President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday paid tribute to Taiwanese democracy pioneer Chiang Wei-shui (蔣渭水) on the 77th anniversary of his death.
Visiting Chiang’s tomb at the Fanlanshan Public Cemetery in Taipei’s Wenshan District, Ma described Chiang as a national hero.
Ma said that Chiang was a hero because he led unarmed militia to fight against the Japanese at a time when they had firm control over many aspects of life.
He said Chiang, who founded the country’s first political party, the Taiwan People’s Party (台灣民眾黨), was not only a politician but also a social reformer who devoted himself to improving women’s rights and helping the disadvantaged.
Chiang formed the Taiwan Culture Association (台灣文化協會) with a group of intellectuals in October 1921. Its aim was to awaken Taiwanese consciousness through cultural enlightenment.
Chiang was imprisoned more than 10 times for defying orders from the Japanese authorities. He died of typhoid in 1931, at the age of 40.
Ma yesterday recounted anecdotes of Chiang to illustrate Chiang’s abhorrence of Japanese imperialism and militarism. He said Chiang had attempted to poison the Japanese emperor, and that he and several medical graduates tried to poison Yuan Shih-kai (袁世凱), a warlord in the early 20th century who overthrew the Republic of China and declared himself emperor.
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
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
LIKE-MINDED COUNTRIES: Despite the threats from outside, Taiwan and Lithuania thrived and developed their economies, former president Tsai Ing-wen said Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Saturday thanked Lithuania for its support of Taiwan, saying that both countries are united as partners in defending democracy. Speaking at a reception organized by the Lithuania-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group welcoming her on her first visit to the Baltic state, Tsai said that while she was president from 2016 to last year, many Lithuanian “friends” visited Taiwan. “And I told myself I have to be here. I am very happy that I am here, a wonderful country and wonderful people,” Tsai said. Taiwan and Lithuania are in similar situations as both are neighbors to authoritarian countries, she
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is to visit the UK during her ongoing European trip, which originally included only Lithuania and Denmark, her office said today. Tsai departed Taiwan for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark, marking her second visit to the continent since her two-term presidency ended in May last year. Her office issued a statement today saying that Tsai would also visit the UK "for a few days," during which she is to meet with UK politicians and Taiwanese professionals, and visit academic and research institutions. Following Tsai's stop in Denmark, she is to visit the
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