Two new groups were formed yesterday to promote parliamentary ties between Taiwan and the UK and France.
The "Taiwan-Britain Inter-Parliamentary Amity Association" (
"Through these associations, we hope to enhance mutual understanding as well as strengthen our bilateral parliamentary interactions with parliamentarians in UK and France," Chang said yesterday at the inauguration of the two associations.
PHOTO: LIU HSING-TEH, TAIPEI TIMES
Chang said that parliamentary diplomatic work carry out by the two groups could also help to broaden Taiwan's diplomatic circle.
"Because we [legislators] can visit countries, places and meet with certain persons in other countries that normally our national leaders are restricted from owing to Taiwan's unique situa-tion," Chang said.
The lawmaker said approximately 30 legislators from across party lines have said they would become members.
KMT Legislator Tsai Chia-fu (蔡家福) is deputy chairman for the "Taiwan-Britain Inter-Parliamentary Amity Association" while the TSU's John Wang (王政中) and PFP's Lin Teh-fu (林德福) are deputy chairmen of the "Taiwan-France Inter-Parliamentary Amity Association."
Chang, convener of the legislature's Foreign and Overseas Chi-nese Committee, said that the groups would focus on activities that serve the purpose in promoting mutual interaction between legislators in Taiwan and the two European countries.
"For example," Chang said, "we will work to coordinate Taiwanese business or cultural groups going to the UK and France for visits as well as invite influential British and French figures and parliamentarians to Taiwan to take part in seminars, public hearings to help improve general understanding and interaction."
Chang said association mem-bers are planning to travel to the UK and France during the next legislature recess in January.
LOUD AND PROUD Taiwan might have taken a drubbing against Australia and Japan, but you might not know it from the enthusiasm and numbers of the fans Taiwan might not be expected to win the World Baseball Classic (WBC) but their fans are making their presence felt in Tokyo, with tens of thousands decked out in the team’s blue, blowing horns and singing songs. Taiwanese fans have packed out the Tokyo Dome for all three of their games so far and even threatened to drown out home team supporters when their team played Japan on Friday. They blew trumpets, chanted for their favorite players and had their own cheerleading squad who dance on a stage during the game. The team struggled to match that exuberance on the field, with
UPDATED TEST: The new rules aim to assess drivers’ awareness of risky behaviors and how they respond under certain circumstances, the Highway Bureau said Driver’s license applicants who fail to yield to pedestrians at intersections or to check blind spots, or omit pointing-and-calling procedures would fail the driving test, the Highway Bureau said yesterday. The change is set to be implemented at the end of the month, and is part of the bureau’s reform of the driving portion of the test, which has been criticized for failing to assess whether drivers can operate vehicles safely. Sedan drivers would be tested regarding yielding to pedestrians and turning their heads to check blind spots, while drivers of large vehicles would be tested on their familiarity with pointing-and-calling
Whether Japan would help defend Taiwan in case of a cross-strait conflict would depend on the US and the extent to which Japan would be allowed to act under the US-Japan Security Treaty, former Japanese minister of defense Satoshi Morimoto said. As China has not given up on the idea of invading Taiwan by force, to what extent Japan could support US military action would hinge on Washington’s intention and its negotiation with Tokyo, Morimoto said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) yesterday. There has to be sufficient mutual recognition of how Japan could provide
A Taiwanese man apologized on Friday after saying in a social media post that he worked with Australia to provide scouting reports on Taiwan’s team, enabling Australia’s victory in this year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC), saying it was a joke and that he did not hold any position with foreign teams or Taiwan’s sports training center. Chen Po-hao (陳柏豪) drew the rage of many Taiwan baseball fans when he posted online on Thursday night, claiming credit for Australia’s 3-0 win over Taiwan in the opening game for Pool C, saying he worked as a physical therapist with the national team and
RSS