President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) trip to Pope John Paul II's funeral is an unprecedented opportunity for Taiwan's president to stand alongside other state leaders on the world stage at an international event, political analysts said.
"Chen's visit to the Vatican is a great diplomatic breakthrough for Taiwan," said Ruan Ming (阮銘), an adviser at the Taiwan Research Institute's strategic and international studies department.
"Despite China's incessant hostility [and attempts] to squeeze Taiwan's breathing space in the international community, a president from Taiwan is able to, for the first time, set foot on European soil," Ruan said.
Not only Chen was the first sitting president from Taiwan to make a trip to Europe, his attendance at the pope's funeral today marks the first time that a president from Taiwan has been able to visit the Holy See since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1942 between the two countries, political commentators said.
Noting the approximately 200 state and religious leaders, including US President George W. Bush, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, French President Jacques Chirac, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan are expected to take part in the papal ceremony to pay their final tribute to the late Pope, Ruan said, "Chen's attendance at the papal ceremony not only allows Chen a rare chance to meet with heads of state, it also provides an opportunity to enhance Taiwan's visibility on the world stage. Against the backdrop of China's enactment of the `Anti-Secession' Law, Chen's visit could help bring Taiwan's plight to light in the international community," he said.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Su Chi (蘇起) hailed the trip as well, saying it will be one of Chen's most important overseas trips as president.
Thomas Hung (洪茂雄), a graduate research fellow in international relations at National Chengchi University said the visit suggested that Chen had a keen diplomatic sense, in that he was able to seize the opportunity to make the trip a reality. Hung noted that during the Cold War era, "funeral diplomacy" was a common practice among western countries.
"The funerals of heads of state offer a rare opportunity for world leaders to come together and meet one another as they pay last respects at the passing of a leader," Hung said. "One classic example of `funeral diplomacy,' Hung said, was the funeral of German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, which brought together US President Lyndon B. Johnson and his French counterpart Charles de Gaulle a venue to converse despite a grudge between them.
"China's failure to send a representative to Pope John Paul II's funeral [to protest Chen's presence] is a diplomatic slap in its own face," Hung said. "This would not go unnoticed by members of the international community," Hung said, adding that "China's conduct at time like this when the whole international community is paying tribute to the Pope ... exposes its evil nature to the world."
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 7pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the temblor was at sea, about 69.9km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 30.9km, it said. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County’s Changbin Township (長濱), where it measured 5 on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 4 in Hualien, Nantou, Chiayi, Yunlin, Changhua and Miaoli counties, as well as
STAY AWAY: An official said people should avoid disturbing snakes, as most do not actively attack humans, but would react defensively if threatened Taitung County authorities yesterday urged the public to stay vigilant and avoid disturbing snakes in the wild, following five reported snakebite cases in the county so far this year. Taitung County Fire Department secretary Lin Chien-cheng (林建誠) said two of the cases were in Donghe Township (東河) and involved the Taiwan habus, one person was bit by a Chinese pit viper near the South Link Railway and the remaining two were caused by unidentified snakes. He advised residents near fields to be cautious of snakes hiding in shady indoor areas, especially when entering or leaving their homes at night. In case of a
Credit departments of farmers’ and fishers’ associations blocked a total of more than NT$180 million (US$6.01 million) from being lost to scams last year, National Police Agency (NPA) data showed. The Agricultural Finance Agency (AFA) said last week that staff of farmers’ and fishers’ associations’ credit departments are required to implement fraud prevention measures when they serve clients at the counter. They would ask clients about personal financial management activities whenever they suspect there might be a fraud situation, and would immediately report the incident to local authorities, which would send police officers to the site to help, it said. NPA data showed
ENERGY RESILIENCE: Although Alaska is open for investments, Taiwan is sourcing its gas from the Middle East, and the sea routes carry risks, Ho Cheng-hui said US government officials’ high-profile reception of a Taiwanese representative at the Alaska Sustainable Energy Conference indicated the emergence of an Indo-Pacific energy resilience alliance, an academic said. Presidential Office Secretary-General Pan Men-an (潘孟安) attended the conference in Alaska on Thursday last week at the invitation of the US government. Pan visited oil and gas facilities with senior US officials, including US Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy and US Senator Daniel Sullivan. Pan attending the conference on behalf of President William Lai (賴清德) shows a significant elevation in diplomatic representation,
RSS