As the Vatican's representative to Taipei voiced anti-war sentiments yesterday, local activist groups said the first anti-war street demonstration against the US-led war in Iraq is slated to take place tomorrow.
Charge d'Affaires Monsignor James Patrick Green yesterday called for the values of respect for life, peace and goodwill to bear fruit in the relationship between the Vatican and Taiwan at a time when US pressure on Iraq remains incessant.
"Particularly now in these days of international tension and the looming threat of war, the values which we here represent are needed more than ever. We must pray and work together for their realization," Green said.
He made the remark, which echoed the Vatican's longstanding anti-war stance, after receiving an Order of the Brilliant Star with Violet Cordon from Minister of Foreign Affairs Eugene Chien (
Ties between the Holy See and Taiwan have been "substantial" over the past 60 years, because the two share a number of common values, Green said.
These shared values include "religious liberty, respect for life, freedom of speech, peace and goodwill among all men and women," Green said.
He expressed his "greatest gratitude" for the government and people for having granted him his first-ever government award.
Green is due to leave for Rome today. His successor, Monsignor Ambrose Madtha, arrived in Taipei earlier this week.
Meanwhile, local activist and student groups announced that the first anti-war protest against the US-led war in Iraq is planned for tomorrow.
"We are disgruntled at the government's stance on the war against Iraq, so we feel obliged to voice our opinion from the societal level," said Ho Yen-tang (
Cheng Tsun-chi (鄭村棋), former director of Taipei City's Bureau of Labor Affairs as well as a longstanding social activist, said he would take part in the demonstration.
"I don't want to see the government spend taxpayers' money helping the US kill Iraqis," Cheng said.
Cheng denounced the government's vow to help the US with what it termed as "reconstruction of Iraq out of humanitarian concerns" in the aftermath of war.
"If you are really seriously about humanitarian concerns, why don't you endeavor to prevent war from happening in the first place?" he said.
Even if Taiwan is unable to prevent the outbreak of war, it should keep silent instead of voicing its support for the US, Cheng said. After all, the government's stance for a war against Iraq may put the nation at risk as terrorist groups may thus foster animosity against us, he said.
Around 200 to 300 participants will take part in tomorrow's protest, Ho predicted.
The group will convene in front of the Bureau of National Health Insurance building on Hsinyi Road, next door to the American Institute in Taiwan, organizers said.
When asked to comment on the planned protest, Chien said yesterday that the government supports "all the wars against terrorism" for the sake of "longstanding peace in the world."
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