President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) daughter, Chen Hsing-yu (陳幸妤), took the plunge yesterday in a wedding that helped cheer up a nation recovering from two typhoons in as many weeks.
The event was a relatively unassuming affair, as the first family wished to keep it "simple, modest ... and just like a commoner's."
The wedding and banquet for Chen Hsing-yu and Chao Chien-ming (
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
The wedding ceremony began at 6:30pm when around 600 guests arrived at the hotel, including the heads of the five branches of government, Vice President Annette Lu (
President Chen took Hsing-yu on his arm and walked down the aisle as Chao waited on the stage.
Serving as the wedding witness, Judicial Yuan President Weng Yueh-sheng (
PHOTO: COURTESY OF THE PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE
Weng was the president's professor at National Taiwan University and was also the witness for the marriage of Chen and first lady Wu Shu-chen (
"I believe that President Chen and first lady Wu set a fine example for the newlywed couple, as they have taken care of each other all these years," Weng said during his speech at the wedding.
In his speech, Lee said that Chen and Wu had sacrificed what could have been ordinary lives to devote themselves to their country.
PHOTO: FANG PIN-CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
"President Chen has consulted with me many times during the past month," Lee said, "and one of the major issues he once asked me about is how to be a good father-in-law. I think I am more experienced than he is on this issue."
After Lee and Chao Chien-ming's father gave their speeches, the president then expressed his appreciation to all guests and officials who helped to organize the wedding.
Chen said that Hsing-yu and Chien-ming should work hard just like other ordinary young people, and praised his wife for bringing the happy couple together.
"The thought of her daughter's wedding kept her motivated after going through such pain following the car accident 11 years ago," Chen said, referring to the politically-motivated accident which cost Wu the use of her legs.
Chen said that he had stepped into the political circle 21 years ago when Hsing-yu was just five years old and that it was his wife who should take all the credit for raising their daughter.
"This is the happiest moment for my wife," Chen said, "and the last dream for Shu-chen is to hold a grandchild in her arms."
Early yesterday morning, Chao and his companions went to the presidential residence to collect the bride and take her to the Mandarina Crown Hotel.
Through a steady drizzle, six rose-draped limousines arrived at the presidential residence at around 9:10am. Chen Chih-jung (
Chen told the couple at the residence: "A marriage reflects everyday life. It cannot be sunny everyday, and it will be stormy from time to time."
"On the stormy days ... they should support and care for one another. With more tolerance, care and understanding, there will be greater happiness and fulfillment."
After the family photo shoot, the president put down the veil for the bride and then the bride and groom bid farewell to the first couple.
The first lady then sprayed water from a bowl, a gesture that Hsin-yu was no longer the cherished child of her own family and must fulfill the duties of her new family.
The first couple was apparently very happy but also reluctant to part with their daughter. Both of them wished the newlyweds a happy life ahead.
Just before the limousines left the residence, the president picked up a camera and took photos of his daughter.
When the limousines arrived at the Mandarina Crown Hotel at 10:45am, they were greeted by a long string of firecrackers set off by the groom's family.
A boy from the groom's family greeted the bride with two apples in hand, symbolizing well-being, good fortune and sweetness.
After the newlyweds entered their bridal suite, the couple sat side by side on a couch with a pair of the groom's pants on it, which symbolized that the two will share their good times and bad times together. The groom unveiled his bride and kissed her.
The couple then fed each other sweet dumplings for a happy life ahead.
Despite widespread media coverage of the event, the Presidential Office kept a low profile and championed simplicity.
Because of the recent string of typhoons, many activities surrounding the wedding such as press interviews and news conferences were cancelled.
The president donated NT$1.5 million he had planned to give as his daughter's dowry, along with NT$500,000 of Hsin-yu's savings, to victims of Typhoon Nari.
DEMOGRAPHICS: Robotics is the most promising answer to looming labor woes, the long-term care system and national contingency response, an official said Taiwan is to launch a five-year plan to boost the robotics industry in a bid to address labor shortages stemming from a declining and aging population, the Executive Yuan said yesterday. The government approved the initiative, dubbed the Smart Robotics Industry Promotion Plan, via executive order, senior officials told a post-Cabinet meeting news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s population decline would strain the economy and the nation’s ability to care for vulnerable and elderly people, said Peter Hong (洪樂文), who heads the National Science and Technology Council’s (NSTC) Department of Engineering and Technologies. Projections show that the proportion of Taiwanese 65 or older would
Nvidia Corp yesterday unveiled its new high-speed interconnect technology, NVLink Fusion, with Taiwanese application-specific IC (ASIC) designers Alchip Technologies Ltd (世芯) and MediaTek Inc (聯發科) among the first to adopt the technology to help build semi-custom artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure for hyperscalers. Nvidia has opened its technology to outside users, as hyperscalers and cloud service providers are building their own cost-effective AI chips, or accelerators, used in AI servers by leveraging ASIC firms’ designing capabilities to reduce their dependence on Nvidia. Previously, NVLink technology was only available for Nvidia’s own AI platform. “NVLink Fusion opens Nvidia’s AI platform and rich ecosystem for
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday said it is building nine new advanced wafer manufacturing and packaging factories this year, accelerating its expansion amid strong demand for high-performance computing (HPC) and artificial intelligence (AI) applications. The chipmaker built on average five factories per year from 2021 to last year and three from 2017 to 2020, TSMC vice president of advanced technology and mask engineering T.S. Chang (張宗生) said at the company’s annual technology symposium in Hsinchu City. “We are quickening our pace even faster in 2025. We plan to build nine new factories, including eight wafer fabrication plants and one advanced
‘WORLD’S LOSS’: Taiwan’s exclusion robs the world of the benefits it could get from one of the foremost practitioners of disease prevention and public health, Minister Chiu said Taiwan should be allowed to join the World Health Assembly (WHA) as an irreplaceable contributor to global health and disease prevention efforts, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. He made the comment at a news conference in Taipei, hours before a Taiwanese delegation was to depart for Geneva, Switzerland, seeking to meet with foreign representatives for a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the WHA, the WHO’s annual decisionmaking meeting, which would be held from Monday next week to May 27. As of yesterday, Taiwan had yet to receive an invitation. Taiwan has much to offer to the international community’s
RSS