Saying that many of President Chen Shui-bian's (
Chen and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) have been "consistently deceiving" the Taiwan-ese people about Taiwanese independence with talk of "one country on either side" of the Taiwan Strait and of a sovereign Taiwan nation, Lien said yesterday.
Implying that the people still believe in the concept of the "Republic of China" over a Taiwan nation, Lien said that Chen should hold a referendum on Taiwanese independence on Dec. 11, the day of the legislative elections, to see if the people believe in defending the "Republic of China" or in declaring independence.
Lien made the comments yesterday while on a break from electioneering at the KMT's Central Standing Committee meeting in Kaohsiung.
The KMT and its pan-blue allies have long claimed that the Chen administration has heightened tensions with China through pro-independence activities, such as debates on Taiwan's national title, as part of its election rhetoric in the 2004 presidential election and in the current run-up to the legislative elections next month.
While Chen said in 2002 that the relationship between Taiwan and China was of nations on either side of the Taiwan Strait, Chen and the DPP have not pushed for a sovereign Taiwanese nation since he became president in 2000. According to the DPP's current party platform, while Taiwanese sovereignty is already a reality, the establishment of a sovereign Taiwan Republic should be decided by plebiscite.
LEVERAGE: China did not ‘need to fire a shot’ to deny Taiwan airspace over Africa when it owns ‘half the continent’s debt,’ a US official said, calling it economic warfare The EU has raised concerns about overflight rights following the delay of President William Lai’s (賴清德) planned state visit to the Kingdom of Eswatini after three African nations denied overflight clearance for his charter at the last minute. Taiwanese allies Paraguay and Saint Kitts and Nevis, as well as several US lawmakers and the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) condemned China for allegedly pressuring the countries. Lai was scheduled to fly directly to Taiwan’s only African ally from yesterday to Sunday to celebrate the 40th anniversary of King Mswati III’s accession and his 58th birthday, but Seychelles, Mauritius and Madagascar suddenly revoked
China on Wednesday teased in a video an aircraft carrier that could be its fourth, and the first using nuclear power, while making an allusion to Taiwan and vowing to further build up its islands, as it looks to boost maritime power, secure resources and bolster territorial claims. The video, issued on the eve of the 77th founding anniversary of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy, featured fictional officers with names that are homophones of three commissioned aircraft carriers, the Liaoning (遼寧), Shandong (山東) and Fujian (福建). Titled Into the Deep, it showed a 19-year-old named “Hejian” (何劍) joining the group, sparking
BIG YEAR: The company said it would also release its A12 chip the same year to keep a ‘reliable stream of new silicon technologies’ flowing to its customers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday said its newest A13 chip is to enter volume production in 2029 as the chipmaker seeks to hold onto its tech leadership and demand for next-generation chips used in artificial intelligence (AI), high-performance-computing (HPC) and mobile applications. TSMC, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, also unveiled its A12 chip at its annual technology symposium in Santa Clara, California. The A12 chip, which features TSMC’s super-power-rail technology to provide backside power delivery for AI and HPC applications, is also to enter volume production in 2029, a year after the scheduled release of the A14 chip. The technology moves
ESWATINI TRIP: The ‘irresponsible actions’ of three African nations set a dangerous precedent and they should be held accountable, a US representative said The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday urged Washington not to normalize Chinese pressure, while a US lawmaker called on the US government to hold countries accountable for yielding to Beijing’s pressure to block President William Lai’s (賴清德) planned trip to Eswatini. Lai had been scheduled to visit Eswatini to attend birthday events for King Mswati III of Eswatini this week, but on Tuesday, the eve of his planned departure on Wednesday, the Presidential Office said the trip was “suspended” after the Seychelles, Mauritius and Madagascar unexpectedly withdrew overflight permission. “China reportedly pressured Mauritius, Seychelles, and Madagascar to deny airspace access
RSS