Why is the government stalling over the case of Xu Bo (
We have heard a number of different reasons why a decision on Xu's case has taken so long. First we were told that, since he was traveling on a false passport, there was a question of identity. That question having been resolved, we were then told that there was nevertheless doubt as to whether Xu was a genuine escapee from political persecution. Xiang Lin (
After his 30,000-character book on the Tiananmen crisis, Red Fascist, irked Beijing's red fascists, Xu fled China's security state in 1999 and sought refuge in South Korea. There he was granted refugee status by the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), which asked the South Korean government not to deport him. But he also received less-than-welcome attention from Seoul's National Intelligence Service which labeled him "an anti-establishment activist" and sought his deportation, irrespective of UNHCR's request. Fearing that it was just a matter of time before the South Koreans sent him back to China, Xu hopped on a plane to Thailand that stopped over in Taipei, and asked for asylum here.
Xu's problem, the government now says, is that this country has no asylum law -- you can't claim asylum because the nation doesn't recognize the concept. This seems strange when one considers that the ROC is itself an exile from China. It seems downright reprehensible when one considers how many leading lights of the DPP have themselves spent time in political exile. When the DPP came to power it promised an emphasis on human rights and a shakeup of the legal system according to that agenda. This has yet to come.
This is the second time in less than six months that Taiwan's lip-service-only attitude to human rights has been on display. Last October Tang Yuanjun (
It is interesting to note the silence of the pan-blue camp on the fate of these dissidents. The only politicians who have shown any concern are from the TSU. There was a a time when the pan-blue camp would welcome "anti-communist heroes." Now it is conspiring with China in the destruction of this nation's democracy, it isn't interested.
But the real source of disgust over this country's attitude to both Xu and Tang comes from the suspicion that the reluctance to take them in comes from a desire to appease China. If so then this attitude can only be roundly condemned. It is deplorable if this nation is prepared to trade human-rights principles for a cozier relationship with the dictators next door. Let's be honest: the democratization of China, the replacement of the vicious clique that tyrannizes that luckless foreign land by a democracy is, along with the US Seventh Fleet, probably Taiwan's only long- term hope. There is a natural unity of interest between the dissidents and this country. That the government cannot find a place for them here is a scandal.
Why is Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) not a “happy camper” these days regarding Taiwan? Taiwanese have not become more “CCP friendly” in response to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) use of spies and graft by the United Front Work Department, intimidation conducted by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and the Armed Police/Coast Guard, and endless subversive political warfare measures, including cyber-attacks, economic coercion, and diplomatic isolation. The percentage of Taiwanese that prefer the status quo or prefer moving towards independence continues to rise — 76 percent as of December last year. According to National Chengchi University (NCCU) polling, the Taiwanese
It would be absurd to claim to see a silver lining behind every US President Donald Trump cloud. Those clouds are too many, too dark and too dangerous. All the same, viewed from a domestic political perspective, there is a clear emerging UK upside to Trump’s efforts at crashing the post-Cold War order. It might even get a boost from Thursday’s Washington visit by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. In July last year, when Starmer became prime minister, the Labour Party was rigidly on the defensive about Europe. Brexit was seen as an electorally unstable issue for a party whose priority
US President Donald Trump is systematically dismantling the network of multilateral institutions, organizations and agreements that have helped prevent a third world war for more than 70 years. Yet many governments are twisting themselves into knots trying to downplay his actions, insisting that things are not as they seem and that even if they are, confronting the menace in the White House simply is not an option. Disagreement must be carefully disguised to avoid provoking his wrath. For the British political establishment, the convenient excuse is the need to preserve the UK’s “special relationship” with the US. Following their White House
US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House has brought renewed scrutiny to the Taiwan-US semiconductor relationship with his claim that Taiwan “stole” the US chip business and threats of 100 percent tariffs on foreign-made processors. For Taiwanese and industry leaders, understanding those developments in their full context is crucial while maintaining a clear vision of Taiwan’s role in the global technology ecosystem. The assertion that Taiwan “stole” the US’ semiconductor industry fundamentally misunderstands the evolution of global technology manufacturing. Over the past four decades, Taiwan’s semiconductor industry, led by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), has grown through legitimate means
RSS