The legislative caucus of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday that Taiwan will "never fail" if the two sides of the Taiwan Strait engage in government-to-government dialogue.
DPP caucus whip Lai Ching-teh (
Lai said that state-to-state dialogue would conform with the interests of the US and Taiwan.
He said that the US saw China as the most important power in the Asia-Pacific region in regard to the maintenance of peace and stability, and that Taiwan could be a key force in the process.
If China took advantage of opposition parties for political gain as part of "united front" tactics, then Taiwan would either be unstable or end up under Chinese control -- both of which would be unwelcome developments for the US, he said.
Lai said Chen was elected by the people and that with the people behind him, government-to-government talks would foil Beijing's attempts to splinter Taiwan.
He also slammed the meeting between Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) and Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) in Beijing on Friday. A platform for more communication between the KMT and the CCP was released in a five-point bulletin after the talks.
Lai said the DPP suspects there is a three-part agenda shared by the KMT and the CCP -- the first being the Lien-Hu meeting, the second an exchange of offices, and thirdly the signing of a peace and trade agreement.
Lien alleged Lien and Hu adjusted the "exchange of offices" to a "communication platform" and changed the "agreement" to a "news bulletin" for fear of violating Taiwanese law.
Yangmingshan National Park authorities yesterday urged visitors to respect public spaces and obey the law after a couple was caught on a camera livestream having sex at the park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) earlier in the day. The Shilin Police Precinct in Taipei said it has identified a suspect and his vehicle registration number, and would summon him for questioning. The case would be handled in accordance with public indecency charges, it added. The couple entered the park at about 11pm on Thursday and began fooling around by 1am yesterday, the police said, adding that the two were unaware of the park’s all-day live
Yangmingshan National Park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) nature area has gone viral after a park livestream camera observed a couple in the throes of intimate congress, which was broadcast live on YouTube, drawing large late-night crowds and sparking a backlash over noise, bright lights and disruption to wildlife habitat. The area’s livestream footage appeared to show a couple engaging in sexual activity on a picnic table in the park on Friday last week, with the uncensored footage streamed publicly online. The footage quickly spread across social media, prompting a tide of visitors to travel to the site to “check in” and recreate the
A former soldier and an active-duty army officer were yesterday indicted for allegedly selling classified military training materials to a Chinese intelligence operative for a total of NT$79,440. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office indicted Chen Tai-yin (陳泰尹) and Lee Chun-ta (李俊達) for contravening the National Security Act (國家安全法) and the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例). Chen left the military in September 2013 after serving alongside then-staff sergeant Lee, now an army lieutenant, at the 21st Artillery Command of the army’s Sixth Corps from 2011 to 2013, according to the indictment. Chen met a Chinese intelligence operative identified as “Wang” (王) through a friend in November
Minister of Digital Affairs Lin Yi-ching (林宜敬) yesterday cited regulatory issues and national security concerns as an expert said that Taiwan is among the few Asian regions without Starlink. Lin made the remarks on Facebook after funP Innovation Group chief executive officer Nathan Chiu (邱繼弘) on Friday said Taiwan and four other countries in Asia — China, North Korea, Afghanistan and Syria — have no access to Starlink. Starlink has become available in 166 countries worldwide, including Ukraine, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, in the six years since it became commercial, he said. While China and North Korea block Starlink, Syria is not