The adoption of a Westernized writing format for government documents is not an attempt at desinicization, but a concerted effort at globalizing Taiwan's ossified bureaucracies and upgrading the nation's competitive edge, Premier Yu Shyi-kun said yesterday.
Although the reform measure did not seem significant, Yu said that it would have a momentous impact on the government's efficiency and the nation's competitiveness.
"The government's attempts to adopt a Westernized writing style for official documents over the past decades will finally bear fruit today, after being thwarted by calls to revive the so-called `Chinese culture,'" Yu said.
"We've wasted 30 to 40 years in an attempt to campaign for a change in writing style, and we cannot afford to wait any longer," he said.
Yu made the remarks yesterday morning while delivering the opening speech at a ceremony of the adoption of a Westernized writing format for government documents and the publication of the integrated online edition of a government bulletin, the Executive Yuan Gazette.
The official bulletin is designed to integrate 20 government bulletins published by the Executive Yuan and 19 of its ministries.
In addition to the online edition, the publication will continue to be printed daily, except for weekends and national holidays.
As even the Chinese government has already changed its writing format to a Western style, Yu said that it does not make sense to criticize Taiwan for adopting the same writing style as an act of desinicization.
"If adopting a Westernized writing format for government documents is desinicization, then it is China who has taken the initiative and gotten rid of `Chinese culture,' not Taiwan," he said.
Yu also called on the public not to politicize the matter because, Yu said, the reforms are being undertaken to get ready for the era of globalization and upgrade the nation's competitive edge.
"If some traditions make things insufficient, obsolete and inflexible, they have to be done away with," he said.
In line with global trends, the Cabinet in August last year approved draft amendments to the Decree Governing the Writing of Official Documents (公文程序條例), which would adopt the Western writing format for government documents. The draft was approved by the legislature in May last year.
Prior to the legal revision, government documents -- except for charts, graphics and statistical reports -- ran from right to left and from top to bottom.
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Hualien Branch of the High Court today sentenced the main suspect in the 2021 fatal derailment of the Taroko Express to 12 years and six months in jail in the second trial of the suspect for his role in Taiwan’s deadliest train crash. Lee Yi-hsiang (李義祥), the driver of a crane truck that fell onto the tracks and which the the Taiwan Railways Administration's (TRA) train crashed into in an accident that killed 49 people and injured 200, was sentenced to seven years and 10 months in the first trial by the Hualien District Court in 2022. Hoa Van Hao, a
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
RSS