A Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) official yesterday said that government agencies had struggled to decide whether to approve Chinese tycoon and philanthropist Chen Guangbiao’s (陳光標) visit to Taiwan, during which he is expected to make substantial donations to disadvantaged families.
MAC Deputy Minister Liu Te-shun (劉德勳) said the government agencies handling Chen’s case agonized over the decision as they were caught between polarized public opinion on the visit.
“It is a good thing to bring a little warmth in the chill of winter, but due to Chen’s particular style, the low-income families [who receive money] are faced with a challenge,” Liu said, apparently referring to Chen’s taste for heavily publicized philanthropic trips around China.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
In one donation stunt in China, he piled up a “wall of banknotes,” before giving them away.
However, Liu said that he thought Taiwanese society was mature enough to face the issue rationally.
Liu added that TV interviews were not on Chen’s itinerary when the application was approved by the National Immigration Agency (NIA) on Tuesday.
After Chen changed his itinerary and gave an interview to a TV station yesterday, Liu said he would have to check with the NIA to better understand the situation regarding Chen’s visa.
If politics are involved in the charity work, “it then should be renounced,” Liu added.
Earlier yesterday at a separate setting, exiled Chinese dissident Wuer Kaixi (吾爾開希) said Taiwanese should be more tolerant and look at Chen’s benevolent act with a more positive attitude.
“If he wants to hand out money, respect and thank him. Even if the way he does it is different from what we expect, we also should respect him, even though we know we would never do it in that way,” he said. “What it comes down to is how the people who receive the money feel because it is more important than how we feel. They might think it is a good thing.”
While some have criticized Chen’s handouts as a “united front” tactic, Wuer Kaixi said the term had been abused.
“Taiwan does not need to be so afraid of the united front tactics of the Chinese Communist Party [CCP],” he said. “Taiwanese should not worry that people with low moral values will have any sway on those with high moral values.”
The way that Chen hands out the money in such a high-profile manner reflects the yawning chasm between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait in terms of moral values, Wuer Kaixi said.
“Many of my friends who have visited Beijing and Shanghai tell me there are a lot more skyscrapers there,” he said. “I usually laugh and tell them that China’s high efficiency is based on the sacrifices of its own people. Taiwan is not as efficient because it fully respects individual rights and that is nothing to be ashamed of.”
Asked whether the government should ask Chen to keep a low profile during his visit, Wuer Kaixi said he did not think it was necessary, as Taiwanese society is tolerant, open and diverse.
“Taiwan should not ask a Chinese philanthropist to do what they want him to do because that is something the CCP would do to a Taiwanese philanthropist,” he said. “That is the difference between Taiwan and China.”
Wuer Kaixi said it would be nice if it were true that Chen was planning to change the way he gives out the money, but he said he hoped such a change would be made because Chen was touched by Taiwanese people rather than because of pressure exerted by legislators in the opposition parties.
“I think it would be better if opposition legislators were more tolerant of benevolent acts, even if they have a different position and ideology about a particular matter,” he said.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost