Taipei Chamber of Commerce director-general Wang Ying-chieh (王應傑) yesterday apologized for calling Taiwanese who have never been to China jianmin (賤民, “uneducated masses”), saying that he bore no ill intent and was only concerned about deteriorating cross-strait ties.
Wang, who is also chairman of real-estate broker Eastern Realty (東森房屋) and vice chairman of Kuo Kuang Motor Transportion Co Ltd (國光客運), made the controversial remarks at a Taiwan Competitiveness Forum event on Thursday, sparking criticism from the public, with some threatening to boycott his businesses.
The Taiwan Competitiveness Forum is a think tank established in 2007 by a group of academics concerned about the cross-strait stalemate and Taiwan’s international predicament.
Photo: Chen Chih-chu, Taipei Times
“Why are Taiwanese gullible? Because only 7.5 million of them have been to China, while the remaining 15 million have not,” Wang reportedly said at the event.
Lamenting what he called the Taiwanese public’s ignorance of China’s remarkable progress over the past three decades, Wang said Taipei pales in comparison with many of China’s first-tier or even second-tier cities in terms of development.
“Many ignorant Taiwanese, or even those I call jianmin, do not even know which century they are living in,” Wang said, adding that the situation underscores the importance of engaging the younger generation when handling cross-strait ties.
He told reporters after the event that his use of the term jianmin was not directed at the general public, but rather at politicians who have demonized Beijing and fooled the electorate in a fashion similar to that of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) regime’s irrational and undemocratic rule.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lin Shu-feng (林淑芬) questioned whether Wang’s remarks were an attempt to expand his business in China, given that Eastern Realty opened its first directly owned branch in Jiangsu, China, in May.
Premier William Lai (賴清德) yesterday said in a legislative plenary session that such rhetoric, even revised, cannot be accepted by the public.
“After some soul-searching last night, I realized that my heartfelt remarks at the event, made due to my concerns about uncertainty in cross-strait exchanges, were too straightforward and a poor choice of words,” Wang said on Facebook yesterday.
Wang said that as an entrepreneur, he cares deeply about the nation and its democracy, adding that he hopes the government will prioritize the livelihood of 23 million Taiwanese and refrain from letting politics impede cross-strait economic exchanges.
“I bear no ill intent and hope the public can understand that the criticism came from a good place,” he said.
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
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
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