President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday broke his silence on the sentencing of Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo (劉曉波) and urged Beijing to tolerate those who express their opinions by peaceful means, but stopped short of calling for his release.
Liu, a co-author of “Charter 08,” which calls for an end to Chinese Communist Party dominance and the implementation of a constitutional democracy in China, was sentenced to 11 years in prison by a Beijing court on Friday.
Ma yesterday said he has been pursuing democracy and human rights since he began his political career. He also made tremendous effort to implement such policies since he took office in May last year, he said.
As the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are signatories of two UN rights conventions — the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights — Ma said he hoped both sides would give those who voice their opinions in a peaceful manner the most tolerance possible.
Yesterday marked Ma’s first comments on Liu’s case since his sentencing on Friday, while the international community was swift to denounce Beijing. Washington demanded Liu’s immediate release. The Swedish EU presidency condemned the decision, saying it raised concerns about freedom of speech and the right to a fair trial in China. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said in a statement that the verdict cast “an ominous shadow” over China’s commitments to protect human rights.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) spokeswoman Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) on Friday accused Ma, who during his term as Taipei mayor championed the rights of Tiananmen Massacre protesters, of staying silent on China’s gross violations of human rights after taking office.
DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) asked Ma to request Liu’s release, saying the Ma administration had remained silent since Liu was taken into custody more than a year ago. Such silence sent a wrong message to the world that the Taiwanese government did not oppose Beijing’s suppression of democratic reformers, she said.
On Friday, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said Liu’s sentence serves as a test of the Chinese government’s approach to dealing with human rights.
The MAC said it hoped Beijing would step up its efforts to implement the two covenants to demonstrate its respect for human rights and the protection of universal values.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
NO-LIMITS PARTNERSHIP: ‘The bottom line’ is that if the US were to have a conflict with China or Russia it would likely open up a second front with the other, a US senator said Beijing and Moscow could cooperate in a conflict over Taiwan, the top US intelligence chief told the US Senate this week. “We see China and Russia, for the first time, exercising together in relation to Taiwan and recognizing that this is a place where China definitely wants Russia to be working with them, and we see no reason why they wouldn’t,” US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a US Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing on Thursday. US Senator Mike Rounds asked Haines about such a potential scenario. He also asked US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse
China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open. Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino. “Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and
INSPIRING: Taiwan has been a model in the Asia-Pacific region with its democratic transition, free and fair elections and open society, the vice president-elect said Taiwan can play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a forum in Taipei yesterday, highlighting the nation’s resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. “Not only can Taiwan help, but Taiwan can lead ... not only can Taiwan play a leadership role, but Taiwan’s leadership is important to the world,” Hsiao told the annual forum hosted by the Center for Asia-Pacific Resilience and Innovation think tank. Hsiao thanked Taiwan’s international friends for their long-term support, citing the example of US President Joe Biden last month signing into law a bill to provide aid to Taiwan,
UNWAVERING: Paraguay remains steadfast in its support of Taiwan, but is facing growing pressure at home and abroad to switch recognition to Beijing, Pena said Paraguayan President Santiago Pena has pledged to continue enhancing cooperation with Taiwan, as he and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida expressed opposition to any unilateral change to the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait using force, Japanese media reported on Saturday. Kishida yesterday completed a trip to France, Brazil and Paraguay, his first visit to South America since taking office in 2021. After the Japanese leader and Pena spoke for more than an hour on Friday, exchanging views on the situation in East Asia in the face of China’s increasing military pressure on Taiwan, they affirmed that “unilateral attempts to change the