Thousands of people mobilized by several civic groups took to the streets in Taipei yesterday to demonstrate against nuclear energy and demand an immediate halt to construction at the nation’s Fourth Nuclear Power Plant.
To shouts of: “I love Taiwan, I don’t want nuclear disaster,” and “I want my children, I don’t want nuclear energy,” the protesters were giving voice to a rising number of people who are uncertain about the safety of nuclear energy amid a nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant in Japan, which encountered a series of radiation leaks following a powerful earthquake and tsunami on March 11.
“The government has always told us that nuclear energy is safe, but what’s happening at the nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan, proves otherwise,” said Shih Shin-min (施信民), a professor of chemical engineering at National Taiwan University and the founding chairman of Taiwan Environmental Protection Union (TEPU).
 
                    Photo: CNA
A nuclear disaster would be relatively easier to contain in Japan than in Taiwan, because Japan is about 10 times the size of Taiwan, he said.
“I cannot imagine what would happen to Taiwan if a similar scenario occurred here,” he said. “Taiwan could not handle just one nuclear disaster.”
Former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), who also took part in the protest, cast doubt over the safety of nuclear power plants.
“Nuclear disasters have occurred in three of the countries with the most advanced nuclear technology in the world — the US, the former Soviet Union and Japan,” Hsieh said. “I don’t think we’re more advanced than those countries in nuclear technology and therefore what happened to them could happen to us too.”
In addition to Hsieh, several other Democratic Progressive Party politicians, including former premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌), as well as several lawmakers and city councilors participated in the march.
“In the face of Japan’s nuclear crisis ... Taiwan should stick to the goal of building itself a non-nuclear homeland, so that our offspring will be free from any fears of nuclear disasters,” TEPU secretary-general Lee Cho-han (李卓翰) said.
The flag-waving and chanting protesters demanded that work on the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in Gongliao District (貢寮), New Taipei City (新北市), which is almost complete, be halted immediately.
The protesters were also opposed to plans by the state-run Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) to extend the lifespan of its three existing nuclear plants after their licenses expire.
The government is reviewing a Taipower application to extend the operating license of the Jinshan Nuclear Power Plant — its first — which is due to expire in 2017, almost four decades after it opened.
However, the presence of politicians upset some of the younger generation of environmentalists.
“Of course we’re happy to see that politicians are paying attention to the issue, however, it’s not uncommon for many politicians to just stop paying attention once they get elected,” said Wang Hao-chung (王顥中), a member of the No Nuke Action Alliance.
While shouting anti-nuclear slogans, other younger demonstrators also held self-made signs urging politicians not to use the nuclear issue just for political gain.
Among the demonstrators were many parents who brought their children with them, including a man surnamed Lee (李) and his wife, surnamed Hung (洪).
Hung told the Taipei Times she had never been to any demonstrations, but decided to come out this time because she was scared by what has happened in Japan.
“I want to show my concerns over safety of nuclear energy, nuclear power plants are too dangerous,” she said.
Lee said they brought their children with them “because this issue also concerns their future.”
The march departed from Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall at about 2:30pm and ended with a rally outside the Legislative Yuan in the evening.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who has said he wants to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 2000 levels by 2025 and then halve that figure by 2050, said last week that the nation’s nuclear power policy would proceed unabated though he ordered a safety review for the plants.
Electricity generated by the three operational nuclear power plants accounts for 20 percent of the nation’s power supply.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY AFP

PEACE AND STABILITY: Maintaining the cross-strait ‘status quo’ has long been the government’s position, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan is committed to maintaining the cross-strait “status quo” and seeks no escalation of tensions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday, rebutting a Time magazine opinion piece that described President William Lai (賴清德) as a “reckless leader.” The article, titled “The US Must Beware of Taiwan’s Reckless Leader,” was written by Lyle Goldstein, director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Defense Priorities think tank. Goldstein wrote that Taiwan is “the world’s most dangerous flashpoint” amid ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He said that the situation in the Taiwan Strait has become less stable

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,

REASSURANCE: The US said Taiwan’s interests would not be harmed during the talk and that it remains steadfast in its support for the nation, the foreign minister said US President Donald Trump on Friday said he would bring up Taiwan with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a meeting on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea this week. “I will be talking about Taiwan [with Xi],” Trump told reporters before he departed for his trip to Asia, adding that he had “a lot of respect for Taiwan.” “We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us. I think we’ll have a good meeting,” Trump said. Taiwan has long been a contentious issue between the US and China.

UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention