Senior Presidential Advisor and human rights writer Bo Yang (柏楊) yesterday suggested that the country abandon the Republic of China (ROC) flag and revise the lyrics of the national anthem, which are strongly associated with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
Bo made the suggestion yesterday in a meeting with Presidential Office Secretary-general Su Tseng-chang (
The visits are seen as preparatory work for President Chen Shui-bian's (
Speaking in support of revising the Constitution, Bo said that the ROC flag should be replaced with the "five-color," striped flag which was in use when the ROC was first established in China. That flag features five horizontal stripes -- red, yellow, blue, white and black.
"The ROC's original flag is the five-color flag, which represents ethnic harmony and cooperation among the five major ethnic groups in China. However, the national flag was changed to the current one after the [KMT] regime regained power by succeeding in the Northern Expedition in 1927.
"I suggest we give the current flag back to the KMT," Bo said.
In addition to changing the flag, Bo urged revising the lyrics of the national anthem, which say "The Three Principles of the People our party's aim shall be."
Bo said "our party's aim shall be" (吾黨所宗) should be changed to "our people's aim shall be," (吾民所宗) as "the party" refers to the KMT only.
"The New Party, People First Party and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) may not necessarily believe in the Three Principles of the People. But, if everybody agrees on them, we might have to change the wording to `our people's aim shall be' to avoid ideological prejudice," Bo said.
Commenting on the controversy surrounding whether Chen should revise the constitution or simply create a new one, Bo said that in either case the government has to take on the issues of national security and internal stability.
"The disputes spawning from rewriting the Constitution have already put Taiwan's national security under threat and exacerbated the ethnic tensions.
"The DPP has to recreate a brand-new election culture [to redefine its relationships with its political rivals]. The winners should not be the king, with the losers treated like bandits. Instead, the winners should try to make friends with the losers, who should give righteous suggestions to the ruling party," the 84-year-old Bo said.
He advised the DPP administration to treasure the nation's hard-won democracy, which is still in its infancy, and not to act with recklessness at the expense of democratic achievement.
"Taiwan's democracy is like a newborn baby. The problems it has encountered are like measles. And no matter how ugly this baby is, we still have to give it meticulous care.
"It needs to grow up, but everything depends on how much space it has, on whether the country's opposition forces, as well as China, are willing to give Taiwan a chance," Bo said.
Bo, a veteran human rights activist and writer who was jailed for almost 10 years for writing scathingly about the KMT, also stressed to Su the importance of enshrining the spirit of human rights in a new or revised constitution.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central
The age requirement for commercial pilots and airline transport pilots is to be lowered by two years, to 18 and 21 years respectively, to expand the pool of pilots in accordance with international standards, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced today. The changes are part of amendments to articles 93, 119 and 121 of the Regulations Governing Licenses and Ratings for Airmen (航空人員檢定給證管理規則). The amendments take into account age requirements for aviation personnel certification in the Convention on International Civil Aviation and EU’s aviation safety regulations, as well as the practical needs of managing aviation personnel licensing, the ministry said. The ministry
RSS