Former president Lee Teng-hui (
TaiwaneseVoice.net, a Web-based radio station with ambitions to branch out into video as well, is aimed at promoting a Taiwanese consciousness and voice for Taiwan as an independent country.
"The pro-unification media have been manipulating [Taiwan's politics] behind the scenes, and have been a tool of political struggles and social conflicts," Lee said at yesterday's ceremony. "They have completely forgotten the media's social responsibility for fairness and justice."
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
Lee and Lu attended the ceremony as special guests. The former president promised to host a talk show for the radio station in the future when it becomes possible for the company to broadcast both sound and image.
According to the company, the name and content of Lee's talk show is still under discussion. Still, the station has decided to install the necessary equipment at Lee's house to help get the program on the air.
"The Web site will help voice Taiwan's strong desire to participate in international organizations and the international community, and will help gain international support and understanding," Lee said.
Huang Erh-hsuan (
"If our voice is not heard, we won't have any chance of getting out of our current difficult position. This Web site will serve to balance local media bias [against Taiwan] and broadcast our voices out of Taiwan," Huang said.
The Internet radio station will broadcast programs about Taiwanese culture, history and language in an effort to promote understanding and knowledge of Taiwan. It will also cooperate with Formosa TV station and broadcast the channel's news programs online.
Programs will be in Chinese, Hokkien and English. The company has also set up studios in Tokyo and Los Angles, which will produce shows on the two cities' pop cultures.
In addition to promoting Taiwanese consciousness to the world, the Web site will work with Tibetan independence activists and set up the "Tibet Channel." The channel will offer information about the Tibetan independence movement and updated news about the Dalai Lama.
The station's staff said yesterday the radio station is scheduled to interview the Dalai Lama in December.
Many heavyweight activists in favor of Taiwan's independence -- such as historian Su Beng (史明) and Lee Hung-hsi (李鴻禧), law professor at National Taiwan University -- as well as many DPP key members, such as Cabinet Secretary-General Lee Ying-yuan (李應元), attended yesterday's ceremony to show their support for the radio station.
The vice president yesterday called on the public to stop debating unification and independence, saying that Taiwan is already an independent country.
"What we need to do is to unify our country, which is in danger of splitting, in terms of culture and political beliefs," Lu said.
"There are no more indigenous Taiwanese (本省人) or mainlanders (外省人). Instead, there are compatriots and foreigners in this country. Taiwan is facing a crisis," Lu warned.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS