The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) deputy legislative caucus whip said yesterday that the government’s UN strategy had “broken the hearts of the Taiwanese people.”
Pan Meng-an (潘孟安) was referring to this year’s UN bid submitted to the UN Secretariat on Thursday by representatives of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the Solomon Islands, two of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies, at the request of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The proposal marks a fresh approach by the government in pushing for UN entry for Taiwan since President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) assumed office on May 20.
The new proposal, submitted ahead of this year’s UN General Assembly meeting set to open on Sept. 16, is significant in that it does not mention the name Taiwan nor the entity of the Republic of China seeking to return to the world body.
The ministry said the proposal was based on the principles of “dignity, pragmatism and flexibility.”
Pan said that Ma’s proposed “diplomatic truce” with China was hypocritical, a sign of surrender and a downgrading of Taiwan’s status.
The proposal to the UN caters to “Ma’s stance of capitulation” and by omitting the name Taiwan, does not demonstrate the Taiwanese resolve to join the international community, Pan said.
Meanwhile, DPP legislative whip Chang Hwa-kuan (張花冠) said Taiwan’s sovereignty should be insisted upon at all times, regardless of the international situation.
Saying that membership in the UN gives a country “legitimacy,” Chang asked how the government can put forward a proposal that does not include the country’s name.
“If we don’t even insist on our name, then we can’t be considered a country. And if that’s the case, then we don’t need foreign relations,” he said, asking whether the government was planning to abolish the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and downgrade the government’s status to that of a local government.
DPP Legislator Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮) said Ma’s recent downplaying of his status as president during his transit stop in the US was aimed at catering to China’s demands, adding that the president has acted like “he wants to be a model student of Beijing.”
The UN bid is the same in that it is based on a desire to avoid angering Beijing, Chai said, adding that the bid has “cheated the Taiwanese.”
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
RSS