taiwan in the first week of October, German lawmaker Holger Becker on Monday told visiting Democratic Progressive Party legislators Fan Yun (范雲) and Lin I-chin (林宜瑾) at the Bundestag in Berlin.
Asked by Fan whether he is worried about possible reprisals from Beijing, such as banning him and his family from entering China, Becker said he is more interested in visiting Taiwan, as “now is the time for democracies to stand together.”
Fan and Lin also met with German officials to exchange views on digital education and governance.
Photo courtesy of Fan Yun
Investing in digital infrastructure and protecting equal rights to education are key parts of Becker’s political platform, Fan said, adding that he is concerned about the harm caused by online hate speech to democracy and individuals.
German news agency DPA separately reported that the Bundestag’s Committee on Human Rights would also send a delegation of eight lawmakers from six political parties to Taiwan at the end of October.
The Formosa Club, a group of Taiwan-friendly lawmakers in Europe, issued a statement on Monday urging China to cease its military intimidation of Taiwan.
The group condemned China for undermining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, adding that China must not “unilaterally change the status quo by force against the will of the Taiwanese people.”
Lawmakers have the duty and right to travel internationally to support freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law, which should not be used as an excuse for provocation, the statement said.
Seventy-nine lawmakers from 28 legislative bodies, including those in Europe and Canada, as well as the European Parliament, vowed to “stand by and support Taiwan” through “regular visits, joint dialogues or cooperation,” it said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs thanked the group for speaking out for Taiwan so quickly and encouraged democratic partners to visit the nation to show their support.
The ministry reiterated that like-minded nations around the globe should stand together against China’s irresponsible actions, as “being overlenient would send a wrong message to Beijing and endanger peace across the Taiwan Strait and around the world.”
Separately, Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Gabrielius Landsbergis in an opinion piece published by the UK’s Telegraph newspaper on Monday voiced his support for Taiwan and condemned Chinese aggression.
He called on the world to safeguard global security instead of considering smaller democratic countries “expendable” to appease authoritarian countries in an attempt to avoid conflict.
“Appeasement does not lead to peace,” he said, adding that “the free world cannot and will not allow Taiwan to become a second Ukraine.”
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
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