A pro-independence group yesterday called on 100,000 people to participate in Saturday's rally on Ketagalan Boulevard to counter the sit-in initiated by former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Shih Ming-teh (
Chet Yang (
"[The rally will be] held to safeguard the Taiwanese government and universal ideals of freedom, democracy, stability and prosperity," he said. "We will not allow anyone to infringe upon these universal ideals, nor the authority of the Presidential Office and the [Chen] administration."
Yang said the theme of the rally would be love, hope and light, which indicated that participants in the event were on the side of "the light," while demonstrators in the anti-Chen campaign were on the side of "darkness."
"We want to offer the people of Taiwan a different option," he said. "The thumbs-down gesture of Shih's demonstration signifies that [the movement] is doomed to political impotence, but our gesture symbolizes that Taiwan and its people are always in our hearts," he said.
The gesture suggested for the pro-independence event involves using the index and middle fingers of the right hand to draw a circle in the air before placing them over the heart.
Yang said neither Taiwan nor Chen would be defeated by Shih's protest, because the Taiwan Society and the people of Taiwan would stand up to voice their opposition.
Organizers of Saturday's pro-independence event also previewed an advertisement which will be shown on TV today to encourage those who have so far remained silent to come out and take a stand.
The message they wanted to get across in the ad, Yang said, was that they opposed sinicization but wanted stability, that they opposed revolution but wanted law and order and that they opposed social unrest but wanted to improve the economy.
Officials from the Presidential Office, Executive Yuan, DPP headquarters and DPP legislative caucus met at the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon to discuss how to respond to the anti-Chen protest.
DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said that everyone agreed to support the Taiwan Society rally, but emphasized that every effort must be made to avoid possible conflicts.
He said the DPP Central Standing Committee would discuss whether to mobilize people for the rally at its meeting today.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong tomorrow, which it said would possibly make landfall near central Taiwan. As of 2am yesterday, Fung-Wong was about 1,760km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving west-northwest at 26kph. It is forecast to reach Luzon in the northern Philippines by tomorrow, the CWA said. After entering the South China Sea, Typhoon Fung-Wong is likely to turn northward toward Taiwan, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said, adding that it would likely make landfall near central Taiwan. The CWA expects to issue a land
Taiwan’s exports soared to an all-time high of US$61.8 billion last month, surging 49.7 percent from a year earlier, as the global frenzy for artificial intelligence (AI) applications and new consumer electronics powered shipments of high-tech goods, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. It was the first time exports had exceeded the US$60 billion mark, fueled by the global boom in AI development that has significantly boosted Taiwanese companies across the international supply chain, Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) told a media briefing. “There is a consensus among major AI players that the upcycle is still in its early stage,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
‘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