With sporadic protests inside and outside the celebration venue, Taiwan yesterday celebrated the 96th birthday of the Republic of China (ROC), marking the event with a military parade.
But for the first time, the president did not make a public speech.
The last military parade on National Day was held 16 years ago. Yesterday's event had three components: a flyby, a ground forces parade and parachuting.
Many, however, were disappointed when the paratrooper landing was canceled because of poor weather.
The rally began in front of the Presidential Office plaza at 9am, with hundreds of elementary school, high school and college students making rock 'n' roll performances, traditional Hakka folk dance and dances based on Taiwanese folk tales.
The performances were followed by a flyby of US-made F-16s, French-made Mirages and Taiwan-made IDF fighters above the Presidential Office as ramrod-straight honor guards in blue-and-white uniforms wielded rifles on the ground.
Armored personnel carriers roared by, along with navy radar and satellite communication vehicles.
They were followed by launch vehicles carrying US Patriot II and Avenger anti-missile systems and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Also showcased was other advanced hardware, including eight-wheel-drive CM-32 Cloud Leopard vehicles, an Avenger air defense missile system armed with Stinger missiles, a 50-caliber machine gun and armored Humvees equipped with TOW armor-piercing missiles.
An AAVP7 Assault Amphibian Vehicle purchased from the US in 2001, mobile army and marine radar, fire-fighting vehicles of the chemical corps and a pontoon bridge of the engineering corps were also showcased.
The highlights were two locally developed missiles unveiled for the first time.
They were the Hsiung Feng-III supersonic anti-ship missile and the Tien Kung-III anti-tactical ballistic missile.
The Hsiung Feng III ship-to-ship missile is believed to be capable of attacking fuel tanks and ammunition depots on a vessel.
The Tien Kung III, for its part, is believed to be able to track and knock down aircraft and cruise missiles.
However the Hsiung Feng II-E was not on display, as it is still in the development stages, Ministry of National Defense officials said. While specifications are not available, analysts say it has a range of at least 600km and can be launched on land or at sea.
With snipers deployed on rooftops and 4,000 police officers in place, security was heavy during the celebration.
Minutes after President Chen Shui-bian (
He struggled with security personnel before being escorted away.
A woman sitting nearby in a red dress flashed the thumb-down sign used by members of last year's anti-Chen campaign and shouted, "A-bian [Chen's nickname], step down."
Led by former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Shih Ming-teh (施明德), the anti-Chen campaigners "besieged" the Presidential Office during last year's National Day, demanding Chen's resignation at the height of corruption allegations involving Chen, first lady Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍) and his close aides.
The protest caused Chen to suggest in his public address last year that it would be a good idea to cancel the National Day celebration this year.
Shih, however, was made a distinguished guest this year at the invitation of Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (
Wang later confirmed he had issued a last-minute invitation to Shih, adding that the president also supported the decision.
Sporting a red shirt, white pants and sunglasses, Shih was accompanied by security guards to the reviewing stand and was seated next to National Security Bureau Director Shi Hwei-yow (
Shih was meters away from the president, but did not stage any demonstration or shout any slogans. He left 10 minutes later, in silence.
After returning to the checkpoint at Jingfumen (
He also said the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) had failed to review its past "abuse of human rights, freedom and democracy" during the terms of dictator Chiang Kai-shek (
"Today was not a day for celebration, but a day for introspection," Shih said.
"On May 20, 2000, I was able to sit at the [celebration] platform for the first time. I looked at Chen, who was raising his hand while taking an oath less than 10m away from me. My heart was full of joy and expectation as I thought my lifetime suffering for Taiwanese democracy had finally paid off," Shih said.
"But seven-and-a-half years later, I was able to sit there for the second time ... I've heard too many complaints from people and seen the helpless look of people who suffered from Typhoon [Krosa]. How can political leaders of both the ruling party and the opposition still hold celebrations and enjoy the authority they have?" Shih said.
Another red-clad woman was refused admission for chanting "corrupt A-bian, step down."
Some people clashed verbally with law enforcement officers at security checkpoints while others were denied access because they did not have passes.
Later yesterday evening, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a National Day reception for foreign dignitaries at Taipei Guest House, featuring folk art made by local young artists as well as traditional and international dishes.
In his welcoming remarks, Foreign Affairs Minister James Huang (
An evening gala was held in Yunlin County and an hour-long fireworks show took place at 7pm in Pingtung County.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiu-chuan
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS