Following Saturday's massive rally in Kaohsiung that amassed some 500,000 exuberant supporters, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) continued to build on its campaign momentum in Taichung, yesterday.
Amid flying flags, placards, banners and balloons at the massive carnival-like rally last night, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) on arched stage addressing some 300,000 people, emphasizing that his reelection will bring the political, social, economic and cross-strait stability.
In response Lien Chan (
"Once Vice President Annette Lu and I are elected, Lien and Soong as well as China will have to come to terms with this fact and that will stop Taiwan from enduring further political chaos ... China will also have to accept that I am the leader and there will be no more tension across the strait and we don't have to be worried that our children have to go to the battlefield," Chen said.
Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮), supported by crutches last night following an accident during her hectic campaign activities, yesterday blasted the pan-blue presidential ticket.
"They are just like the warlord Yuan Shih-kai (
Lu also warned the Taiwanese to be cautious about Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's (
"They said they wanted to take over Taiwan if Taiwan has a post-election riot, but don't they always say they want to have peaceful unification with Taiwan?" Lu said. "Now they threatened to use force aganst Taiwan."
First Lady Wu Shu-chen (
Wu also blasted Lien Chan's and James Soong's actions during the 313 March.
"If they really love Taiwan, how come their children all possessed the US green cards and they also purchase large amounts of real estate in the US?" Wu questioned.
DPP campaign spokesperson Wu Nai-jen (
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
The brilliant blue waters, thick foliage and bucolic atmosphere on this seemingly idyllic archipelago deep in the Pacific Ocean belie the key role it now plays in a titanic geopolitical struggle. Palau is again on the front line as China, and the US and its allies prepare their forces in an intensifying contest for control over the Asia-Pacific region. The democratic nation of just 17,000 people hosts US-controlled airstrips and soon-to-be-completed radar installations that the US military describes as “critical” to monitoring vast swathes of water and airspace. It is also a key piece of the second island chain, a string of
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake that struck about 33km off the coast of Hualien City was the "main shock" in a series of quakes in the area, with aftershocks expected over the next three days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Prior to the magnitude 5.9 quake shaking most of Taiwan at 6:53pm yesterday, six other earthquakes stronger than a magnitude of 4, starting with a magnitude 5.5 quake at 6:09pm, occurred in the area. CWA Seismological Center Director Wu Chien-fu (吳健富) confirmed that the quakes were all part of the same series and that the magnitude 5.5 temblor was