The various political parties reacted predictably yesterday to Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng's (王金平) proposal to reactivate a cross-strait task force mechanism and embark on an "ice-breaking journey" to China to help break the current cross-strait impasse.
Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯), caucus whip of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), said that the DPP welcomes anything that will be conducive to cross-strait peace.
However, if Wang wants to conduct the visit on behalf of the legislature, he should "exercise caution," Tsai said.
He said that Beijing had always tried to undermine Taiwan's sovereignty and said Wang should be alert that his status as a legislative speaker was not undermined by Beijing.
Meanwhile, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) said it will support Wang's proposal to activate the cross-strait task force mechanism in the legislature and visit China.
KMT Legislator Tseng Yung-chuan (曾永權) claimed that Beijing has given up hope on President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and that it was impossible for Beijing to ever resume talks with the Chen administration.
Judging from Chen's campaign theme in the 2004 presidential election, cross-strait relations will continue to be strained and Wang's advocacy of a cross-strait task force "comes in the nick of time," he said.
Tseng also said that cross-strait charter flights during the Lunar New Year are being organized by the KMT because Chen's government was incapable of doing the job.
The KMT has coordinated with six local air carriers to call on the Mainland Affairs Council to help set up charter services for Taiwanese businessmen operating in China and their dependents who wish to return to Taiwan for the holiday. The People First Party said that it will be pleased to see Wang lead a delegation to China.
Liu Wen-hsiung (劉文雄), the PFP caucus whip, said that the PFP will also send representatives to take part in the proposed cross-strait task force.
But the Taiwan Solidarity Union, an ally of the DPP, said it would be "inappropriate" to reactivate the cross-strait task force, which was first launched in 2000 but has been inactive ever since.
TSU caucus whip Huang Tsung-yuan (黃宗源) said that the proposed task force should be appointed by Chen and formed by the government rather than by the legislature.
If the task force is formed according to the ratio of legislative seats held by each party, he questioned whether it would represent the nation or just the legislature itself.
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai