Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday said cheap and fast broadband Internet services were now considered basic human rights and she pledged to improve information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure to catch up with South Korea by 2016.
In a meeting with leaders of the ICT sector, Tsai unveiled her policies for the industry with an emphasis on broadband Internet service, which she said should be the foundation for all industries as well as people’s lives.
Citing statistics by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Tsai said the average download speed in Taiwan was 20 times slower than that of South Korea, which is unacceptable for a country with advanced ICT development such as Taiwan.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
The administration of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who is seeking re-election, has not done enough to develop the sector as Ma’s 12 i-Taiwan Projects only managed to provide any resident who has a mobile number 512 kilobits per second of free bandwidth, she said.
If she were elected next month, Tsai said, her administration would build up infrastructure for broadband services and lower Internet fees so broadband speeds would catch up to South Korea’s by 2016.
She would not stop there, she added, as the government should also think ahead and engage in the establishment of an optical-fiber network and 4G mobile broadband service.
More importantly, neither the government nor any private firms should monopolize the “last mile” and make extravagant profits out of it, she said.
She also pledged to promote the industry of Internet-based innovation and establish a digital creative fund, which focuses on tasks such as developing mobile applications, to create 30,000 local job opportunities.
The government would collaborate with private companies to establish a cloud-computing platform for digital creative content and develop Taiwan into the global center of digital creative content.
Tsai said the government should help the sector with a well-planned system on funding and support and try to develop the industry, which is one of a few with economic and strategic significance for Taiwan, and make Taiwan a “silicon island” and a global leader in digital content.
Tsai is expected to challenge Ma today on what the DPP describes as his miserable performance, in the first of three televised presidential platform presentations, the party said.
Tsai, Ma and People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) are scheduled to participate in three presentations — scheduled for today, Dec. 30 and Jan. 6 — which will be broadcast live by various TV stations.
The format of the presentations is fundamentally different from the two presidential debates, which were held on Dec. 3 and Dec. 17, with no question-and-answer session for candidates to pose questions to each other, said a DPP aide, who wished to remain anonymous because he was not authorized to speak on the matter.
However, candidates could still take the opportunity to attack their opponents, he said, adding that if Ma attacked Tsai over the so-called “Yu Chang case,” Tsai would be forced to question Ma on his role in the merger of Fubon Bank and TaipeiBank.
The “Yu Chang case” refers to the allegation by KMT lawmakers that there were irregularities in Tsai’s endorsement of a government investment in a biotechnology joint venture in 2007. The Fubon case refers to the DPP’s accusation that there was a conflict of interest when Ma was Taipei mayor in the merger between Taipei Bank and Fubon Bank.
According to the DPP aide, Tsai would like to concentrate during the platform presentation on her policies, which are based on the DPP’s 10-year policy guideline, and highlight the issues of social justice, regional development, job creation, developing the local economy and a social care network for the elderly and children.
In terms of her China policy, Tsai would emphasize safeguarding Taiwan’s sovereignty and the formulation of a “Taiwan consensus.”
The Central Election Commission will also hold similar platform presentations for the three vice presidential candidates on Jan. 2 and for Aboriginal legislative candidates on Jan. 4.
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
Reports of Taiwanese going missing, being detained or interrogated, or having their personal liberties restricted in China increased about fourfold annually last year, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Last year, 221 Taiwanese who traveled to China were reported missing, were detained and interrogated, or otherwise had their personal freedom restricted, up from 55 the previous year, the council said. Reopening group tours to China would be risky, as it would leave travelers with no way to seek help through official channels after Beijing shut down dialogue between the associations tasked with handling cross-strait tourism, the MAC said. Taipei’s Taiwan Strait Tourism
SHIFT: Taiwan is evolving from a transit stop into a tourist destination, with more international travelers willing to spend on tours, dining and cultural activities Taiwan rose three places in the World Tourism Barometer to 36th globally in 2024, with international tourism revenue of US$10.028 billion, the Tourism Administration said on Monday. The UN Tourism Organization publication said that its focus has switched from whether a country has returned to pre-COVID-19 levels of tourism to the amount spent by a tourist during an overseas trip. The nation last year welcomed 8.57 million international tourists, about 9 percent more than in 2024, with most tourists coming from Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong and Macau, all of which accounted for at least 1 million tourists each. During the first
RSS