Next to the shocking death toll and the extent of the property damage caused by Typhoon Toraji, two depressing facts stand out in the storm's aftermath. The first is the public's lukewarm response to pleas for disaster-relief donations; the second is the eagerness of politicians to insert party politics into relief efforts when countless bodies remain buried in the mud.
Looking back at the public's enthusiasm for the 921 earthquake relief effort, one cannot help but wonder what has happened since then? Taiwan's economic downturn, of course, is a major factor. It is hard to be a good samaritan when one is having trouble putting bread on one's own table. However, other factors also play a role. One is that many people are suspicions that some, perhaps the majority, of the 921 donations went astray. Two years have passed, but most people are in the dark about the progress, if any, of the reconstruction of the area devastated by the quake. For most people, the only time they hear about reconstruction efforts are when they read a news report about another corruption scandal linked to such projects. Unfortunately, this has made people think twice about contributing donations to victims of the typhoon.
Hopefully, the DPP government has learned a lesson from its KMT predecessor's mishandling of the 921 quake about how to manage and supervise relief efforts, especially the need for a centralized and well-coordinated relief mechanism. The lack of such a mechanism was the core problem with the 921 relief efforts. Each department and agency did its own thing, causing an overlap in job scope and wasting precious time, resources and manpower. Lack of centralized supervision also caused gross inefficiency and delays.
Just how successful have the 921 reconstruction efforts been? Judging from the severity of the mudslides in Nantou County, the area hardest hit by both the quake and Toraji, it is clear that few of the donated funds were spent on conservation and reforestation efforts for the county's steep hillsides. And almost two years after the quake, Taiwan still has just two dogs trained in search and rescue. It is enough to make one sigh in despair.
While rescue teams search for more bodies amid the hardening mudslide debris, Taiwan's politicians appear less interested in excavating mud than in slinging it. The opposition parties were quick to accuse the Executive Yuan of stashing away funds that could have been made available for relief efforts, so that it would have an excuse to ask the legislature to release a NT$1.6 billion tax redistribution fund instead. KMT lawmakers went one step further by accusing the ruling party of hiding this extra pocket money in order to use it for campaign funding in the upcoming election.
Such inane accusations are enough to make one wonder if some KMT members tied their tacky red headbands a little too tightly during the party's 16th national congress, cutting off the flow of blood to their brains. Just when it looked like the KMT's politicos had hit hit rock-bottom in terms of moral degradation, they manage to dig themselves deeper into the muck. Even an imbecile knows that, at times like this, disaster relief takes top priority, and all the finger-pointing and scapegoating will have to wait. If these clowns are all the KMT has left to help it return to power, the party might as well donate its enormous assets to the needy and immediately disband.
Fortunately, cooler heads have prevailed and the needed funds have been released. Now it is up to the ruling and opposition parties alike to demonstrate that they have learned how to break through Taiwan's endless cycle of disaster, political recriminations and public protests, pie-in-the-sky promises and platitudes, ineptitude and corruption, half-baked relief projects and legislation, and then an interval of apathy, before the next disaster starts the whole process over again.
Recently, China launched another diplomatic offensive against Taiwan, improperly linking its “one China principle” with UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 to constrain Taiwan’s diplomatic space. After Taiwan’s presidential election on Jan. 13, China persuaded Nauru to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Nauru cited Resolution 2758 in its declaration of the diplomatic break. Subsequently, during the WHO Executive Board meeting that month, Beijing rallied countries including Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Belarus, Egypt, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, Laos, Russia, Syria and Pakistan to reiterate the “one China principle” in their statements, and assert that “Resolution 2758 has settled the status of Taiwan” to hinder Taiwan’s
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s (李顯龍) decision to step down after 19 years and hand power to his deputy, Lawrence Wong (黃循財), on May 15 was expected — though, perhaps, not so soon. Most political analysts had been eyeing an end-of-year handover, to ensure more time for Wong to study and shadow the role, ahead of general elections that must be called by November next year. Wong — who is currently both deputy prime minister and minister of finance — would need a combination of fresh ideas, wisdom and experience as he writes the nation’s next chapter. The world that
The past few months have seen tremendous strides in India’s journey to develop a vibrant semiconductor and electronics ecosystem. The nation’s established prowess in information technology (IT) has earned it much-needed revenue and prestige across the globe. Now, through the convergence of engineering talent, supportive government policies, an expanding market and technologically adaptive entrepreneurship, India is striving to become part of global electronics and semiconductor supply chains. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Vision of “Make in India” and “Design in India” has been the guiding force behind the government’s incentive schemes that span skilling, design, fabrication, assembly, testing and packaging, and
Can US dialogue and cooperation with the communist dictatorship in Beijing help avert a Taiwan Strait crisis? Or is US President Joe Biden playing into Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) hands? With America preoccupied with the wars in Europe and the Middle East, Biden is seeking better relations with Xi’s regime. The goal is to responsibly manage US-China competition and prevent unintended conflict, thereby hoping to create greater space for the two countries to work together in areas where their interests align. The existing wars have already stretched US military resources thin, and the last thing Biden wants is yet another war.