With regard to Bob Kuo's (
Kuo talks about cases related to Taiwanese law and the bending or disrespect of it. Most of the cases he mentions however, are related to ethics rather than to law.
The case of the fiancee of the army captain is clearly such a case; there are no laws for this kind of case, there can only be ethical discussions and the law may only come into action if parties don't agree.
Modern technology is unlimited and the law -- which may also differ from country to country -- will always be slow in catching up. Downloading is therefore again an ethical matter. If you really like the music of a specific singer, then you ought to buy his or her CD rather than download it, for only that would shows your true appreciation for the artist. After all, would you like to work hard for free?
In Taiwan the word "money" is unfortunately the only and most important word. Ethics seems to be something for the "strange" or "stupid." It is considered stupid to do things for free, it is considered strange to obey the law. Ethics means thinking; thinking by the individual not only about him or herself within society, but also about society as a whole. Ethical behavior means being honest and straight, and these are not characteristics Taiwanese grew up with.
Ethics should be taught more, especially at the university level, since these students will be the upper working class of society. Only a person with respect for ethics will respect the law.
At the moment it is hard for young academics, who have studied abroad and come back with new ideas about how to improve Taiwan, to get their acquired experiences implemented. Ethics tells us that we should respect the young as much as we respect the old, but until this older generation has gone, the young will have a tough time in Taiwan. "Ethics" should therefore be a major subject at Taiwan's universities.
Elisabeth Rutten
the Netherlands
As strategic tensions escalate across the vast Indo-Pacific region, Taiwan has emerged as more than a potential flashpoint. It is the fulcrum upon which the credibility of the evolving American-led strategy of integrated deterrence now rests. How the US and regional powers like Japan respond to Taiwan’s defense, and how credible the deterrent against Chinese aggression proves to be, will profoundly shape the Indo-Pacific security architecture for years to come. A successful defense of Taiwan through strengthened deterrence in the Indo-Pacific would enhance the credibility of the US-led alliance system and underpin America’s global preeminence, while a failure of integrated deterrence would
The Executive Yuan recently revised a page of its Web site on ethnic groups in Taiwan, replacing the term “Han” (漢族) with “the rest of the population.” The page, which was updated on March 24, describes the composition of Taiwan’s registered households as indigenous (2.5 percent), foreign origin (1.2 percent) and the rest of the population (96.2 percent). The change was picked up by a social media user and amplified by local media, sparking heated discussion over the weekend. The pan-blue and pro-China camp called it a politically motivated desinicization attempt to obscure the Han Chinese ethnicity of most Taiwanese.
On Wednesday last week, the Rossiyskaya Gazeta published an article by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) asserting the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) territorial claim over Taiwan effective 1945, predicated upon instruments such as the 1943 Cairo Declaration and the 1945 Potsdam Proclamation. The article further contended that this de jure and de facto status was subsequently reaffirmed by UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 of 1971. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs promptly issued a statement categorically repudiating these assertions. In addition to the reasons put forward by the ministry, I believe that China’s assertions are open to questions in international
The Legislative Yuan passed an amendment on Friday last week to add four national holidays and make Workers’ Day a national holiday for all sectors — a move referred to as “four plus one.” The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), who used their combined legislative majority to push the bill through its third reading, claim the holidays were chosen based on their inherent significance and social relevance. However, in passing the amendment, they have stuck to the traditional mindset of taking a holiday just for the sake of it, failing to make good use of
RSS