Soon after the opening ceremony of the highly anticipated Taipei Universiade began on Aug. 19, a group of military veterans, retired civil servants and public school teachers interrupted the event by protesting against pension reform outside the venue. The disturbance drew international attention and domestic public criticism.
However, viewing this from another angle, perhaps we should thank the protesters for creating the disturbance, because it has had at least four effects.
First, the protest gave the pension reform drive more legitimacy. Many different voices have been heard throughout the pension reform process. Since the government broke its agreement with retired public service employees by deciding to suddenly cut pensions, these retirees have received a lot of sympathy.
After all, they made contributions to the nation, and despite the government deciding to reform the pension system, they should be allowed to maintain their dignity.
However, for the sake of their own interests, they made Taiwan lose face during this international event, and they even abandoned their dignity. After this, there is no longer any reason to take pity on them. Their not caring about the nation’s feelings certainly strengthens the legitimacy of pension reform.
Second, the protest has raised Taiwan’s visibility. What Taiwan needs most is international visibility. This was one of the reasons Taiwanese had high expectations for the Taipei Universiade, and the opening ceremony of course brought Taiwan onto the international stage.
Perhaps the retirees who protested were worried about the nation’s lack of international visibility, and that was why they added a special performance to help boost the international visibility of the Games. Perhaps this should be seen as a different kind of contribution to the nation.
Third, the protest helped increase the topicality of the Taipei Universiade. The Games did not receive much attention at the beginning, and ticket sales for some of the less popular sports were not as good as organizers had hoped.
However, since the pension reform opponents created a buzz, public attention on the Games has surged, significantly increasing the possibility of people going to watch the Games. So, the results may be more positive than negative.
Fourth, the protest has raised the security level at the Universiade. The threat of international terrorism meant that the event organizers could not overlook security checks, but it seems that no preparations had been made to deal with this kind of small-scale protest.
After the turmoil caused by the pension reform opponents, organizers were certain to pay greater attention to the finer details of their security measures. In consideration of the safety of the athletes and spectators, this is a good thing.
There are still some concerns over pension reform, but this incident has revealed the true nature of the protesters. They only care for their own interests and think nothing of embarrassing the nation — they even trampled on their own dignity and used up any remaining trust that the public may have had in them. Some of the protesters even threatened to stage another protest at the Games’ closing ceremony.
The display of such self-destructive behavior has answered any questions we might have had about the legitimacy of pension reform. In this great battle between “dignity” and “money,” the protesting retirees have clearly chosen money.
Any expectations we may have had for this group are now all but gone.
Li Kuan-long is a lecturer at the Kaohsiung campus of Shih Chien University.
Translated by Eddy Chang
Recently, China launched another diplomatic offensive against Taiwan, improperly linking its “one China principle” with UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 to constrain Taiwan’s diplomatic space. After Taiwan’s presidential election on Jan. 13, China persuaded Nauru to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Nauru cited Resolution 2758 in its declaration of the diplomatic break. Subsequently, during the WHO Executive Board meeting that month, Beijing rallied countries including Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Belarus, Egypt, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, Laos, Russia, Syria and Pakistan to reiterate the “one China principle” in their statements, and assert that “Resolution 2758 has settled the status of Taiwan” to hinder Taiwan’s
The past few months have seen tremendous strides in India’s journey to develop a vibrant semiconductor and electronics ecosystem. The nation’s established prowess in information technology (IT) has earned it much-needed revenue and prestige across the globe. Now, through the convergence of engineering talent, supportive government policies, an expanding market and technologically adaptive entrepreneurship, India is striving to become part of global electronics and semiconductor supply chains. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Vision of “Make in India” and “Design in India” has been the guiding force behind the government’s incentive schemes that span skilling, design, fabrication, assembly, testing and packaging, and
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s (李顯龍) decision to step down after 19 years and hand power to his deputy, Lawrence Wong (黃循財), on May 15 was expected — though, perhaps, not so soon. Most political analysts had been eyeing an end-of-year handover, to ensure more time for Wong to study and shadow the role, ahead of general elections that must be called by November next year. Wong — who is currently both deputy prime minister and minister of finance — would need a combination of fresh ideas, wisdom and experience as he writes the nation’s next chapter. The world that
As former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) wrapped up his visit to the People’s Republic of China, he received his share of attention. Certainly, the trip must be seen within the full context of Ma’s life, that is, his eight-year presidency, the Sunflower movement and his failed Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement, as well as his eight years as Taipei mayor with its posturing, accusations of money laundering, and ups and downs. Through all that, basic questions stand out: “What drives Ma? What is his end game?” Having observed and commented on Ma for decades, it is all ironically reminiscent of former US president Harry