Branding President Chen Shui-bian's (
Soong, the vice presidential candidate of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)-PFP alliance, stressed that his decision to not vote on the referendum was his personal stance and did not reflect the position of the alliance as a whole.
"The alliance has yet to reach a final consensus on this matter," Soong said. "The referendum is illegal in my personal view. And since it is illegal, I will therefore not go and pick up the ballot and take part in this illegal referendum."
With that said, Soong urged people who shared similar views to not pick up their referendum ballots, "because not picking up ballots is also an expression of opinion, by which we can convey to the government our protest against the holding of an illegal referendum."
In comparison to Soong, whose rhetoric crystallized his stance on the March 20 referendum, KMT Chairman Lien Chan (
Lien took part in a TV talk show Monday night during which he was asked by the show's host, Lee Tao (
Without stating yes or no, Lien said that "voting is the people's right, and their choice should not be publicized, nor can the government force the people to publicize their voting preferences."
Claiming that the nation is not faced with a clear and present danger to its national sovereignty, Soong stressed that the alliance was not opposed to referendums, but only to the "illegal" referendum.
He claimed that Chen's proposal lacked a statutory basis and did not meet the criteria detailed in Article 17 of the Referendum Law (
Article 17 entitles the president to initiate a referendum on national security issues "whenever the country is faced by an external threat that could interfere with national sovereignty."
Soong then questioned the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) motives in holding the referendum on the same day as the presidential election, saying that the alliance was concerned that such an action might lead to conflict or disputes.
Soong also said that he found the letter supporting Chen's referendum plan signed by over 1,000 top academics disagreeable.
Saying that morality and conscience are the two most important virtues valued in the academic and medical circles, Soong called on these academics and physicians to come out and clearly state whether Chen's referendum plan was legal.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it