President Chen Shui-bian (
Chen's signature was followed by that of Premier Yu Shyi-kun, Academia Sinica President Lee Yuan-tseh (李遠哲), Buddhist master Sheng Yen (聖嚴法師) and agriculturalist Chung Wen-fang (鍾文芳).
Last October, while meeting with Taiwan's representatives to the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, Chen designated 2003 as the First Year of Sustainable Development in Taiwan.
"There's an urgency for us to promote sustainable development, because Taiwan is a densely populated, disaster-prone country with limited natural resources and is in a unique political situation," Chen said.
Chen stressed that he would push the Cabinet to back the sustainability plan in order to balance conservation and economic development and make Taiwan a "Green Silicon Island."
To highlight the importance of leaving future generations a liveable environment, Chen and other leading figures gave seedlings of endemic species to children's representatives.
Yu, also convener of the Cabinet's National Council for Sustainable Development, said that the council's status had been upgraded last year in order to make it more effective.
Taiwan is one of only a few countries whose premier convenes such a council.
Lee said that the First Year of Sustainable Development in Taiwan was the beginning of a sustainable development dynasty, whose rulers are the Taiwanese people.
Lee said that it was a pity that the Western model of economic development has been mimicked by most developing Asian countries for decades.
"Taiwan has to wake up and search for its own roads leading to sustainable development rather than following the steps of Western countries," Lee said.
According to Minister without Portfolio Yeh Jiunn-rong (
Juju Wang (
Wang said that the public still sees many construction projects lacking the spirit of sustainable development.
"We haven't found any place to dump radioactive waste but the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant is still under construction," Wang said.
Beijing’s continued provocations in the Taiwan Strait reveal its intention to unilaterally change the “status quo” in the area, the US Department of State said on Saturday, calling for a peaceful resolution to cross-strait issues. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) reported that four China Coast Guard patrol vessels entered restricted and prohibited waters near Kinmen County on Friday and again on Saturday. A State Department spokesperson said that Washington was aware of the incidents, and urged all parties to exercise restraint and refrain from unilaterally changing the “status quo.” “Maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is in line with our [the
EXTENDED RANGE: Hsiung Sheng missiles, 100 of which might be deployed by the end of the year, could reach Chinese command posts and airport runways, a source said A NT$16.9 billion (US$534.93 million) project to upgrade the military’s missile defense systems would be completed this year, allowing the deployment of at least 100 long-range Hsiung Sheng missiles and providing more deterrence against China, military sources said on Saturday. Hsiung Sheng missiles are an extended-range version of the Hsiung Feng IIE (HF-2E) surface-to-surface cruise missile, and are believed to have a range of up to 1,200km, which would allow them to hit targets well inside China. They went into mass production in 2022, the sources said. The project is part of a special budget for the Ministry of National Defense aimed at
READY TO WORK: Taiwan is eager to cooperate and is hopeful that like-minded states will continue to advocate for its inclusion in regional organizations, Lai said Maintaining the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait, and peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region must be a top priority, president-elect William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after meeting with a delegation of US academics. Leaders of the G7, US President Joe Biden and other international heads of state have voiced concerns about the situation in the Strait, as stability in the region is necessary for a safe, peaceful and prosperous world, Lai said. The vice president, who is to be inaugurated in May, welcomed the delegation and thanked them for their support for Taiwan and issues concerning the Strait. The international community
COOPERATION: Two crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank off Kinmen were rescued, two were found dead and another two were still missing at press time The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) was yesterday working with Chinese rescuers to find two missing crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank southwest of Kinmen County yesterday, killing two crew. The joint operation managed to rescue two of the boat’s six crewmembers, but two were already dead when they were pulled from the water, the agency said in a statement. Rescuers are still searching for two others from the Min Long Yu 61222, a boat registered in China’s Fujian Province that capsized and sank 1.03 nautical miles (1.9km) southwest of Dongding Island (東碇), it added. CGA Director-General Chou Mei-wu (周美伍) told a