OPINION DIVIDED: Chinese Nationalist Party legislators were split over the issue — some supported President Ma Ying-jeou's comments, others urged him to reconsider
By Ko Shu-ling and Flora Wang
The Presidential Office yesterday tried to tone down President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) blunt rejection on Wednesday of the Dalai Lama’s proposed visit, saying that it was based on a “consideration of the overall national interest.”

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'DARK SIDE': Taiwan Bar Association chairman Wellington Koo said recent cases had helped put the murkier side of the judicial process under the spotlight
By Loa Iok-sin
Several judicial reform activists yesterday called on the judiciary to protect the legal rights of attorneys, detained suspects and convicts as guaranteed in the Constitution.

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By Loa Iok-sin
Amid heated debate and verbal disputes, the four agreements signed by Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Chairman Chiang Pin-kung (江丙坤) and Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林) last month passed the Legislative Yuan’s joint committee review yesterday.

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CROSS-STRAIT EXPERT: US media have reported that the president-elect is considering appointing Taiwan expert Dennis Blair as his director of national intelligence
By William Lowther
US president-elect Barack Obama is seriously considering retired Navy admiral Dennis Blair — an expert on Taiwanese defense issues — to be his first director of national intelligence.

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By Ko Shu-ling
Faced with Beijing’s growing political and economic clout, Taiwan must be more pro-active while seeking a domestic consensus, a panelist attending an international forum on cross-strait develop said yesterday.

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By Shih Hsiu-chuan
The government yesterday put forward a proposal to recognize Chinese diplomas and allow Chinese students to study in Taiwan.

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REDUCING FRAUD: Young said that the US recognizes that Taiwanese travelers have a reputation for abiding by the country’s laws and for spending generously
American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Stephen Young said yesterday that the administration of US president-elect Barack Obama would give careful consideration to including Taiwan in the US Visa Waiver Program if it meets the requirements.

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HELPING HAND: In Tokyo, activists are organizing a rally in support of the students in Taipei and another will take place in France, a spokesman said
By Flora Wang
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By Mo Yan-chih
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HOMECOMING: The ministry should also offer vouchers to overseas citizens without household registration records as an incentive to return home, an official said
By Flora Wang
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By Mo Yan-chih
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