In view of the recent brouhaha over whether cable station TVBS should be shut down -- a majority of its shares are Chinese-owned, which violates the Satellite Broadcasting Law (
Chen's statement is tantamount to pardoning a monster. It is as if he is saying, "Come and get me, for no matter what you do, even if you attack me, I will not get you."
TVBS general manager Lee Tao (
Whether capital is from Hong Kong or China, it is not Taiwanese and is therefore foreign capital. The law stipulates that direct foreign investment in a TV station should not exceed 50 percent. Lee, therefore, was swearing on his life that TVBS is 100 percent funded by foreigners.
It's a clear violation of the law, so why has the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration taken so long to act?
Most likely one can attribute this to the administration's own wishful thinking that pro-China media outlets will be nicer to it in return for not intervening.
Apparently, the administration has not learned its lesson, despite the number of times it has been cut and bruised by the pro-China media with smearing and false accusations.
Sometimes, offense is the best defense. If the government can't be trusted to stand up for Taiwan's interests, then the task rests with the Taiwanese people.
The Northern Taiwan Society on Monday urged members of the public to donate NT$100 to help gather the necessary cash for the budget in lieu of the long-stalled arms-procurement bill.
The group expects that 1 million people will support the drive.
Coincidentally, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Alex Tsai (
NT$100 is not a very big sum. If both parties are serious about these proposals, it will be interesting to see how each group fares.
It could be viewed as a kind of pocket-change referendum on what the public prefers: maintaining national security or propping up a cable station that has willingly helped China push its agenda in Taiwan.
American civil-rights vanguard Rosa Parks, who passed away aged 92 last Monday, was the first woman to lie in honor in the US Capitol Rotunda -- a tribute formerly reserved for presidents, soldiers and prominent politicians. She was no shrewd legislator, charismatic politician nor an articulate talkshow host. She was but an ordinary woman who simply had the guts to say, "I'm tired of giving up my seat."
The majority of the Taiwanese public could learn from her example and end their mute reaction to pro-China media manipulation.
We need more people like Parks -- people who can dare to stand up and defend the dignity and pride of the Taiwanese and refuse to be bullied.
There is much evidence that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is sending soldiers from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — and is learning lessons for a future war against Taiwan. Until now, the CCP has claimed that they have not sent PLA personnel to support Russian aggression. On 18 April, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelinskiy announced that the CCP is supplying war supplies such as gunpowder, artillery, and weapons subcomponents to Russia. When Zelinskiy announced on 9 April that the Ukrainian Army had captured two Chinese nationals fighting with Russians on the front line with details
On a quiet lane in Taipei’s central Daan District (大安), an otherwise unremarkable high-rise is marked by a police guard and a tawdry A4 printout from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicating an “embassy area.” Keen observers would see the emblem of the Holy See, one of Taiwan’s 12 so-called “diplomatic allies.” Unlike Taipei’s other embassies and quasi-consulates, no national flag flies there, nor is there a plaque indicating what country’s embassy this is. Visitors hoping to sign a condolence book for the late Pope Francis would instead have to visit the Italian Trade Office, adjacent to Taipei 101. The death of
By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), joined by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), held a protest on Saturday on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei. They were essentially standing for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which is anxious about the mass recall campaign against KMT legislators. President William Lai (賴清德) said that if the opposition parties truly wanted to fight dictatorship, they should do so in Tiananmen Square — and at the very least, refrain from groveling to Chinese officials during their visits to China, alluding to meetings between KMT members and Chinese authorities. Now that China has been defined as a foreign hostile force,
RSS