Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) yesterday criticized the Government Information Office's advertisement to campaign for the UN bid, saying the advertisement's title "Unfair," which is intended to highlight the UN's unfairness in excluding Taiwan from the UN, is likely to create the impression that the UN is treating Taiwan fairly.
Speaking at the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) weekly Central Standing Committee, Lu said the ad, which is being circulated in New York City, might not necessarily deliver the expected message; rather, it might be interpreted as meaning that the UN is treating Taiwan fairly.
PHOTO: WANG PEI-LIN, TAIPEI TIMES
DPP Deputy Secretary-General Chung Chia-pin (鍾佳濱) yesterday quoted Lu as saying that "None of us is in New York to see the effect of this ad or to know whether it has delivered the expected message. The design of the ad, including the words and color arrangements, might not give the target audience a clear enough idea about what the ad is trying to say; rather it could cause a misunderstanding."
Lu urged the GIO to modify the design of the advertisement to allow the target audience to get a better idea about what it means.
Lu was speaking in response to a report made by Executive Yuan Secretary-General Authur Iap (
The vice president yesterday opposed Yu's reference to the country as "Taiwan, ROC," saying the comma separating Taiwan and ROC reduces Taiwan into a part of the Republic of China. She insisted that Taiwan is the ROC and there shouldn't be any attempts to reduce Taiwan's status.
Lu said the discussion surrounding Yu's description of the country as "Taiwan, ROC" should come to an end.
In response to the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) recent discussion that that Taiwan equals the ROC, the Tainan County Commissioner Su Huan-chih (蘇煥智), also a member of the Central Standing Committee, yesterday proposed that the DPP should initiate a national identity campaign in the run up to the legislative elections.
Su said that while the KMT is proposing changing its central rationale on Taiwan's status in a bid to recognize the growing "localization" force, and the DPP is in the process of encapsulating ideas of ethnic diversity and national unity in the party charter, the timing is ripe for the country to initiate a nationwide campaign to further bolster the public conciousness of Taiwan's independence.
Su's proposal met with a positive response, and the party headquarters have decided to study the possibility of including the proposal in the agenda for the year-end legislative election campaign.
In response to the party's campaign, Nantou County Commissioner Lin Tsung-nan (林宗男) yesterday expressed concerns about the Taiwan Solidarity Union's emerging power, which he said could overtake the DPP's traditional line in supporting Taiwan independence.
DPP Legislator Trong Chai (
Reacting to Chai's suggestion, Lu, who presided over yesterday's CSC meeting on behalf of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said the issue is a huge matter and should be further discussed after the president returns to the country.
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit