Vigorously denying his rumored contempt for journalists, the incoming Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) spokesman, Michel Lu (
Earlier this week, Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (
Interacting with reporters will be one of Lu's daily tasks after he officially becomes the spokesman. In a telephone interview yesterday, Lu denied he once called for the ministry to ban reporters from eating in the ministry restaurant, which offers meals at cheaper prices than outside stores.
He also dismissed a rumor that he complained about a reporter sending him a marriage banquet invitation.
Lu was said to have called this extortion, because he felt compelled to give the reporter the traditional red envelope filled with cash offered to grooms and brides at wedding ceremonies.
"These rumors are impossible. I never opposed reporters eating in the ministry's cafeteria. If people really know my personality, they would not say things like this," Lu said.
He described himself as a devout Buddhist, who treats all human beings equally.
"People familiar with me say I am very open and easy to get along with. I am a Buddhist. I wish we could have a fair society ... I will not keep these rumors in my mind. I can honestly face my conscience," the diplomat said.
Lu, who obtained his doctorate from University of Paris, is fluent in French. In 1998, Lu, who has long been involved in the annual bid to enter the World Health Organization (WHO), set up the Taipei Cultural and Economic mission in Geneva, where the UN body's headquarters are located.
From 2000 to 2002, Lu served as the country's ambassador to Haiti.
"Taiwan always hopes to gain the international community's respect. We cannot look down upon poorer and smaller countries, when we ourselves strive to earn the international community's recognition," Lu said.
Disapproving of some people's contempt for Taiwan's allies, most of which are poor and tiny countries, Lu said under Taiwan's difficult diplomatic climate originating from its poor relationship with China, Taiwan's diplomats would do almost anything to retain allies.
People should treat all countries equally no matter whether they are rich or poor, Lu said, adding people in all walks of life should be fairly treated.
Lin Shih-chia (
"Taiwan's diplomats are very conservative because of their training. Lu gave people the impression that he is outspoken and flexible," said Lin, who worked with Lu in the past preparing WHO applications.
An official familiar with both Lu and Shih, however, said Shih, who has been appointed as the representative of the Taipei Liaison Office in the Republic of South Africa, is more "sincere and pragmatic" than Lu.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official described Lu as a "slippery man" who "knew how to further his career."
"He thinks about all of the details and takes care of them," the official said.
According to the official, Lu was capable of keeping good ties with lawmakers through various means when working at the ministry's Congressional Liaison Office, which is in charge of the ministry's communication with the legislature.
Former Czech Republic-based Taiwanese researcher Cheng Yu-chin (鄭宇欽) has been sentenced to seven years in prison on espionage-related charges, China’s Ministry of State Security announced yesterday. China said Cheng was a spy for Taiwan who “masqueraded as a professor” and that he was previously an assistant to former Cabinet secretary-general Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰). President-elect William Lai (賴清德) on Wednesday last week announced Cho would be his premier when Lai is inaugurated next month. Today is China’s “National Security Education Day.” The Chinese ministry yesterday released a video online showing arrests over the past 10 years of people alleged to be
THE HAWAII FACTOR: While a 1965 opinion said an attack on Hawaii would not trigger Article 5, the text of the treaty suggests the state is covered, the report says NATO could be drawn into a conflict in the Taiwan Strait if Chinese forces attacked the US mainland or Hawaii, a NATO Defense College report published on Monday says. The report, written by James Lee, an assistant research fellow at Academia Sinica’s Institute of European and American Studies, states that under certain conditions a Taiwan contingency could trigger Article 5 of NATO, under which an attack against any member of the alliance is considered an attack against all members, necessitating a response. Article 6 of the North Atlantic Treaty specifies that an armed attack in the territory of any member in Europe,
LIKE FAMILY: People now treat dogs and cats as family members. They receive the same medical treatments and tests as humans do, a veterinary association official said The number of pet dogs and cats in Taiwan has officially outnumbered the number of human newborns last year, data from the Ministry of Agriculture’s pet registration information system showed. As of last year, Taiwan had 94,544 registered pet dogs and 137,652 pet cats, the data showed. By contrast, 135,571 babies were born last year. Demand for medical care for pet animals has also risen. As of Feb. 29, there were 5,773 veterinarians in Taiwan, 3,993 of whom were for pet animals, statistics from the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency showed. In 2022, the nation had 3,077 pediatricians. As of last
XINJIANG: Officials are conducting a report into amending an existing law or to enact a special law to prohibit goods using forced labor Taiwan is mulling an amendment prohibiting the importation of goods using forced labor, similar to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) passed by the US Congress in 2021 that imposed limits on goods produced using forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region. A government official who wished to remain anonymous said yesterday that as the US customs law explicitly prohibits the importation of goods made using forced labor, in 2021 it passed the specialized UFLPA to limit the importation of cotton and other goods from China’s Xinjiang Uyghur region. Taiwan does not have the legal basis to prohibit the importation of goods