Independence activist Koh Se-kai (
Koh met yesterday with former Tokyo mayor Shintaro Ishihara, who is leading a delegation to attend President Chen Shui-bian's (
Koh, a law and political science professor at Formosa University, has also been invited by Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) to join the Presidential Office's human rights task force.
Mark Chen disclosed the upcoming appointment when receiving foreign guests at the CKS Airport yesterday for Chen Shui-bian's upcoming inauguration.
Koh was born in 1934 and earned a doctorate at Tokyo University.
A senior leader of the nation's independence movement, he was elected chairman of the World United Formosans for Independence in 1987 and chairman of the Taiwan Independence Party in 1998.
"Koh, Lo and Minister Chen are all comrades in fighting for Taiwan's democracy. They were all members of Formosans for Independence," said Ng Chiau-tong (
"I think that Koh's priority is to realize a public meeting of high-ranking Taiwanese and Japanese officials as soon as possible," Ng said.
Meanwhile, the Cabinet said yesterday that outgoing minister of economic affairs Lin Yi-fu (林義夫) accepted an offer to take up the vacancy for the last of the Cabinet's seven ministers without portfolio. Lin will be in charge of reviewing bills and projects related to finance and economics.
The managing director of the Cabinet's Aviation Safety Council, Yong Kay (
Once the legislature gives the establishment of the NCC the go-ahead, the long-anticipated agency will be established under the Executive Yuan as an independent entity to supervise the nation's telecommunications and media industries.
Currently, the media industry is regulated by the Government Information Office (GIO), while the telecommunications industry falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications and the Ministry of National Defense.
In appointments of No. 2 positions at Cabinet agencies, Lee Ruey-tsang (
Thomas Yeh (葉明峰), director of the Cabinet's fourth division in charge of finance and economics, will be promoted to vice chairman of the Council of Economic Planning and Development (CEPD). Yeh used to serve as the secretary-general of the CEPD.
Ting-kuei (
Yang Tzu-pao (
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
HOTEL HIRING: An official said that hoteliers could begin hiring migrant workers next year, but must adhere to a rule requiring a NT$2,000 salary hike for Taiwanese The government is to allow the hospitality industry to recruit mid-level migrant workers for housekeeping and three other lines of work after the Executive Yuan yesterday approved a proposal by the Ministry of Labor. A shortage of workers at hotels and accommodation facilities was discussed at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee. A 2023 survey conducted by the Tourism Administration found that Taiwan’s lodging industry was short of about 6,600 housekeeping and cleaning workers, the agency said in a report to the committee. The shortage of workers in the industry is being studied, the report said. Hotel and Lodging Division Deputy Director Cheng
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
RSS