Minister of Education Cheng Jei-cheng (鄭瑞城) said yesterday that converting the official phonetic Romanization system used by the government from Tongyong to Hanyu Pinyin would cost an estimated NT$1 billion (US$30.6 million).
During a question-and-answer session with Chinese Nationalist Party Legislator Chiang Yi-hsiung (江義雄) at the legislature, Cheng dismissed media reports that changing the Pinyin system would cost between NT$7 billion and NT$8 billion.
MISUNDERSTANDING
“The public mistakenly believed that changing the Pinyin system would cost a lot of money. The media also reported yesterday that the cost could be as much as NT$7 billion to NT$8 billion, but this is impossible,” Cheng said.
Cheng said the project would cost NT$1 billion “at most.”
“Hanyu Pinyin is the world’s standard [Romanization] system. Our government also decided in 1999 that we should use the system, but the decision was later changed to Tongyong for certain reasons,” Cheng said.
The government adopted the Tongyong Pinyin system under the former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government.
The pan-blue camp criticized the decision at the time, saying it was motivated by political and ideological reasons. Hanyu Pinyin was rejected because it is used in China, it said.
The Executive Yuan recently announced it would switch to Hanyu Pinyin to bring Taiwan in line with international standards.
Hanyu Pinyin was developed in China in the late 1950s.
Chiang suggested to the minister and Premier Liu Chao-shiuan (劉兆玄) that the two Pinyin systems both be used in Taiwan.
“Over the past several decades, the bickering over the two Pinyin systems has resulted in a lose-lose situation and an inconsistent Pinyin system,” Chiang said.
JUST FOR FOREIGNERS
“The Romanization system is used for those who are not familiar with Mandarin,” Liu said. “In other words, it is Pinyin for foreigners. Therefore, how convenient the system is for foreigners is very important.”
“The Pinyin system is not intended for Taiwanese people, since we can simply read the Chinese characters on road signs,” Liu said.
Keeping Tongyong Pinyin would cause “unnecessary” confusion for foreign visitors, Liu said.
“The US and the [rest of the] world have adopted Hanyu Pinyin, while Taiwan remains the only country that uses Tongyong,” he said.
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday thanked Palau for its continued support of Taiwan's international participation, as Taipei was once again excluded from the World Health Assembly (WHA) currently taking place in Switzerland. "Palau has never stopped voicing support for Taiwan" in the UN General Assembly, the WHO and other UN-affiliated agencies, Lai said during a bilateral meeting with visiting Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. "We have been profoundly touched by these endorsements," Lai said, praising the Pacific island nation's firm support as "courageous." Lai's remarks came as Taiwan was excluded for the ninth consecutive year from the WHA, which is being held in
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
At least three people died and more than a dozen were injured yesterday afternoon when a vehicle struck a group of pedestrians in New Taipei City’s Sansia District (三峽). The incident happened at about 4pm when a car rammed into pedestrians at an intersection near Bei Da Elementary School. Witnesses said the sedan, being driven at a high speed, ran a red light, knocking scooters out of the way and hitting students crossing the road before careening into a median near the intersection of Guocheng and Guoguang streets. The incident resulted in three deaths and 13 injuries, including the driver, a 78-year-old man
RSS