Prince Buhlebenkhosi Dlamini, one of the numerous children of King Mswati III of Eswatini, expressed his love for Taiwan during his graduation from Shih Chien University in Taipei yesterday, saying that he has decided to stay in Taiwan for further studies.
Dlamini, who received a bachelor’s degree from the university’s English-language International Business and Trade program, delivered a speech in Mandarin and English as the school valedictorian at a graduation ceremony at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall.
“This is an important day for all of us. Many challenges await us after graduation, but Shih Chien has fully prepared us for them,” Dlamini said in Mandarin.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
The ceremony was also attended by the king, his second wife, Inkhosikati LaMotsa, Vice President Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) and Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮).
“As I wish everyone a bright future, I also want to tell you that I like Shih Chien and I love Taiwan,” he said, adding that he would pursue a postgraduate degree at the school.
One of Dlamini’s younger brothers is also planning to apply to Shih Chien, school president Michael Chen (陳振貴) said.
There have been concerns that Dlamini’s departure after graduation could increase the chances that Eswatini — Taiwan’s sole dilomatic African ally — would sever ties with the nation, but these seem to have abated with the prince’s decision to stay in Taiwan.
Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) has publicly called on Eswatini to follow in the footsteps of Burkina Faso, which switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China late last month, before September’s Forum on China-Africa Cooperation summit in Beijing.
In his speech, the king expressed his gratitude to Shih Chien for turning his son, who he said could hardly focus on his studies and required discipline before he left home, into a “dedicated, humble and obedient student” in four years.
“There are over 250 Swazi students at various institutions [in Taiwan] who are acquiring first-world education. We look forward to their return home to make a meaningful impact on our development,” the king said.
Thanking the Taiwanese government for affording education opportunities to Swazi citizens, the king expressed the hope that the high-quality education they receive would contribute to the transformation of the African nation’s economy and its attainment of first-world status.
He also stressed the solidity of Taiwan-Eswatini ties, saying the two nations would remain good friends for generations to come.
In recognition of the king’s continuous support for Taiwan, Shih Chien conferred him an honorary doctorate degree in management.
Yangmingshan National Park authorities yesterday urged visitors to respect public spaces and obey the law after a couple was caught on a camera livestream having sex at the park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) earlier in the day. The Shilin Police Precinct in Taipei said it has identified a suspect and his vehicle registration number, and would summon him for questioning. The case would be handled in accordance with public indecency charges, it added. The couple entered the park at about 11pm on Thursday and began fooling around by 1am yesterday, the police said, adding that the two were unaware of the park’s all-day live
Fast food chain McDonald's is to raise prices by up to NT$5 on some products at its restaurants across Taiwan, starting on Wednesday next week, the company announced today. The prices of all extra value meals and sharing boxes are to increase by NT$5, while breakfast combos and creamy corn soup would go up by NT$3, the company said in a statement. The price of the main items of those meals, if ordered individually, would remain the same. Meanwhile, the price of a medium-sized lemon iced tea and hot cappuccino would rise by NT$3, extra dipping sauces for chicken nuggets would go up
Yangmingshan National Park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) nature area has gone viral after a park livestream camera observed a couple in the throes of intimate congress, which was broadcast live on YouTube, drawing large late-night crowds and sparking a backlash over noise, bright lights and disruption to wildlife habitat. The area’s livestream footage appeared to show a couple engaging in sexual activity on a picnic table in the park on Friday last week, with the uncensored footage streamed publicly online. The footage quickly spread across social media, prompting a tide of visitors to travel to the site to “check in” and recreate the
Minister of Digital Affairs Lin Yi-ching (林宜敬) yesterday cited regulatory issues and national security concerns as an expert said that Taiwan is among the few Asian regions without Starlink. Lin made the remarks on Facebook after funP Innovation Group chief executive officer Nathan Chiu (邱繼弘) on Friday said Taiwan and four other countries in Asia — China, North Korea, Afghanistan and Syria — have no access to Starlink. Starlink has become available in 166 countries worldwide, including Ukraine, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, in the six years since it became commercial, he said. While China and North Korea block Starlink, Syria is not
RSS