Peace Boat, a Japan-based non-governmental organization (NGO) known for its efforts to promote world peace through luxury liner cruises, is kicking off its 46th Peace Voyage with Taiwan as its first stop, the organization's representatives said at a press conference yesterday.
The trip is being sponsored in Taiwan by the Peacetime Foundation. Peace Boat is known for its educational global sailing voyages, on which passengers promote messages of peace and interact with local NGOs and people to increase collaboration for peace worldwide.
This summer's three-month trip will mark the 46th Peace Boat global voyage since the organization's founding in 1983. The trip's title is "Olympic Truce 2004," reflecting the organization's hope of bringing an end to conflict around the world.
Historically, explained Peace Boat executive committee member Mari Kushibuchi, the original Olympics were a time when all the Hellenic nations came together in a truce, and all conflict between the countries was suspended for the duration of the games.
With this voyage, Kushibuchi said, the organization hopes to inspire people to put an end to violence, in the spirit of the ancient Olympic games.
"There has been a great amount of violence in the world recently, with the constant battling in Iraq and in Asia.
"We hope this voyage can spread a message of hope and reconciliation," she said.
Taiwan was chosen as the first stop of the voyage because of its importance to the stability of Asia, said Kushibuchi.
"The state of the relationship between Taiwan and China has a strong impact on peace in Southeast Asia. We do not believe that it is reasonable to use military force to invade Taiwan, and we encourage non-profit organizations in Taiwan and in the region to promote peaceful solutions," said Kushibuchi.
Both Peace Boat and Peacetime Foundation representatives stressed that NGOs have an important role to play.
"Taiwan's hands are tied when it comes to foreign and cross-strait relations politically, but NGOs have a lot of power, because our position is more flexible," said Peacetime Foundation executive director Chien Hsi-chieh.
Peace Boat decided to work with the Peacetime Foundation because of their similar pacifist goals, the groups said.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
RSS