When former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said on Sunday that the 228 Incident was not an ethnic issue but one of poor governance, it could be charitably concluded that he lives in a Nationalist Chinese fantasy world.

[ FULL STORY ]

By Chen Chao-chien 陳朝建
Former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) dropped a bombshell when he announced that he would step down as party chairman and run for president next year immediately after he was indicted for allegedly embezzling from his special mayoral allowance fund.

[ FULL STORY ]

By Dean Shueh 薛中鼎
I am a second-generation Mainlander whose father served as a low-ranking public servant. I went to school in Taipei and then landed a job with a foreign firm before going to the US to continue my studies. I have worked in Beijing for many years. In my everyday life, I have neither the need nor the opportunity to speak Hoklo (also known as Taiwanese), and therefore don't speak it very well.

[ FULL STORY ]

As scientists research a world sealed off for 12,000 years, they are discovering marine life transformed by rapid climate change
By Alok Jha
The seas around the Antarctic peninsula are among the most mysterious places on Earth -- what life there is has remained largely a mystery, thanks to a thick cover of ice for the past few millennia. But the collapse of some of these ice sheets has given scientists a rare opportunity for access, and on Sunday they revealed that they had found a thriving underwater world that is being transformed by climate change.

[ FULL STORY ]

By Dominique Moisi
Two months ago, Paris' political insiders were unanimous: The presidential race was still open, but French Socialist candidate Segolene Royal was clearly the favorite. Today, the reverse seems true. While the race is not over, UMP candidate Nicolas Sarkozy has emerged as the consistent favorite in the polls, as well as of those who declared him nearly defeated in early December.

[ FULL STORY ]

By Jean-Paul Fitoussi
In France's pre-presidential electoral campaign, European affairs are mentioned or whispered, but almost never debated. France is mostly concerned with its own problems, particularly the supposed malfunctioning of its political class and the apparent laziness of the French public, which is blamed for weak economic growth, especially when compared to the US. France needs a debate on EU affairs, but only as long as it does not degenerate -- as is common in Europe -- into self-flagellation.

[ FULL STORY ]

Most Westerners identify the name "Taiwan" with a progressive, technically innovative and democratic country that makes high quality products and exports them around the world.

[ FULL STORY ]