After remaining silent and appearing defenseless in the face of pan-blue defiance over the one-step voting procedure, high-ranking officials from the central government finally got tough yesterday, reiterating the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration's stance that it would implement the procedure for the Jan. 12 legislative elections and referendums as decreed by the Central Election Commission (CEC).

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By Andreas Ni
Ever since its founding, the People's Republic of China has adhered to a foreign policy of non-interference in other country's internal affairs -- or so it claims. But with China's rapid ascent and ever-closer integration with the outside world, this doctrine has become increasingly anachronistic.

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Every day the news is filled with reports on international concern about Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's purported departure from democracy, about his declaration of emergency powers, about ignoring court orders and proceedings, arrests of dissidents, about the need for free and fair elections. The tenor of the relentless reporting is about how awful it is for Pakistan to be subjected to autocratic rule and how absolutely necessary it is for Pakistan to allow democratic mechanisms.

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I read with interest "Fake shark fins may be infiltrating the Taiwan market" (Nov. 24, page 2).

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Here's a hypothetical situation. If my son is involved in a car accident and he dies because I refused to allow an African doctor to treat my son because I am racist, what responsibility do I carry for my son's death?

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I would like to make a small contribution to a recent discussion in the Taipei Times, about reading in English during English language classes in Taiwan. All of the contributers seem to agree on the importance of reading for Taiwanese students and I could not agree more.

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The latest attempt by the government to apply for UN membership using the name Taiwan has met with outrageous summary rejection for a second time. But it's not entirely UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's fault. For too long, Taiwan has called itself the Republic of China (ROC) and yet few buy that fiction.

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By Elisabeth Rosentha
Gino Boscherini's neat two-story house -- the one with the lawn furniture and old men playing cards out front -- does not look like a repository for precious genetic material.

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By Ed Lane
The Dalai Lama is frustrated by China's refusal to discuss "cultural" autonomy for Tibet, but sees a window to sway public opinion ahead of the Beijing Olympics, analysts said yesterday.

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