Independent Chiayi Mayor Chen Li-chen (
Chen's action intensified the political divide between the north and south of the country as the former is dominated by the KMT, whereas the latter is predominantly controlled by the DPP.
The DPP is actively seeking to expand its regional influence ahead of next year's presidential election.
With two mass inductions of the nation's movers and shakers into the party since last July when President Chen Shui-bian (
The mayor said at yesterday's induction ceremony, presided over by DPP Secretary-General Chang Chun-hsiung (
Chiayi City politics has been dominated by the independent Hsu family for two decades, starting from Hsu Shih-hsian (
Chen served as the acting mayor when Chang Po-ya was invited to become a Cabinet member in 2000. She then won the mayoral election due to the support of the Hsu family faction in December 2001.
Chen said she chose to join the party owing to her connections with the Hsu family, which has been aligned with the DPP for the past 20 years.
Although Chang Po-ya has been alienated from the DPP which she blamed for her falied bid to become vice president of the Examination Yuan last summer, Chen said Chang respected her decision.
Chang Chun-hsiung praised Chen's ability as a public servant who had spared no effort to push for Chiayi's development.
Taiwan has arranged for about 8 million barrels of crude oil, or about one-third of its monthly needs, to be shipped from the Red Sea this month to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and ease domestic supply pressures, CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) said yesterday. The state-run oil company has worked with Middle Eastern suppliers to secure routes other than the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20 percent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas typically passes, CPC chairman Fang Jeng-zen (方振仁) said at a meeting of the legislature’s Economics Committee in Taipei. Suppliers in Saudi Arabia have indicated they
South Korea has adjusted its electronic arrival card system to no longer list Taiwan as a part of China, a move that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said would help facilitate exchanges between the two sides. South Korea previously listed “Taiwan” as “Taiwan (China)” in the drop-down menus of its online arrival card system, where people had to fill out where they came from and their next destination. The ministry had requested South Korea make a revision and said it would change South Korea’s name on Taiwan’s online immigration system from “Republic of Korea” to “Korea (South),” should the issue not be
Tainan, Taipei and New Taipei City recorded the highest fines nationwide for illegal accommodations in the first quarter of this year, with fines issued in the three cities each exceeding NT$7 million (US$220,639), Tourism Administration data showed. Among them, Taipei had the highest number of illegal short-term rental units, with 410. There were 3,280 legally registered hotels nationwide in the first quarter, down by 14 properties, or 0.43 percent, from a year earlier, likely indicating operators exiting the market, the agency said. However, the number of unregistered properties rose to 1,174, including 314 illegal hotels and 860 illegal short-term rental
AIR ALERT: China’s reservation of airspace over the Yellow Sea and East China Sea could be an attempt to test the US’ response ahead of a Trump-Xi meeting, the NSB head said China’s attempts to infiltrate Taiwan are systematic, planned and targeted, with activity shifting from recruiting mid-level military officers to rank-and-file enlisted personnel, National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) said yesterday. The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) integrates national security, intelligence operations and “united front” efforts into a dense network to conduct intelligence gathering and espionage in Taiwan, Tsai said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee. It uses specific networks to screen targets through exchange activities and recruiting local collaborators to establish intelligence-gathering organizations, he said. China is also shifting who it targets to lower-ranking military personnel,
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