More than 1,000 academics signed a statement published yesterday as a half-page ad in the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) endorsing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) for Taipei mayor.
The statement was initiated by Buddhist Tzu Chi University founding president Lee Ming-liang (李明亮) and Academia Sinica academician Liao Yun-fan (廖運範), along with 14 other Academia Sinica academicians and 21 former university presidents.
They gathered signatures from 1,028 academics, including about 300 from schools or institutions in Taipei and about 190 from schools in nine other countries.
Photo: CNA
The ad said that Chen’s administrative experience, personality and policy vision made him the most qualified among the Taipei mayoral candidates.
The statement said the city needs an administration that is willing to cooperate with the central government amid increasing threats from China.
About 300 academics yesterday morning attended an event in Taipei in support of Chen, which was also attended by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).
Liao said it is unprecedented for more than 1,000 academics to sign a statement in support of a local candidate within 10 days of circulating the petition.
Over the past three years, no member of Chen’s team from when the former minister of health and welfare headed the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) has left, which demonstrates the quality of Chen’s leadership, Liao said.
Tsai said that Chen’s background in medicine shows that he is capable of planning and executing policy initiatives, and could work with the central government to enhance civil defense and national security.
She invited supporters to join a parade focused on families in support of Chen and improving Taipei at 1:30pm today.
Separately yesterday, the Central Election Commission released a document showing that Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei mayoral candidate Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) resigned as a legislator on Nov. 10.
The commission released the document after DPP Legislator Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) on Tuesday questioned why Chiang had not submitted his resignation after announcing he would step down to focus on his campaign.
The legislature received his letter of resignation on Wednesday.
Chiang yesterday said that independent Taipei mayoral candidate and former Taipei deputy mayor Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) should respond to allegations that she contravened administrative neutrality in asking city employees to attend a campaign event.
Chiang was campaigning near Yongle Market (永樂市場) when he was asked about remarks by Taoyuan city councilor candidate Lin chia-wei (林佳瑋) that the Taipei City Government had allegedly asked firefighters who were on leave to attend an election campaign event for the independent mayoral candidate.
Huang yesterday said that if Lin has evidence that firefighters were asked to attend the event, she should turn it over to the Control Yuan for investigation.
Huang’s campaign is to host a large event at a parking lot near the MRT Nanjing Sanmin Station tonight.
SEND A MESSAGE: Sinking the amphibious assault ship, the lead warship of its class, is meant to show China the US Navy is capable of sinking their ships, an analyst said The US and allied navies plan to sink a 40,000-tonne ship at the latest Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise to simulate defeating a Chinese amphibious assault on Taiwan. This year’s RIMPAC — the 29th iteration of the world’s largest naval exercise — involves the US, 28 partners, more than 25,000 personnel, 40 warships, three submarines and more than 150 aircraft operating in and around Hawaii from yesterday to Aug. 1, the US Navy said in a press release. The major components of the event include multidomain warfare exercises in multiship surface engagements, anti-submarine warfare and multi-axis defense of a carrier strike
Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China when traveling in countries with close ties to Beijing, Taiwan Association of University Professors deputy chairman Chen Li-fu (陳俐甫) said on Friday. Chen’s comments came after China on Friday last week announced new judicial guidelines targeting Taiwanese independence advocates. Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Djibouti are among the countries where Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China, he said. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday elevated the travel alert for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange” after Beijing announced its guidelines to “severely punish Taiwanese independence diehards for splitting the country and inciting secession.” Extradition treaties
The airspace around Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) is to be closed for an hour on July 25 and July 23 respectively, due to the Han Kuang military exercises, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The annual exercise is to be held on Taiwan proper and its outlying islands from July 22 to 26. During last year’s exercise, the military conducted anti-aircraft landing drills at the Taoyuan airport for the first time, for which a one-hour no-fly ban was issued. Based on a live-fire bulletin sent out by the Maritime and Port Bureau, the nation’s
CROSS-BORDER CRIME: The suspects cannot be charged with cybercrime in Indonesia as their targets were in Malaysia, an Indonesian immigration director said Indonesian immigration authorities have detained 103 Taiwanese after a raid at a villa on Bali, officials said yesterday. They were accused of misusing their visas and residence permits, and are suspected of possible cybercrimes, Safar Muhammad Godam, director of immigration supervision and enforcement at the Indonesian Ministry of Law and Human Rights told reporters at a news conference. “The 103 foreign nationals stayed at the villa and conducted suspicious activities, which we suspect are activities related to cybercrime activities,” he said, presenting laptops and routers at the news conference. Godam said Indonesian authorities cannot charge them with conducting cybercrime. “During the inspection, we