Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) officials' difficulties in participating in the annual Liberal International (LI) congress was more evidence that China is blocking Taiwan's international space, Legislator Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴), the director of the party's Department of International Affairs, said yesterday.
In a news conference yesterday afternoon, Hsiao denounced China's suppression of the DPP's attendance at LI's annual congress in Bulgaria last week.
According to Hsiao, Presidential Office Secretary-General Yu Shyi-kun was to have represented Taiwan and the DPP at the congress, held from May 12 to May 14.
However, because of Beijing's pressure, Yu could not make the trip to Bulgaria.
Therefore, DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (
She was accompanied by the director of the DPP's Department of Woman's Development, Hsu Chia-ching (
All three were forbidden from using their titles as DPP officials when applying for their Bulgarian visas, Hsiao said.
She said they were also followed throughout their visit to Bulgaria by two unidentified persons sent by the Chinese embassy in Sofia.
These two people even tried to physically block her from attending the LI congress, she said.
Hsiao was elected as LI's vice president during the congress -- an event she described as the biggest accomplishment of her participation in the congress.
Liberal International is a federation of liberal political parties from around the world. It was established in 1947.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
RSS