The Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) yesterday vowed to become the nation’s largest party at the launch of its nationwide motorcade campaign for the Jan. 11 legislative elections.
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), who is also TPP chairman, told a news conference at the Taiwan New Cultural Movement Memorial Museum in Taipei that the party would not settle for being the third-largest, but would set its sights on becoming the largest party that shapes Taiwan’s politics.
Holding an event at the museum was inspiring, as the museum documents the desire of Taiwanese in the 1920s and 1930s to pursue democracy and freedom, and keep up with the world’s most advanced civilizations, he said.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
The New Cultural Movement, whose credo was to embrace progressive values, was a manifestation of Taiwanese desire to change the “status quo,” he said.
“Change starts with the capital and culture” was his campaign slogan for the 2014 Taipei mayoral election, which was the first campaign in Taiwan’s history that appealed to changing the nation’s culture, Ko said, adding that to him, elections and ruling a nation are both social movements aimed at reforming political culture.
The TPP would unite people to move the nation forward, giving people a new option other than the pan-green and pan-blue camps, he said.
Although Taiwanese democracy has had its achievements over the past three decades, after three transitions of political power the nation has been beleaguered with the question of “unification or independence,” and the government rules with ideologies, which has stalled and hindered the nation, Ko said.
Someone once asked him what his principle of governance was, to which he replied: “Do the right thing, and do it conscientiously; do not do the wrong things,” Ko said, adding that this, coupled with persistence, practicality, science and statistics, would move the nation forward.
Ultimately, politics is about executive power, and politicians not only need to identify problems and troublemakers, they also need to be able to solve issues, he said.
Next year would mark the TPP’s first battle for legislative seats, a battle for which the party would fight by touting its values of governance and financial discipline, as well as an open and transparent government, he added.
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 Taiwan Experience Education Program (TEEP) has funded short-term internships in Taiwan for more than 4,500 young people from more than 40 countries since 2015, with the goal of attracting and retaining international talent, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. Fifty-five colleges launched 514 projects this year, including in fields such as semiconductors, artificial intelligence, medicine and biotechnology, green energy, and sustainability, it said. The program provides research and practical internships in Taiwan for two to six months, and offers cultural exchange and networking opportunities, the ministry said. For example, National Formosa University’s Embedded System and Autopilot Laboratory developed two solar-powered drones in
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
Taipei resident Mu Chu-hua caught some glimpses of China’s mighty military parade on YouTube on Wednesday. As she watched hypersonic missiles roll down Beijing’s Changan Avenue and troops march in lockstep, she did not feel like they posed a threat to Taiwan. Mu, a 69-year-old retiree, said she saw the parade as simply a way for Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to “say thank you to the troops.” “I thought it was quite normal,” she said. “It was very cool.” China’s military parade commemorating the end of World War II was being watched internationally for insights into Beijing’s military advances and its show
RSS