More than 100,000 people are expected to take to streets in downtown Taipei today to campaign for the change of nation's name from "Republic of China" (ROC) to "Taiwan" as well as the usage of Taiwan as the official title for the country's bid to enter the UN.
The Alliance to Campaign for Rectifying the Name of Taiwan, the organizer of the march, yesterday released the latest tally of the number of people signing up for the campaign drive, which might draw as many as 120,000 people from all over the country to the rally.
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
Supporters of 113 domestic and overseas groups will join the rally in front of the Presidential Office. The DPP and TSU, which have long been promoting Taiwan's sovereign status independent from China, have also mobilized more than 40,000 and 30,000 rank-and-file supporters respectively, party officials said.
Overseas participants from the US, Japan, Argentina, Paraguay, Costa Rica, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa would also attend the rally.
Using the slogan that "our mother's name is Taiwan," the campaign advocates the abolishment of the use of "ROC" or "China" as a nomenclature representing Taiwan, and demands that the title of the country, company's names and the names of social groups using the word "China" should be replaced with "Taiwan" to reflect the reality that China, officially known as the People's Republic of China, does not govern Taiwan.
The alliance listed a total of 245 private groups, companies and institutions whose names need to be corrected including China National Petroleum Corp, China Steel, China Shipbuilding, China Airlines, the Chinese-language newspaper China Times, China Television, China Television Company, Farmers Bank of China and the KMT, whose full name actually translates as the "Chinese Nationalist Party" (中國國民黨).
The campaign also appeals to the government to use Taiwan as the official title for its overseas organizations, to apply for membership of the UN under the name of Taiwan.
It also asks the government to write a constitution for Taiwan rather than the outdated and much amended Constitution of 1947 currently in use, and change the nation's official name to the "Republic of Taiwan" or simply "Taiwan."
Marchers will gather in six locations -- Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, National Taiwan University, the 228 Memorial Park, Chungshan Football Stadium, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall and Taipei City Hall -- at 11am and start the march at noon before reaching to the Presidential Office at 3pm.
Former president Lee Teng-hui (
The DPP yesterday released a poll of public opinion on the nation's sovereignty according to which 63.2 percent of the public support the idea that Taiwan and China are "one country on each side of the Taiwan Strait," and 70.3 percent agreed that a national plebiscite to be held to decide whether Taiwan should change its status quo or the nation's name.
The KMT criticized the campaign drive as advocating Taiwan independence and accused the DPP and TSU of being "historical criminals" and being "unethical" by trying to annihilate the existence of the ROC, which, it said, has existed since 1911.
PROVOCATIVE: Chinese Deputy Ambassador to the UN Sun Lei accused Japan of sending military vessels to deliberately provoke tensions in the Taiwan Strait China denounced remarks by Japan and the EU about the South China Sea at a UN Security Council meeting on Monday, and accused Tokyo of provocative behavior in the Taiwan Strait and planning military expansion. Ayano Kunimitsu, a Japanese vice foreign minister, told the Council meeting on maritime security that Tokyo was seriously concerned about the situation in the East China and South China seas, and reiterated Japan’s opposition to any attempt to change the “status quo” by force, and obstruction of freedom of navigation and overflight. Stavros Lambrinidis, head of the EU delegation to the UN, also highlighted South China Sea
The final batch of 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks purchased from the US arrived at Taipei Port last night and were transported to the Armor Training Command in Hsinchu County’s Hukou Township (湖口), completing the military’s multi-year procurement of 108 of the tanks. Starting at 12:10am today, reporters observed more than a dozen civilian flatbed trailers departing from Taipei Port, each carrying an M1A2T tank covered with black waterproof tarps. Escorted by military vehicles, the convoy traveled via the West Coast Expressway to the Armor Training Command, with police implementing traffic control. The army operates about 1,000 tanks, including CM-11 Brave Tiger
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said it expects its 2-nanometer (2nm) chip capacity to grow at a compound annual rate of 70 percent from this year to 2028. The projection comes as five fabs begin volume production of 2-nanometer chips this year — two in Hsinchu and three in Kaohsiung — TSMC senior vice president and deputy cochief operating officer Cliff Hou (侯永清) said at the company’s annual technology symposium in Silicon Valley, California, last week. Output in the first year of 2-nanometer production, which began in the fourth quarter of last year, is expected to
Taiwan’s drone exports surged past US$100 million in the first quarter, exceeding last year’s full-year total, with the Czech Republic emerging as the largest buyer, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said. Exports of complete drones reached US$115.85 million in the period, about 1.2 times the total recorded for all of last year, the ministry said in a report. Exports to the Czech Republic accounted for about US$100 million, far outpacing other markets. Poland, last year’s top destination, recorded about US$11.75 million in the first quarter. Taiwan’s drone exports have expanded rapidly in the past few years, with last year’s total
RSS