For some unknown reason, voters in Taiwan have a thing for politicians who present themselves as oppressed martyrs. The more a politician portrays himself as a victim, the more popular he becomes. No one has perfected this art better than the People First Party Chairman James Soong (
No one expected Ma to be overjoyed by the cut. But the level of rage in Ma's histrionics seems disproportionately high. After all, Taipei's share was reduced by a mere 3 percent -- NT$1.3 billion. It will still receive 71 percent of the entire tax redistribution fund. That is more than double the 29 percent that Kaohsiung City receives.
In addition, Executive Yuan Minister Hu Sheng-cheng (
The fight over the tax redistribution fund has become an annual ritual. The difference this year is that Taipei City had always been the winner in the past. Arguments that efforts must be made to equalize resources between north and south Taiwan are not without merits. It is time to narrow the development gap between the two.
Nevertheless, Ma's sense of grievance is immense. When asked if he feels the central government is "using every chance to attack him," Ma said "I am the `victim,' I am not at liberty to answer the question."
While the mayor may feign coyness, his friends have no hesitation in saying what he isn't "at liberty" to say. KMT lawmaker Mu Ming-chu (
Evidently, the KMT is seizing the opportunity to escalate what should have been a petty disagreement into an all-out battle to make the DPP administration look bad, thereby polishing Ma's image as a victim. Not coincidentally, Ma has recently replaced Soong as the most likely presidential hopeful for the opposition alliance in the next presidential election.
If the KMT truly has its heart set on sending Ma to the Presidential Office, it has its work cut out for it -- and Ma must take care as well. His perceived inability to win support outside of Taipei City, especially in southern Taiwan, is a big obstacle. He can't over-react every time he thinks Taipei is losing out to its southern rival to the point of provoking the resentment of voters in the south.
On the other hand, the Chen Shui-bian (
Two sets of economic data released last week by the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) have drawn mixed reactions from the public: One on the nation’s economic performance in the first quarter of the year and the other on Taiwan’s household wealth distribution in 2021. GDP growth for the first quarter was faster than expected, at 6.51 percent year-on-year, an acceleration from the previous quarter’s 4.93 percent and higher than the agency’s February estimate of 5.92 percent. It was also the highest growth since the second quarter of 2021, when the economy expanded 8.07 percent, DGBAS data showed. The growth
In the intricate ballet of geopolitics, names signify more than mere identification: They embody history, culture and sovereignty. The recent decision by China to refer to Arunachal Pradesh as “Tsang Nan” or South Tibet, and to rename Tibet as “Xizang,” is a strategic move that extends beyond cartography into the realm of diplomatic signaling. This op-ed explores the implications of these actions and India’s potential response. Names are potent symbols in international relations, encapsulating the essence of a nation’s stance on territorial disputes. China’s choice to rename regions within Indian territory is not merely a linguistic exercise, but a symbolic assertion
More than seven months into the armed conflict in Gaza, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to take “immediate and effective measures” to protect Palestinians in Gaza from the risk of genocide following a case brought by South Africa regarding Israel’s breaches of the 1948 Genocide Convention. The international community, including Amnesty International, called for an immediate ceasefire by all parties to prevent further loss of civilian lives and to ensure access to life-saving aid. Several protests have been organized around the world, including at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and many other universities in the US.
Every day since Oct. 7 last year, the world has watched an unprecedented wave of violence rain down on Israel and the occupied Palestinian Territories — more than 200 days of constant suffering and death in Gaza with just a seven-day pause. Many of us in the American expatriate community in Taiwan have been watching this tragedy unfold in horror. We know we are implicated with every US-made “dumb” bomb dropped on a civilian target and by the diplomatic cover our government gives to the Israeli government, which has only gotten more extreme with such impunity. Meantime, multicultural coalitions of US