President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday threw his support behind beleaguered Mainland Affairs Council Minister Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦), while likening his former deputy minister, Chang Hsien-yao (張顯耀), to a “pest” in cross-strait ties.
Legislators across party lines have called on Wang to step down for his “ham-fisted” handling of Chang’s case, who has been accused of leaking state secrets and forced to resign.
The president yesterday voiced his approval of Wang’s actions, saying: “There is no need for him to resign.”
Photo: CNA
“It was Wang who took the initiative to investigate Chang after [being tipped off about a possible information leak]. He made decisions swiftly and cooperated with prosecutors,” Ma said.
“He also held a press conference that lasted for 70 minutes. It is pretty rare for a government, with respect to this kind of events, to spend so much time explaining,” the president said.
Stressing the importance of cross-strait relations, the president compared it to a tree that has to be nurtured, while implying that Chang was a pest that could ruin the relationship.
“For a sapling to grow, you need a gardener to water and fertilize it, and when pests are found, the gardener has to get rid of them,” he said.
“The development of cross-strait relations cannot be allowed to stall because of a pest, and we cannot ignore it [the pest] once it has been found,” Ma said, adding that Chang’s case would not affect progress in cross-strait exchanges.
Responding to Democratic Progressive Party Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) call for him to apologize and for national security officials to be held accountable, Ma said that Tsai was “confused about [the issue] and reversing the procedure.”
“As Chang is only suspected [of leaking information] rather than having been convicted, we need to adhere to the principle of presumption of innocence,” Ma said. “It is strange to ask for someone’s apology or demand that they admit to certain mistakes when the result has not yet been determined.”
Ma denied that the case involves any political infighting within the administration.
“How could we target him, our own colleague? However, if he committed a crime, we cannot conceal it either,” he said.
When asked about the prospect of a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) following this incident, Ma said his positive attitude toward the meeting, if certain preconditions are met, has not changed.
“As for [Chang’s] case, I think in the end it will be clear to everybody that it has nothing to do with the Ma-Xi meeting,” he said.
Responding to Ma’s statement, DPP spokesman Huang Di-ying (黃帝穎) said it showed a “lack of self-reflection.”
“Apologizing for [his administration’s handling of] Chang’s case is the president’s political responsibility, whereas the principle of presumption of innocence is a notion of legal responsibility. Ma conflated the two and used the latter as a political pretext for refusing to apologize,” Huang said. “This amounts to ignorance of democratic constitutionalism.”
Moreover, comparing Chang to a pest, based on the president’s political logic of presumption of innocence, “would then constitute deliberate humiliation,” Huang said.
“The absurdity of Ma’s logic is eye-opening,” he said.
‘UNFRIENDLY’: Changing the nationality listing of Taiwanese residents to ‘China’ goes against EU foreign policy as well as democratic and human rights principles, MOFA said Taiwan yesterday called on Denmark to correct its designation of the nationality of Taiwanese residents as “China” or face retaliatory measures. The Danish government in 2024 changed the nationality of Taiwanese citizens on their residence permits from “Taiwan” to “China.” The decision goes against EU foreign policy and contravenes democratic and human rights principles, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) spokesman Hsiao Kuang-wei (蕭光偉) said. Denmark should present a solution acceptable to Taiwan as soon as possible and correct the erroneous designation to preserve the longstanding friendship between the two nations, Hsiao said. The issue could damage Denmark’s image and business reputation in Taiwan,
KEY INDUSTRY: The vice premier discussed a plan to create a non-red drone supply chain by next year, which has been allocated a budget of more than NT$7.2 billion The government has budgeted NT$44.2 billion (US$1.38 billion) to cultivate Taiwan’s uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) industry over the next five years, which would make the nation a major player in the industry’s democratic supply chain in the Asia-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. Cho made the remarks during a visit to the facilities of Cub Elecparts Inc (為升電裝). Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Su-yueh (陳素月) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Hsieh Yi-fong (謝依鳳) also participated in the trip. Cub Elecparts has transitioned from the automotive industry to the defense industry, which is the top priority among the nation’s
SUFFICIENT: The president said Taiwan has enough oil for next month, with reserves covering more than 100 days and natural gas enough for 12 to 14 days A restart plan for the Guosheng Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Wanli District (萬里) and the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant in Pingtung County’s Hengchun Township (恆春) would be submitted to the Nuclear Safety Commission by the end of the month, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, reversing the government’s policy to abolish nuclear energy. On May 17 last year, Taiwan shut down its last nuclear reactor and became the first non-nuclear nation in East Asia, fulfilling the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government’s pledge of a “nuclear-free homeland.” Even without nuclear power, Taiwan can maintain a stable electricity supply until 2032,
DEROGATORY: WTO host Cameroon’s designation of Taiwan as a ‘province of China’ seriously undermines the nation’s status and rights as a WTO member, MOFA said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday condemned Cameroon for listing Taiwan as “Taiwan, Province of China” in visa documents for an upcoming WTO ministerial conference, a move that led to Taiwan’s withdrawal from the event. The designation “seriously undermined” Taiwan’s status and rights as a WTO member, the ministry said in a statement. It is the first time since 2001 that Taiwan has declined to attend a WTO Ministerial Conference. The conference is scheduled to take place from Thursday to Sunday next week in Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon. Taiwan had planned to send a delegation led by Minister Without Portfolio
RSS