Academics yesterday said Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (
A General History of Taiwan was written in the 1920s by Lien's grandfather Lien Heng (連橫) as the first history book on Taiwan.
"The book was autographed by Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) when his government came to Taiwan in 1949, so we infer that the book takes no position on Taiwan's identity," said Chen I-shen (陳儀深), deputy chairman of the Northern Taiwan Society and a research fellow at the Academia Sinica.
He said the book describes Taiwan as being ruled and built by the Qing Dynasty. But historical evidence shows Taiwan did not belong to China before 1684, the year it was occupied by Qing officials.
Chen said he did not know Lien's intentions in choosing to present the book as a gift to Chinese leaders.
"He might feel honor or feel proud of his grandfather for writing such a history book," he said. "But on the other hand, Lien has taken a pro-China position and supports the `one China' principle, so he might be taking the book with him to underscore Taiwan's historical relationship with China."
Chen said the book had not been written to oppose the Japanese colonial regime, and Lien Heng had managed to get two Japanese governors-general of Taiwan to autograph it.
And now, in addition to Chiang and Japanese colonial officials, Chinese leaders would also join in honoring the book, he said. The book, astonishingly, has been able to attract three hostile parties, but has no Taiwanese national identity in mind, he said.
He said, however, that the book contains many factual mistakes, adding that books such as Qing History and Ming History written by officials of the two dynasties, offered more accurate histories of Taiwan.
Yang Tsung-lin (
He said the book had originally been partly addressed to young Taiwanese, to help them learn and remember Chinese civilization despite being under Japan's colonial rule.
However, Wu Mi-cha (
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
EVA Airways on Saturday said that it had suspended a pilot and opened an investigation after he allegedly lost his temper and punched the first officer several times as their plane was taxiing before takeoff at Los Angeles International Airport. According to a report published on Thursday by The Reporter, the incident occurred after the flight’s Malaysian first officer tried to warn the Taiwanese pilot, surnamed Wen (文), that he was taxiing faster than the speed limit of 30 knots (55.6kph). After alerting the pilot several times without response, the first officer manually applied the brakes in accordance with standard operating
NOT AN OPENING: Trump’s violation of international law does not affect China’s consideration in attacking Taiwan; Beijing lacks capability, not precedent, an official said Taiwanese officials see the US’ capture of the president of Venezuela as a powerful deterrent to Beijing’s aggression and a timely reminder of the US’ ability to defeat militaries equipped with Chinese-made weapons. The strikes that toppled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro signaled to authoritarian leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), US President Donald Trump’s willingness to use military might for international affairs core to US interests, one senior official in Taipei’s security circle said. That reassured Taiwan, the person said. Taipei has also dismissed the idea that Trump’s apparent violation of international law could embolden Beijing, said the official, who was not
RSS