US President George Bush should be given credit for his speech praising Taiwan's democracy. Indeed, Taiwan's struggle for democracy should be a model for all nations who need it. This recognition has been overdue, but better late than never. As a Taiwanese-American, I salute Bush.
On the other hand, I am not sure whether I should applaud the encouragement to Chinese leaders to "emulate Chinese democracy in Taiwan," because I am totally confused by the disconnect between words and deeds. Just look at the humiliation that Taiwan has experienced in the international community. Taiwan's elected leaders and officials are restricted from traveling in many parts of the world, and their representatives are not welcome in international meetings. Their passport is useless in most parts of the world.
Taiwanese leaders have visited the US, but no welcoming ceremonies have been held for presidents for decades. Former president Lee Teng-hui (
Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (
The international community has violated the human rights of Taiwanese residents and has also pushed Taiwan to accept China's terms for unification -- just like European countries were pushed to accept Nazi Germany before World War II.
Almost all nations use "Taiwan" to refer to the nation, but Taiwanese residents have to call their offices "Chinese Taipei" and salute to a flag with no national identity. After Taiwanese give up their freedom and dignity, who will be next? Why it is so hard to say "we agree to disagree" about the way Taiwan should be treated? The treatment that Taiwan gets while trying to keep its dignity and open, democratic way of life are humiliations to humanity.
Deeds and words never go hand in hand for politicians. Why is it that Bush can sit and drink tea with the Dalai Lama, but cannot meet President Chen Shui-bian (
Rao Kok-Sian
Boston, Massachusetts
The muting of the line “I’m from Taiwan” (我台灣來欸), sung in Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese), during a performance at the closing ceremony of the World Masters Games in New Taipei City on May 31 has sparked a public outcry. The lyric from the well-known song All Eyes on Me (世界都看見) — originally written and performed by Taiwanese hip-hop group Nine One One (玖壹壹) — was muted twice, while the subtitles on the screen showed an alternate line, “we come here together” (阮作伙來欸), which was not sung. The song, performed at the ceremony by a cheerleading group, was the theme
Secretary of State Marco Rubio raised eyebrows recently when he declared the era of American unipolarity over. He described America’s unrivaled dominance of the international system as an anomaly that was created by the collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War. Now, he observed, the United States was returning to a more multipolar world where there are great powers in different parts of the planet. He pointed to China and Russia, as well as “rogue states like Iran and North Korea” as examples of countries the United States must contend with. This all begs the question:
Liberals have wasted no time in pointing to Karol Nawrocki’s lack of qualifications for his new job as president of Poland. He has never previously held political office. He won by the narrowest of margins, with 50.9 percent of the vote. However, Nawrocki possesses the one qualification that many national populists value above all other: a taste for physical strength laced with violence. Nawrocki is a former boxer who still likes to go a few rounds. He is also such an enthusiastic soccer supporter that he reportedly got the logos of his two favorite teams — Chelsea and Lechia Gdansk —
Keelung Mayor George Hsieh (謝國樑) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) on Tuesday last week apologized over allegations that the former director of the city’s Civil Affairs Department had illegally accessed citizens’ data to assist the KMT in its campaign to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) councilors. Given the public discontent with opposition lawmakers’ disruptive behavior in the legislature, passage of unconstitutional legislation and slashing of the central government’s budget, civic groups have launched a massive campaign to recall KMT lawmakers. The KMT has tried to fight back by initiating campaigns to recall DPP lawmakers, but the petition documents they
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