Premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday echoed President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) remarks about Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan's (連戰) planned trip to China, saying that Lien should obtain government authorization for any activities that could affect the national interest.
"I must say again, we welcome all kinds of visits by anybody to China. However, when it comes to the national security, the nation's interests or political issues, an authorization from the government is required so that the country's legal rights and interests will not be jeopardized," Hsieh said.
Hsieh made his remarks during the opening speech of a two-day retreat for all Cabinet members at Wulai's Yun Hsien Resort (
The president came back from the Pope's funeral and arrived at CKS International Airport at 3pm. During a press conference at the airport, he urged Lien to consult with the government if he plans to meet and talk to Chinese officials about potential agreements.
As of press time yesterday, neither Lien nor the KMT had confirmed a date for Lien's trip to China.
Hsieh said that the idea of "co-existence" will guide the government when it comes to future cross-strait relations. In the current circumstances, he said, courage and patience are needed to carry out the government's policy, and national unity is also paramount.
"We should understand each other and respect each other so we can unite to protect and defend our country," the premier said.
Hsieh also said that his Cabinet will pursue any necessary policies and projects that are in the public interest, even if relevant bills or budgets have not been approved by the legislature.
"As long as they are good for the people, we have to [pursue them] anyway," Hsieh said. "If related laws or regulations are not passed, we will try our best to do it in other ways so we will not break the law. If the budget is not approved, we will try our best to save as much money as possible during the process."
In the first session of the seminar, which lasted for approximately three hours, 34 Cabinet members hammered out rough agreements and resolutions. Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (
"`Innovation' is the key for Taiwan to move forward," said Cabinet Spokesman Chou Jung-tai (
A group of Taiwanese-American and Tibetan-American students at Harvard University on Saturday disrupted Chinese Ambassador to the US Xie Feng’s (謝鋒) speech at the school, accusing him of being responsible for numerous human rights violations. Four students — two Taiwanese Americans and two from Tibet — held up banners inside a conference hall where Xie was delivering a speech at the opening ceremony of the Harvard Kennedy School China Conference 2024. In a video clip provided by the Coalition of Students Resisting the CCP (Chinese Communist Party), Taiwanese-American Cosette Wu (吳亭樺) and Tibetan-American Tsering Yangchen are seen holding banners that together read:
UNAWARE: Many people sit for long hours every day and eat unhealthy foods, putting them at greater risk of developing one of the ‘three highs,’ an expert said More than 30 percent of adults aged 40 or older who underwent a government-funded health exam were unaware they had at least one of the “three highs” — high blood pressure, high blood lipids or high blood sugar, the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) said yesterday. Among adults aged 40 or older who said they did not have any of the “three highs” before taking the health exam, more than 30 percent were found to have at least one of them, Adult Preventive Health Examination Service data from 2022 showed. People with long-term medical conditions such as hypertension or diabetes usually do not
POLICE INVESTIGATING: A man said he quit his job as a nurse at Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital as he had been ‘disgusted’ by the behavior of his colleagues A man yesterday morning wrote online that he had witnessed nurses taking photographs and touching anesthetized patients inappropriately in Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital’s operating theaters. The man surnamed Huang (黃) wrote on the Professional Technology Temple bulletin board that during his six-month stint as a nurse at the hospital, he had seen nurses taking pictures of patients, including of their private parts, after they were anesthetized. Some nurses had also touched patients inappropriately and children were among those photographed, he said. Huang said this “disgusted” him “so much” that “he felt the need to reveal these unethical acts in the operating theater
Heat advisories were in effect for nine administrative regions yesterday afternoon as warm southwesterly winds pushed temperatures above 38°C in parts of southern Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 3:30pm yesterday, Tainan’s Yujing District (玉井) had recorded the day’s highest temperature of 39.7°C, though the measurement will not be included in Taiwan’s official heat records since Yujing is an automatic rather than manually operated weather station, the CWA said. Highs recorded in other areas were 38.7°C in Kaohsiung’s Neimen District (內門), 38.2°C in Chiayi City and 38.1°C in Pingtung’s Sandimen Township (三地門), CWA data showed. The spell of scorching