On April 25, the WHO Secretariat rejected a letter sent by President Chen Shui-bian (
On Monday, the UN Office of Legal Affairs turned down an application submitted by Chen to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for membership in the international organization under the same name.
In both cases, these international organizations ignored their guiding principles and yielded to China's pressure.
And both times, the pan-blue camp, instead of being upset by this unreasonable treatment, slammed the Chen administration for humiliating the nation.
Following this logic, it is best for Taiwan to simply remain silent on matters of international recognition so that it will not suffer the humiliation of rejection.
It's a pathetic mindset well demonstrated by remarks made by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (
A short sound bite like this might make Ma look like a gentleman, a politician advocating peace. The truth is quite the opposite.
Choosing not to "clash" with China does not mean China will leave Taiwan alone or stop obstructing it in international matters.
Moreover, not provoking China is not tantamount to Taiwan remaining silent and giving up the fight for its dignity.
The pan-blue camp branded the DPP administration's move to join the UN and the WHO under the name "Taiwan" as inviting humiliation.
But isn't it absurd that Taiwan -- despite being noted around the world for its economic development and democratic achievements -- is not recognized as a legitimate member of the international community?
Isn't it foolish that Taiwan can't enjoy what other other countries with populations of 20,000 or 80,000 enjoy -- to be recognized with dignity?
DPP presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (
How true. And the same can apply to many other countries.
Citizens of Japan, Thailand, Germany and other countries can easily say what country they are from. Ask someone from this country the same question, and answers include "Taiwan," "the Republic of China," "Chinese Taipei" and "Taipei, China."
While it may be too much of a cliche to call Taiwan an international orphan, it remains true that Taiwan is in a sad position, being denied international recognition and legitimacy.
Silence is not golden when it comes to Taiwan's plight. If Taiwan does not keep standing and fighting, it will just be a matter of time before it falls victim to China 's saber-rattling and disappears from the map of nations.
Because much of what former US president Donald Trump says is unhinged and histrionic, it is tempting to dismiss all of it as bunk. Yet the potential future president has a populist knack for sounding alarums that resonate with the zeitgeist — for example, with growing anxiety about World War III and nuclear Armageddon. “We’re a failing nation,” Trump ranted during his US presidential debate against US Vice President Kamala Harris in one particularly meandering answer (the one that also recycled urban myths about immigrants eating cats). “And what, what’s going on here, you’re going to end up in World War
Earlier this month in Newsweek, President William Lai (賴清德) challenged the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to retake the territories lost to Russia in the 19th century rather than invade Taiwan. He stated: “If it is for the sake of territorial integrity, why doesn’t [the PRC] take back the lands occupied by Russia that were signed over in the treaty of Aigun?” This was a brilliant political move to finally state openly what many Chinese in both China and Taiwan have long been thinking about the lost territories in the Russian far east: The Russian far east should be “theirs.” Granted, Lai issued
On Tuesday, President William Lai (賴清德) met with a delegation from the Hoover Institution, a think tank based at Stanford University in California, to discuss strengthening US-Taiwan relations and enhancing peace and stability in the region. The delegation was led by James Ellis Jr, co-chair of the institution’s Taiwan in the Indo-Pacific Region project and former commander of the US Strategic Command. It also included former Australian minister for foreign affairs Marise Payne, influential US academics and other former policymakers. Think tank diplomacy is an important component of Taiwan’s efforts to maintain high-level dialogue with other nations with which it does
On Sept. 2, Elbridge Colby, former deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy and force development, wrote an article for the Wall Street Journal called “The US and Taiwan Must Change Course” that defends his position that the US and Taiwan are not doing enough to deter the People’s Republic of China (PRC) from taking Taiwan. Colby is correct, of course: the US and Taiwan need to do a lot more or the PRC will invade Taiwan like Russia did against Ukraine. The US and Taiwan have failed to prepare properly to deter war. The blame must fall on politicians and policymakers