It is tempting to start with the sentence "as we were saying, before we were interrupted ...." The fact is that the 921 earthquake has monopolized media attention for the last month. We are sensitive to its tragedy. But we realize that there were issues of importance before Sept. 21, and those issues still exist. Managing the aftermath of the earthquake is certainly important, but managing the future of this society cannot take a back seat for ever. Some of the issues left unresolved in the quake aftermath include:
Judicial reform -- Remember the big conference in early July about whether Taiwan should adopt an adversarial court system? Few others seem to.
China Airlines -- People are awaiting an official explanation of why CAL Flight 642 crashed in Hong Kong in August, killing three. But then some remember that there has still been no explanation of why a CAL Airbus crashed in Taoyuan killing 202 people in February 1998.
The Tungkang Credit Co-op case -- A NT$1.3 billion embezzlement involving a sitting legislator.
Diplomatic relations -- After the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' humiliating episode over Papua New Guinea, Premier Vincent Siew went to Macedonia to "cement ties." A presidential election in that country at the beginning of November will show how successful he was. Meanwhile Panama, with its canal ports to be operated by "Friend of Beijing" Li Ka-shing, is steadily leaning closer to China.
There was also the fallout over Lee Teng-hui's (李登輝) "two states" announcement including the threatened cancellation of Wang Daohan's visit -- and an interesting result of the earthquake is that it has given both sides a reason to put that visit on hold without an official cancellation.
Other issues included Taiwan's membership in the US' Theater Missile Defense system, the ongoing Taipei-Manila air-route row, and a slew of controversial financial reform measures.
And finally, in case it skipped anyone's attention, there is to be a presidential election in 21 weeks from yesterday. Looking at the deafening silence from the candidates, you would not know this. All we have seen of any of the candidates since the quake is the KMT's Lien Chan (連戰) donning windbreaker and gumboots to stride around scenes of quake devastation looking like, well, James Soong (宋楚瑜), who built his popularity on doing the same kind of thing. There are those who will say that in light of the quake it is simply in bad taste to resume campaigning. But to this we have to reply that whoever opens the champagne on the evening of March 18 will have to steer Taiwan through some very difficult times. An ever more self-confident and aggressive China, perhaps more of the limp-wristed same from Washington if, heaven forbid, Al Gore makes it to the Whitehouse, an economy in danger of losing its competitive edge and ill-prepared in many areas for the shock of WTO entry, are all real problems that the next president will have to face, and we need to know from the candidates how they will do it.
Does Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) have a clue about economics? Is James Soong sound on China? Will Lien Chan do anything about corruption? We need to know, we need time to think over the responses to these and other questions, and then come back and ask more.
Campaigning has a function beyond showing the candidates' faces. It makes them fair game for questioning, probing their ideas, their reactions and their character to ascertain their ability to lead and the direction they would take us in. If casting a vote should be the result of an informed decision, the campaign offers much of the information that decision needs. The post-quake silence offers nothing. Time then, for public life to resume.
The gutting of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA) by US President Donald Trump’s administration poses a serious threat to the global voice of freedom, particularly for those living under authoritarian regimes such as China. The US — hailed as the model of liberal democracy — has the moral responsibility to uphold the values it champions. In undermining these institutions, the US risks diminishing its “soft power,” a pivotal pillar of its global influence. VOA Tibetan and RFA Tibetan played an enormous role in promoting the strong image of the US in and outside Tibet. On VOA Tibetan,
By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then
On a quiet lane in Taipei’s central Daan District (大安), an otherwise unremarkable high-rise is marked by a police guard and a tawdry A4 printout from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicating an “embassy area.” Keen observers would see the emblem of the Holy See, one of Taiwan’s 12 so-called “diplomatic allies.” Unlike Taipei’s other embassies and quasi-consulates, no national flag flies there, nor is there a plaque indicating what country’s embassy this is. Visitors hoping to sign a condolence book for the late Pope Francis would instead have to visit the Italian Trade Office, adjacent to Taipei 101. The death of
As the highest elected official in the nation’s capital, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) is the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) candidate-in-waiting for a presidential bid. With the exception of Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕), Chiang is the most likely KMT figure to take over the mantle of the party leadership. All the other usual suspects, from Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) to New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) to KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) have already been rejected at the ballot box. Given such high expectations, Chiang should be demonstrating resolve, calm-headedness and political wisdom in how he faces tough
RSS