President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday urged voters to re-elect her, saying that the Jan. 11 elections are pivotal, because “the whole world is watching Taiwan” due to the protests in Hong Kong.
Tsai visited Penghu’s Magong City (馬公) in the morning, attended rallies in central Taiwan afterward, and stumped for Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative candidates and those from smaller pan-green camp parties.
“The world wants to see what Taiwanese will decide. [The international community is] concerned that what has been taking place in Hong Kong might happen in Taiwan as well,” she told the crowds.
Photo: Liao Yao-tung, Taipei Times
Speaking about China’s “one country, two systems” formula, Tsai said: “This is not an option for Taiwanese.”
“Hong Kongers have taken to the streets because they have to fight for their freedom and democracy. In Taiwan, we have our freedom and democracy, that is because we have sovereignty, which is held by all 23 million of Taiwan’s population,” she said.
“Therefore we must safeguard our sovereignty, because if we no longer have it, Taiwanese will have to take to the streets to wrestle it away from China,” Tsai said.
She urged everyone to vote, saying: “The bigger the turnout, the louder our voice and our decision can be heard by the world... When our citizens cast their votes, we can safeguard Taiwan’s sovereignty, freedom and democracy, by which we can ensure to continue have these for our future generations.”
Meanwhile, Vice President Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) focused on the nation’s multicultural society, saying that government policies in the past few years have allowed foreigners to settle down and enjoy Taiwan’s freedom and democracy.
Speaking at a gathering of new immigrant women in Taichung, Chen said the government’s New Southbound Policy is an important direction for the nation, as are its improved policies for “new residents” — foreigners who have acquired Republic of China citizenship.
DPP officials at the gathering said they met many new residents who have lived and worked in Taiwan for more than 20 years after marrying Taiwanese men, and that the best two words they had for the nation are “freedom” and “democracy.”
Many of them said they are happy to live here, because they can vote, participate in public affairs and fulfill their dreams, the officials said.
“Taiwan is a multicultural society and a vibrant place composed of many ethnic groups that welcomes people from other countries. Some have been here since historic times, and others arrived only recently, but everyone in Taiwan can pursue happiness and a better life. So we must cherish the freedom and democracy that we have,” Chen said.
‘ABUSE OF POWER’: Lee Chun-yi allegedly used a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon and take his wife to restaurants, media reports said Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) resigned on Sunday night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by the media. Control Yuan Vice President Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞) yesterday apologized to the public over the issue. The watchdog body would follow up on similar accusations made by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and would investigate the alleged misuse of government vehicles by three other Control Yuan members: Su Li-chiung (蘇麗瓊), Lin Yu-jung (林郁容) and Wang Jung-chang (王榮璋), Lee Hung-chun said. Lee Chun-yi in a statement apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a
Taiwan yesterday denied Chinese allegations that its military was behind a cyberattack on a technology company in Guangzhou, after city authorities issued warrants for 20 suspects. The Guangzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau earlier yesterday issued warrants for 20 people it identified as members of the Information, Communications and Electronic Force Command (ICEFCOM). The bureau alleged they were behind a May 20 cyberattack targeting the backend system of a self-service facility at the company. “ICEFCOM, under Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, directed the illegal attack,” the warrant says. The bureau placed a bounty of 10,000 yuan (US$1,392) on each of the 20 people named in
The High Court yesterday found a New Taipei City woman guilty of charges related to helping Beijing secure surrender agreements from military service members. Lee Huei-hsin (李慧馨) was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison for breaching the National Security Act (國家安全法), making illegal compacts with government employees and bribery, the court said. The verdict is final. Lee, the manager of a temple in the city’s Lujhou District (蘆洲), was accused of arranging for eight service members to make surrender pledges to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in exchange for money, the court said. The pledges, which required them to provide identification
INDO-PACIFIC REGION: Royal Navy ships exercise the right of freedom of navigation, including in the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea, the UK’s Tony Radakin told a summit Freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific region is as important as it is in the English Channel, British Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Tony Radakin said at a summit in Singapore on Saturday. The remark came as the British Royal Navy’s flagship aircraft carrier, the HMS Prince of Wales, is on an eight-month deployment to the Indo-Pacific region as head of an international carrier strike group. “Upholding the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, and with it, the principles of the freedom of navigation, in this part of the world matters to us just as it matters in the
RSS