Nearly three-quarters of respondents in a poll by the Democratic Progressive Party support the student protesters’ demands for a renegotiation of the cross-strait service trade agreement, and more than half said President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) should take responsibility for the current turmoil.
The survey, conducted on Tuesday, found that 71.6 percent of respondents supported the students, who have been occupying the legislative floor since March 18 and demanding that the controversial agreement be shelved and negotiations with China be restarted.
Asked who or what insitution should bear responsibility for the turmoil, 58 percent said it was Ma, while the government and protesting students tied at a very distant second place with 3.8 percent each.
Those who thought that Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺), the Legislative Yuan, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers, DPP lawmakers or Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) should be held responsible ranged between 1.2 and 2.9 percent.
“It’s unusual to see such a lopsided result in a survey on social issues. The results clearly show mainstream public opinion on the issue,” DPP spokesperson Lin Chun-hsien (林俊憲) told a press conference.
Public opinion on another key issue — the government’s handling of the eviction of protesters at the Executive Yuan on Monday — was also clear, with 83.3 percent saying that they were not happy with the police crackdown.
Meanwhile, 61.5 percent of respondents said the government should make concessions to the students, with only 18.2 percent saying the opposite and 20.2 percent not giving an answer.
Although support for the students’ occupation of the legislative floor was not as lopsided, there were still 55.6 percent who agreed with the action, while 37.2 percent disagreed and 7.2 percent gave no answer.
The student movement may also have been successful in raising public awareness, with 67 percent of respondents saying they know more about the service trade pact now than before.
The survey also found that 69 percent of respondents said that the student movement would have a positive impact on the nation’s future development.
The survey collected 916 valid samples and had a margin of error of 3.31 percentage points.
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