Cabinet spokesperson-to-be Tung Chen-yuan (童振源) yesterday defended Council of Agriculture minister-designate Tsao Chi-hung (曹啟鴻) over his remarks about lifting the ban on importing US pork products, saying Tsao’s comments are in line with the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) four fundamental principles on the issue.
Joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a common aspiration in Taiwan and talks on membership are certain to include whether to lift the ban on importing US pork products, he said.
“The DPP has four basic principles on the issue: ensuring food safety, reducing the impact on the industry, staying in line with international standards and establishing a mechanism to smoothly communicate with all parties,” he said. “It is under such preconditions that we would take care of the pork products import issue in negotiations for the TPP.”
“Tsao’s remarks did not go beyond the four principles. It is just that sometimes, newspapers might focus on different things,” Tung said.
However, DPP lawmakers appeared divided on the import issue.
“It is the government’s responsibility to defend food safety and pig farmer’s rights,” said DPP Legislator Liu Chien-kuo (劉建國), who represents Yunlin County, which is home to many pig farms. “[Tsao] should not show his bottom line when the negotiations have not even begun.”
DPP Legislator Hsu Kuo-yung (徐國勇) said that if lifting the ban is a must for joining the TPP, it would probably be very difficult to prevent it.
“However, the government should come up with certain measures to protect rights of the public and of pig farmers,” he said.
DPP caucus secretary-general Chen Ting-fei (陳亭妃) said the media might have overinterpreted Tsao’s remarks.
“The key to deciding whether to lift the ban rests on public opinion. I believe [president-elect] Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) government would be one that respects public opinion,” she said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity
Instead of threatening tariffs on Taiwan-made chips, the US should try to reinforce cooperation with Taiwan on semiconductor development to take on challenges from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), a Taiwanese think tank said. The administration of US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose across-the-board import duties of 32 percent on Taiwan-made goods and levy a separate tariff on semiconductors, which Taiwan is hoping to avoid. The Research Institute for Democracy, Society, and Emerging Technology (DSET), a National Science and Technology Council think tank, said that US efforts should focus on containing China’s semiconductor rise rather than impairing Taiwan. “Without
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the