Former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday unveiled his campaign platform for the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairmanship election in May, focusing on three key areas — a feasible China policy, party reform and central government reform.
“I believe that the ‘two constitutions, different interpretations’ (憲法各表) initiative I’ve been advocating for more than three years is a feasible China policy that should help the party cross ‘the last mile’ and return to power [in 2016],” Hsieh said during a meeting with reporters.
While the initiative has not yet been well-received in the party, Hsieh said he welcomed the challenge from anyone who can beat his proposal and satisfy the “three ultimate requirements for the DPP’s China policy” — that it be accepted by Taiwanese, supported by Washington and viewed tolerable by Beijing.
“The US’ view is actually more important than how China feels about it,” he said, citing as an example the US Department of State’s interference with former DPP presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) campaign, which observers said eventually cost Tsai a victory in the 2012 election.
The DPP cannot afford to be marginalized in cross-strait engagement, which has been dominated by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), he said.
“We have to actively seek to play a role and participate in the engagement with confidence,” he said.
Hsieh declined to directly comment on his potential rivals in what many believe would be a three-way race with Tsai and DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌), and categorically denied that he and Tsai had been considering an alliance against Su.
However, Hsieh hinted that Tsai may be better off focusing on another run at the presidency in 2016.
Being a party chairman “is dirty work” and Tsai “might as well let me handle it,” he said.
With regards to party affairs, Hsieh said he has been particularly concerned about the DPP losing touch with its supporters and the public, which is why people “have pretty much decided to abandon the DPP.”
Hsieh proposed to reconnect the party with the people by introducing deliberative democracy, focusing on deliberation and discussion of public policy and political affairs with constituents and party members, and eliminating traditional grassroots organization practices that mainly consist of politicians appearing at wedding ceremonies and funerals.
On reforming the central government, Hsieh said it is imperative to do so because responsible politics has been sorely lacking in recent years, with very few government officials being held accountable for ill-advised and incorrect policies or poorly executed administrative orders.
“With these measures, hopefully the DPP can live up to its name by being a progressive party that always takes the interests of the Taiwanese public as its No. 1 priority,” Hsieh said.
Eight restaurants in Taiwan yesterday secured a one-star rating from the Michelin Guide Taiwan for the first time, while three one-star restaurants from last year’s edition were promoted to two stars. Forty-three restaurants were awarded one star this year, including 34 in Taipei, five in Taichung and four in Kaohsiung. Hosu (好嶼), Chuan Ya (川雅), Sushi Kajin (鮨嘉仁), aMaze (心宴), La Vie by Thomas Buhner, Yuan Yi (元一) and Frassi in Taipei and Front House (方蒔) in Kaohsiung received a one-star rating for the first time. Hosu is known for innovative Taiwanese dishes, while Chuan Ya serves Sichuan cuisine and aMaze specializes
Taitung County is to launch charter flights to Malaysia at the end of this year, after setting up flights to Vietnam and Thailand, the Taitung County Government said yesterday. The new charter flight services, provided by low-cost carrier Batik Air Malaysia, would be part of five-day tour packages for visits to Taitung County or Malaysia. The Batik Air charter flight, with about 200 seats, would take Malaysian tourists to Taitung on Dec. 30 and then at 12:35pm return to Kuala Lumpur with Taiwanese tourists. Another charter flight would bring the Taiwanese home on Jan. 3 next year, arriving at 5:30pm, before taking the
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) plans to ease strained capacity during peak hours by introducing new fare rules restricting passengers traveling without reserved seats in 2026, company Chairman Shih Che (史哲) said Wednesday. THSRC needs to tackle its capacity issue because there have been several occasions where passengers holding tickets with reserved seats did not make it onto their train in stations packed with individuals traveling without a reserved seat, Shih told reporters in a joint interview in Taipei. Non-reserved seats allow travelers maximum flexibility, but it has led to issues relating to quality of service and safety concerns, especially during
An exhibition celebrating Taiwan and Japan’s comic culture opened on Saturday in Taichung, featuring a section that explores Taiwanese reproductions of Japanese comics from when martial law limited Japanese representation. “A Century of Manga Culture: An Encounter of Taiwan and Japan’s Youth” held its Taiwan opening ceremony at Taichung’s National Taiwan Museum of Comics after an initial one-month run in Japan’s Kyoto International Manga Museum between May 24 and June 24. Much like the Kyoto exhibition, the show mainly celebrates the comic connection between Taiwan and Japan through late Taiwanese comic book
RSS