Senior presidential advisor Li Kwoh-ting (
Li, 92, had been in a coma since May 21 after suffering a stroke.
TAIPEI TIMES FILE PHOTO
After learning of Li's death, Secretary-General to the President Yu Shyi-kun, on behalf of President Chen Shui-bian (
The Institute for Information Industry (
Academia Sinica President Lee Yuan-tseh (李遠哲) said yesterday: "Li was a remarkable person. Many people admire his contribution [to the country] and we are not likely to find another role model like Li again," Lee said.
Having served as head of the government's economic, financial and high-technology ministries for over 35 years, Li has been dubbed the country's "father of technological development" and "father of finance and the economy."
As a major economic policy-maker under former president Chiang Ching-kuo (
Li also helped develop Taiwan's semiconductor industry by asking the present chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), Morris Chang (張忠謀), to return from the US and head Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute (工研院).
"If it had not been for Li, TSMC's achievements would never have been possible," Chang once told the media.
One of the key architects of Taiwan's economic miracle, Li was invited to attend several international conferences in China and met with Chinese President Jiang Zemin (
Li, who had put particular emphasis on information technology, however, also attracted severe criticism for ignoring the development of small and medium-sized enterprises by favoring larger firms with more government resources.
"In terms of a lack of government financing to small and medium-enterprises, [Li's policies] forced them to go to the black market for capital," Wu Hui-lin (
Wu added that Li's emphasis at the time on only cultivating talent in the fields of technology and electronics put undue strain on the progress of educational reform, shifting funds away from school programs that taught subjects other than technology and electronics.
Industry tycoon Wang Yung-ching (
But the overwhelming consensus is that Li was a driving force in leading Taiwan to become, as of last year, the 14th-largest trading nation in the world.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
BACK TO WORK? Prosecutors said they are considering filing an appeal, while the Hsinchu City Government said it has applied for Ann Kao’s reinstatement as mayor The High Court yesterday found suspended Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) not guilty of embezzling assistant fees, reducing her sentence to six months in prison commutable to a fine from seven years and four months. The verdict acquitted Kao of the corruption charge, but found her guilty of causing a public official to commit document forgery. The High Prosecutors’ Office said it is reviewing the ruling and considering whether to file an appeal. The Taipei District Court in July last year sentenced Kao to seven years and four months in prison, along with a four-year deprivation of civil rights, for contravening the Anti-Corruption
NO CONFIDENCE MOTION? The premier said that being toppled by the legislature for defending the Constitution would be a democratic badge of honor for him Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday announced that the Cabinet would not countersign the amendments to the local revenue-sharing law passed by the Legislative Yuan last month. Cho said the decision not to countersign the amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) was made in accordance with the Constitution. “The decision aims to safeguard our Constitution,” he said. The Constitution stipulates the president shall, in accordance with law, promulgate laws and issue mandates with the countersignature of the head of the Executive Yuan, or with the countersignatures of both the head of the Executive Yuan and ministers or
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