Alternatives to babies
Last Saturday, the health minister told the United Daily News that Taiwan has the world’s lowest birthrate, at 1.07 per woman. This is even lower than Japan’s. A birthrate of more than 2.0 is needed for a population to replenish itself, but from the experience of Taiwan and other countries it is clear that Taiwan will not be able to raise its birthrate above that in the medium or even the long term. Therefore, Taiwan must adjust its immigration policies to sustain its population.
To attract qualified immigrants with skills and capital, more incentives will have to be introduced. For example, the government should consider exempting first-generation male immigrants who are naturalized as Taiwanese citizens from military service. Singapore grants a similar exemption to its first-generation permanent residents. As the government has already announced plans to end military conscription, such an exemption would not significantly detract from Taiwan’s defense needs.
SEAN KWAN
Kaohsiung
A new car for Ma?
In response to your headline piece on Tuesday (“DPP slams Ma’s campaigning expenses,” page 1), I have a suggestion: Why doesn’t President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) set a green example and demand that he be driven around in a cute little Toyota Prius? Or is it that only the lives of everyday people must be turned upside down to save the planet?
MICHAEL FAGAN
Tainan
Taiwan has lost Trump. Or so a former State Department official and lobbyist would have us believe. Writing for online outlet Domino Theory in an article titled “How Taiwan lost Trump,” Christian Whiton provides a litany of reasons that the William Lai (賴清德) and Donald Trump administrations have supposedly fallen out — and it’s all Lai’s fault. Although many of Whiton’s claims are misleading or ill-informed, the article is helpfully, if unintentionally, revealing of a key aspect of the MAGA worldview. Whiton complains of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s “inability to understand and relate to the New Right in America.” Many
US lobbyist Christian Whiton has published an update to his article, “How Taiwan Lost Trump,” discussed on the editorial page on Sunday. His new article, titled “What Taiwan Should Do” refers to the three articles published in the Taipei Times, saying that none had offered a solution to the problems he identified. That is fair. The articles pushed back on points Whiton made that were felt partisan, misdirected or uninformed; in this response, he offers solutions of his own. While many are on point and he would find no disagreement here, the nuances of the political and historical complexities in
Taiwan faces an image challenge even among its allies, as it must constantly counter falsehoods and misrepresentations spread by its more powerful neighbor, the People’s Republic of China (PRC). While Taiwan refrains from disparaging its troublesome neighbor to other countries, the PRC is working not only to forge a narrative about itself, its intentions and value to the international community, but is also spreading lies about Taiwan. Governments, parliamentary groups and civil societies worldwide are caught in this narrative tug-of-war, each responding in their own way. National governments have the power to push back against what they know to be
Taiwan is to hold a referendum on Saturday next week to decide whether the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant, which was shut down in May after 40 years of service, should restart operations for as long as another 20 years. The referendum was proposed by the opposition Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) and passed in the legislature with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). Its question reads: “Do you agree that the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant should continue operations upon approval by the competent authority and confirmation that there are no safety concerns?” Supporters of the proposal argue that nuclear power
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