The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the New Party are not likely to hold an event together to celebrate this year’s Double Ten National Day, sources said yesterday.
At last year’s celebration, New Party Chairman Yok Mu-ming (郁慕明) told attendees that “the two parties are one family,” to which KMT Chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) responded that Yok’s remarks were “heartwarming.”
However, the KMT and the pan-blue Songtao Club (松濤社) seem to be distancing themselves from the New Party in making plans for this year’s celebrations, sources said.
Relations between the two parties have soured, while the New Party was listed as a co-organizer of the KMT’s previous national day celebrations, the two would not be “joining hands” this year, a KMT member said yesterday, on condition of anonymity.
The Songtao Club, which supports keeping the national flag unchanged, also supports preserving the nation’s name as the Republic of China and does not agree with the New Party’s pro-China position.
The club is to meet with KMT officials on Thursday to finalize whether the two are to hold a joint celebration this year, sources familiar with the matter said.
A joint celebration would be more of a political rally to mobilize support for Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), the KMT’s presidential candidate, with Han delivering a speech, the sources said.
If Han cannot make it, his wife, Lee Chia-fen (李佳芬), or his daughter, Han Bing (韓冰), would be invited to speak, the sources said, adding that support would also be mobilized for legislative candidates.
The split between the KMT and the New Party might have been sparked by proposals at a New Party congress last month that the party support a “one country, two systems” model in Taiwan and peaceful unification across the Taiwan Strait, they said.
The New Party has named former party secretary-general Yang Shih-kuang (楊世光) as its presidential candidate on Jan. 11 next year.
The party plans to nominate candidates for legislative seats in Taipei’s Shilin (士林) and Beitou (北投) districts, and urges people to support it when voting, something that worked against it when it promoted the same candidates as the KMT, the sources said.
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
PAWSITIVE IMPACT: A shop owner said that while he adopted cats to take care of rodents, they have also attracted younger visitors who also buy his dried goods In Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕), cats lounging in shops along Dihua Street do more than nap amid the scent of dried seafood. Many have become beloved fixtures who double as photography models, attracting visitors and helping boost sales in one of the capital’s most historic quarters. A recent photo contest featuring more than a dozen shop cats drew more than 2,200 submissions, turning everyday cat-spotting into a friendly competition that attracted amateur and professional photographers. “It’s rare to see cats standing, so when it suddenly did, it felt like a lucky cat,” said Sabrina Hsu (徐淳蔚), who won the NT$10,000 top prize in
RSS