One of the nation's most respected high-tech industrial park managers was appointed yesterday to a key post at the National Science Council (國科會).
Huang Wen-hsiung (
The position has been vacant since mid-May, when the council approved the resignation of Steve Hsieh (
The wrangle over the rail line's vibration problems deepened in late February, when Winbond Electronics decided to cancel a 12-inch wafer plant project in the park, saying that their manufacturing process was highly sensitive to the vibration.
NSC Chairman Wei Che-ho (魏哲和) said yesterday that Huang, an experienced high-tech park manager, would supervise Hsinchu Science-based Industrial Park and a proposed science park in central Taiwan.
Huang, who holds a PhD in engineering from Tokyo University, held an engineering professorship in the 1980s. In 1988, however, he began work for the Ministry of Economic Affairs as an energy policy expert. In 1992, Huang served as director of the NSC's Precision Instrument Development Center.
Due to his familiarity with engineering management, he was appointed to head Tainan Science-based Industrial Park's Development Office (
Huang said yesterday that the high-tech park in Hsinchu is a well-known, successful example of how to build such a park.
"Even facing new potential competitors, including China, high-tech parks in Taiwan still have advantages, such as our innovative research and development achievements," Huang said.
Huang said that building a new high-tech park in central Taiwan was good for Taiwan's development and that the process of evaluating an appropriate location for the proposed park had been carried out. Huang said that a final decision on the location would be made by the end of this year. "I will supervise the issue from a professional rather than from a political point of view," Huang said.
As the year-end legislative elections approach, local factions are competing for backing from the NSC in order to establish high-tech parks to please local residents by demonstrating a show of support for local economic development.
Wei, however, said that matters relating to the Tainan Science-based Industrial Park would be supervised by Vice Chairman Hsieh Ching-chih (
Wei said that the NSC would meet with officials from the park in Tainan every two weeks, a process which started this month, to discuss possible ways to help firms at the park to improve their ability to counter vibrations from the high-speed rail.
In addition, the NSC is considering carrying out a project this year to reduce the vibrations transmitted from the railway to units at the science park in Tainan. Bids for the project, NSC officials said, will be invited from firms both at home and abroad. Some Japanese and US firms have expressed interest in bidding.
Huang's successor at the Hsinchu Science-based Industrial Park has not yet been decided.
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
MISSION: The Indo-Pacific region is ‘the priority theater,’ where the task of deterrence extends across the entire region, including Taiwan, the US Pacific Fleet commander said The US Navy’s “mission of deterrence” in the Indo-Pacific theater applies to Taiwan, Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Stephen Koehler told the South China Sea Conference on Tuesday. The conference, organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), is an international platform for senior officials and experts from countries with security interests in the region. “The Pacific Fleet’s mission is to deter aggression across the Western Pacific, together with our allies and partners, and to prevail in combat if necessary, Koehler said in the event’s keynote speech. “That mission of deterrence applies regionwide — including the South China Sea and Taiwan,” he
UNPRECEDENTED: In addition to the approved recall motions, cases such as Ma Wen-chun’s in Nantou are still under review, while others lack enough signatures The Central Election Commission (CEC) announced yesterday that a recall vote would take place on July 26, after it approved the first batch of recall motions targeting 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and Hsinchu Mayor Ann Kao (高虹安). Taiwan is in the midst of an unprecedented wave of mass recall campaigns, following a civil society push that echoed a call made by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) in January to initiate signature drives aimed at unseating KMT legislators. Under the Civil Servants Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法), Taiwanese can initiate a recall of district-elected lawmakers by collecting
RSS