President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday underscored the importance of peace abroad and unity at home, saying that he would seek reconciliation with his political opponents through dialogue.
Ma’s comments, made at the opening ceremony of an annual meeting of overseas Taiwanese affairs at Taipei’s Howard Hotel yesterday morning, were a reference to the violent clashes between protesters and police during a demonstration organized by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) on Thursday and the call on Saturday by DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) for dialogue on Taiwan’s cross-strait agenda.
The protests were in opposition to the visit of China’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林) last week.
“Unity is very important for the survival and development of a country like Taiwan,” he said. “I hope to see political rapprochement and am willing to engage in dialogue with the opposition.”
However, Ma emphasized that violence would not be allowed, regardless of whether it took place in the legislature or on the streets.
“The key lies in whether the activities are peaceful and rational,” he said.
“Only if they are peaceful and rational can the country have a future,” Ma said.
Meanwhile, a Presidential Office official who wished to remain anonymous told the Taipei Times last night that Presidential Office Secretary-General Chan Chun-po (詹春柏) had called DPP Secretary-General Wang Tuoh (王拓) yesterday afternoon to extend an invitation to Tsai to discuss national affairs “for the sake of dialogue and harmony between the ruling and opposition parties.”
Earlier yesterday, Presidential Office Spokesman Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦) said there had been no progress in arranging a meeting with Tsai.
Wang said that they needed to know whether Tsai genuinely wanted to talk and they did not rule out taking the initiative in extending an invitation to Tsai, as long as Tsai did not set any preconditions for the meeting.
“We should know within the next few days,” he said. “If she really meant it, they could meet as early as this week.”
In response, Tsai said yesterday that talks should only be conducted after both sides had prepared thoroughly.
Tsai said the exchanges between the DPP and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government should be multi-faceted, not only between her and Ma, but also between the DPP caucus and the KMT caucus.
She said both sides should do their homework before such exchanges begin.
Tsai said she and the DPP were in no hurry to meet their counterparts and that the DPP caucus had suggested first traveling around the country to report to the public and solicit people’s views on the matter.
She said she would solicit the public’s views about national sovereignty, human rights and the nation’s current economic situation.
DPP caucus whip William Lai (賴清德) said Tsai should not meet Ma until his government has responded to appeals made during the DPP rallies, such as improving protection of the nation’s sovereignty and combating tainted food products from China.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
SHOT IN THE ARM: The new system can be integrated with Avenger and Stinger missiles to bolster regional air defense capabilities, a defense ministry report said Domestically developed Land Sword II (陸射劍二) missiles were successfully launched and hit target drones during a live-fire exercise at the Jiupeng Military Base in Pingtung County yesterday. The missiles, developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST), were originally scheduled to launch on Tuesday last week, after the Tomb Sweeping Day holiday long weekend, but were postponed to yesterday due to weather conditions. Local residents and military enthusiasts gathered outside the base to watch the missile tests, with the first one launching at 9:10am. The Land Sword II system, which is derived from the Sky Sword II (天劍二) series, was turned