The Junior Chamber International Taiwan (JCI Taiwan) urged the public yesterday to boycott the two upcoming referendums on the country's bid to join the UN, which are set to be held alongside the March 22 presidential election.
Making the call during a news conference in Taichung, Shen Po-chang (沈伯璋), JCI Taiwan vice president in charge of international affairs, claimed the referendums were unhelpful to the UN bid because they are only a tool being employed by the parties to try to influence the outcome of the election.
"Although joining the United Nations is the common desire of the whole nation, we will not be able to fulfil the wish whether the referendums are passed or not," Shen said.
He announced that the group would hold a series of events in Taipei, Hsinchu, Taichung and Kaohsiung today to promote their campaign to boycott the referendums to ensure "a smooth path" for the presidential election.
Meanwhile, a parade with statues of local deities aimed at promoting the Democratic Progressive Party referendum on the country's bid to join the UN using the name Taiwan arrived in Taipei yesterday.
The parade, kicked off on Friday in Keelung City, aims to promote the referendum on a 13-day round-the-nation tour.
With six balloon statues of deities widely worshipped, including Matsu (
"We must work hard together to achieve the goal of entering the United Nations through the blessings of the gods," said Tchen Yu-chiou (陳郁秀), secretary-general of the National Cultural Association which organized the tour.
The Ministry of Finance this afternoon announced the winning numbers for the March-April uniform invoice lottery. The winning number for the NT$10 million (US$318,060) special prize is 19531471, and the winning number for the NT$2 million grand prize is 85941329. Three numbers were drawn for the NT$200,000 first prize: 07225810, 20231230 and 83518781. Those with receipts matching the last seven digits of any of the first-prize numbers will win the NT$40,000 second prize, while those matching the last six digits will win the NT$10,000 third prize. Those whose receipts match the last five digits of the first-prize numbers can claim the NT$4,000 fourth prize,
SIX SUBSIDIES: The monthly allowance for older farmers is to increase to NT$10,000, and NT$5,000 is to be given to homemakers under the national pension system, Lai said The government is to implement major welfare policies for disadvantaged groups, including raising the monthly allowance for older farmers to NT$10,000 and providing homemakers with NT$5,000 per month, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday. Lai made the remarks during a visit to Wangling Temple in Chiayi County, saying that the planned increases were being introduced amid economic growth and an increase in tax revenue. Touting a policy, in which the government plans to provide a monthly allowance of NT$5,000 for every child under the age of 18 in a bid to address Taiwan’s low birthrate, Lai said that if received for the
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ISOLATION: The outposts would serve as support and backup bases, forcing US forces to either face China head-on or reroute, increasing travel time and operational costs China’s outposts in the South China Sea could be used to delay and constrain foreign forces during a conflict in the Taiwan Strait, giving Beijing a critical window to carry out amphibious landing and blockade operations, a report said. The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) forward operating bases on islands and reclaimed features in the South China Sea could delay foreign forces long enough for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to secure a key 48-to-72-hour window in the Taiwan Strait, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council found. The report, conducted by the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, examined
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