■ Foreign affairs
Swiss change Taiwan's name
The Swiss government reiterated on Thursday that its move to change Taiwan's designation on alien resident certificates it issues to Taiwan nationals residing in Switzerland is an "internal administrative measure. The measure is mainly aimed at unifying Taiwan's designation on the alien resident certificates issued by various Swiss state governments and has nothing to do with Taiwan's official title," said a spokesman for the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Since Aug. 6, the nationality of ROC passport holders has been identified as "Chinese Taipei" on their residence certificates issued by Swiss authorities. Prior to that, the spokesman said, Taiwan's designation varied on those documents issued by various Swiss state governments. As Taiwan is designated as "Chinese Taipei" by the International Olympic Committee and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum, the spokesman said, the Swiss federal government has ordered its state governments to use the same title on the alien resident certificates they issue to ROC nationals.
■ Diplomacy
Chen greets VIPs
President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) on Thursday received 265 foreign guests at the Presidential Office and accepted their congratulations on the Republic of China's National Day. The well-wishers included 65 members of congratulatory missions, 33 members of the diplomatic corps in Taipei, 67 representatives of other foreign missions in Taipei, 59 parliamentarians from various countries, and 35 foreign journalists. Among the dignitaries were Gambian President Alhaji Yahya Jammeh, Malawian President Bakili Muluzi and American Institute in Taiwan Director Douglas Paal.
■ Charity
Help for Malawi urged
World Vision Taiwan (WVT) urged people Thursday to provide more help for poverty-stricken children in Malawi, which is in the grip of a famine. Chen Wei-chih, director of WVT's eastern office, said Malawi suffered serious flooding in 1992 and 1996 which led to the current famine. The charity launched a campaign in 1996 to help some 2,500 children in Malawi and in the last seven years, Taiwanese have helped construct schools and clinics in that country, as well as offering agricultural equipment and training. Noting that the average life expectancy in Malawi is 40.7 and the mortality of its children under the age of five is 18.8 percent, Chen urged people to demonstrate their love and make generous donations.
■ Society
Fewer flags displayed
Near 30 percent of the Aboriginal settlements in Taitung displayed the Republic of China (ROC) flag yesterday to celebrate the Double Ten National Day -- topping other ethnic groups. The Yung-an Amis settlement of Lu-yeh township in particular was awash with flags. Once Taiwan was a ocean of national flags on the national-day holiday, but this has become less common in recent years. Even on farmland owned and run by the Veteran Affairs Commission only a few flags could be seen yesterday. In Taitung, only a few government institutes and schools had hung the flag. Compared to other ethnic groups' lukewarm reaction to the national day, Taitung's Aboriginal areas saw a nearly 30 percent of residents hanging the ROC flag outside their houses.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai
Four China Coast Guard ships briefly sailed through prohibited waters near Kinmen County, Taipei said, urging Beijing to stop actions that endanger navigation safety. The Chinese ships entered waters south of Kinmen, 5km from the Chinese city of Xiamen, at about 3:30pm on Monday, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement later the same day. The ships “sailed out of our prohibited and restricted waters” about an hour later, the agency said, urging Beijing to immediately stop “behavior that endangers navigation safety.” Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) yesterday told reporters that Taiwan would boost support to the Coast Guard