The Human Rights Network for Tibet and Taiwan yesterday demanded an apology from Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) for saying that Tibetan lamas were causing trouble for the Chinese government by self-immolating.
Ko on Wednesday said at a Taipei City Government briefing on public safety that self-immolation was a “trendy” thing to do among Tibetan lamas, adding that the behavior “caused great trouble for the Chinese government.”
Self-immolation is a public safety hazard and “not a very good way to commit suicide,” he said.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
“Why would anyone choose self-immolation to take their own life? That is weird. Why self-immolation? I do not get it,” he said, laughing.
Group president Tashi Tsering yesterday said that he found Ko’s remarks to be “infuriating” and impossible to understand.
Despite being an influential political figure, Ko appears to be oblivious to the suffering of people in Tibet, Xinjiang and Hong Kong under the authoritarian rule of the Chinese Communist Party, and uninterested in learning about the truth, he said.
“He is only willing to speak for the Chinese government and only worried that people’s protests would lead to inconvenience for the government,” Tashi said, adding that the mayor should apologize for his remarks.
Tibetans have not chosen self-immolation to be trendy, but rather to stand up for people who are suffering, the group said, adding that many of them left behind a letter stating their beliefs and calling for freedom.
Ko’s remarks appeared to blame Tibetans for causing trouble while ignoring the Chinese government’s crackdowns on Tibetan religion, culture and human rights, said independent Legislator Freddy Lim (林昶佐), who is head of the Taiwan Parliamentary Group for Tibet.
Self-immolation has been the most poignant form of protest by Tibetans to safeguard their faith and dignity against the Chinese government’s relentless suppression, he said, adding that at least 159 Tibetans have self-immolated since 2002.
“Who chooses self-immolation just because it is a trendy thing to do?” Lim asked, adding that politicians should be more sympathetic.
During a question-and-answer session at the Taipei City Council yesterday, New Power Party Taipei City Councilor Lin Ying-meng (林穎孟) asked the mayor to take back his controversial remarks, which she said went against the city’s values of freedom, democracy and human rights.
Ko said that words spoken cannot be retracted, adding: “I am still not a fan of radical protests.”
The CIA has a message for Chinese government officials worried about their place in Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) government: Come work with us. The agency released two Mandarin-language videos on social media on Thursday inviting disgruntled officials to contact the CIA. The recruitment videos posted on YouTube and X racked up more than 5 million views combined in their first day. The outreach comes as CIA Director John Ratcliffe has vowed to boost the agency’s use of intelligence from human sources and its focus on China, which has recently targeted US officials with its own espionage operations. The videos are “aimed at
STEADFAST FRIEND: The bills encourage increased Taiwan-US engagement and address China’s distortion of UN Resolution 2758 to isolate Taiwan internationally The Presidential Office yesterday thanked the US House of Representatives for unanimously passing two Taiwan-related bills highlighting its solid support for Taiwan’s democracy and global participation, and for deepening bilateral relations. One of the bills, the Taiwan Assurance Implementation Act, requires the US Department of State to periodically review its guidelines for engagement with Taiwan, and report to the US Congress on the guidelines and plans to lift self-imposed limitations on US-Taiwan engagement. The other bill is the Taiwan International Solidarity Act, which clarifies that UN Resolution 2758 does not address the issue of the representation of Taiwan or its people in
SHIFT: Taiwan’s better-than-expected first-quarter GDP and signs of weakness in the US have driven global capital back to emerging markets, the central bank head said The central bank yesterday blamed market speculation for the steep rise in the local currency, and urged exporters and financial institutions to stay calm and stop panic sell-offs to avoid hurting their own profitability. The nation’s top monetary policymaker said that it would step in, if necessary, to maintain order and stability in the foreign exchange market. The remarks came as the NT dollar yesterday closed up NT$0.919 to NT$30.145 against the US dollar in Taipei trading, after rising as high as NT$29.59 in intraday trading. The local currency has surged 5.85 percent against the greenback over the past two sessions, central
US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo on Friday expressed concern over the rate at which China is diversifying its military exercises, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Saturday. “The rates of change on the depth and breadth of their exercises is the one non-linear effect that I’ve seen in the last year that wakes me up at night or keeps me up at night,” Paparo was quoted by FT as saying while attending the annual Sedona Forum at the McCain Institute in Arizona. Paparo also expressed concern over the speed with which China was expanding its military. While the US
RSS