President Chen Shui-bian's (
While the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) legislative caucus praised the president's decision as evidence of his wisdom, the pan-blue alliance said that the decision is nothing but populism and that it will only belittle the nation's status.
DPP caucus whip Lai Ching-teh (
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
"The caucus highly appreciates the president's decision to attend the march," Lai said. "Participating in the event but not addressing the crowd is not only sound judgment but also evidence of his political wisdom."
BULLIED
Despite opposition parties' criticism of Premier Frank Hsieh (
"In the face of China's Anti-Secession Law, every Taiwanese person, including government employees, is upset by China's bullying behavior and they have the absolute right to voice their displeasure," Wu said.
TSU caucus whip Lo Chih-ming (
"The president should take advantage of the opportunity to send a strong message to the international community that we oppose the Anti-Secession Law on behalf of the 23 million people of Taiwan," he said. "It sounds a little bit weird for the president to participate in the march but not address the crowd."
People First Party (PFP) Legislator Lee Yung-ping (
"It is a rare phenomenon for the head of state to take to the streets," she said. "It might lead the international community to think that Taiwan is part of China and that Taiwanese leaders have to stage a protest to have their voices heard."
Lee also questioned whether Chen's decision was aimed at courting pro-independence voters, some of whom have vowed to switch their support to the TSU, following a meeting between Chen and PFP Chairman James Soong (
"His decision not only tramples on the national interest, it also creates more problems," she said.
Another PFP Legislator Hwang Yih-jiau (
"If that is the case, political confrontation between the pan-blue and pan-green is expected," he said.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus whip Chen Chieh (
"While Taiwan is an independent sovereign state, what does a Chinese law have anything to do with us, and why are our president and premier so nervous about it?" he said. "If their taking to the streets helps solve the problem, I am all for it, but I seriously doubt it."
`A JOKE'
Chen Chieh also called on the president and premier to spend more time contemplating how to better people's livelihoods and public security.
Another KMT lawmaker, Tsai Chin-lung (
"It is a joke that the premier encourages his ministers to go to a demonstration," he said. "I had originally planned to go, but now I've change my mind."
Meanwhile, a coalition of foreign residents gathered on the square inside the legislative compound and chanted slogans to voice their support for Saturday's march.
Michael Fahey, an American, said that it is not necessary at this point to do anything more dramatic than stage a demonstration.
"People have criticized this march as not having a specific goal, but I think that the most important thing is to make sure that the international community hears Taiwan's voice. I think that is the main point," he said.
Fahey last week began asking other foreign residents of Taiwan to join Saturday's march through the Web site forumosa.com.
Interested people are welcome to meet up at the side gate of National Taiwan University at 1pm tomorrow.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
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