President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) will not request that special forces provide protection for the Dalai Lama during his six-day visit to Taiwan, the Presidential Office said yesterday, despite concerns over the safety of the Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
Presidential Office Spokesman Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦) said there was a “consensus among government agencies” that they would use police rather than a special detail to ensure the safety of the Buddhist leader.
The Measure Regarding the Special Operations of the National Security Bureau (國家安全局特種勤務實施辦法) states that the protection objectives of the special detail include the president, vice president and their families; former presidents and former vice presidents; presidential and vice presidential candidates and their families. At his discretion, the president can ask that the detail provide security for other dignitaries.
A group of demonstrators believed to be gangsters protested close to the Taipei High Speed Rail after the Dalai Lama’s arrival in Taiwan on Sunday, raising concern about his safety.
Chang An-le (張安樂), the fugitive former leader of the Bamboo Union gang known as the “White Wolf,” said in a TV interview in China that he detested the Dalai Lama’s “political tactics” of capitalizing on disaster in Taiwan, vowing to mobilize his followers to protest against the Buddhist leader should he engage in any political activity, including public speeches.
The Democratic Progressive Party yesterday criticized the administration for failing to prevent gangsters from harassing the Dalai Lama, while providing massive amounts of security during the visit by Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林) in November last year.
Wang said Ma would not meet the Dalai Lama during his visit.
The spiritual leader of the Tibetan government in exile arrived on Sunday and is scheduled to leave on Friday.
The Dalai Lama also said on Monday that he would not meet Ma because he did not have a political agenda and didn’t want to “create inconveniences [for] anybody.”
Then-Taipei mayor Ma met the Dalai Lama in 2001. At the time, Ma presented him the key to Taipei and said “Taipei City always welcomes you.”
After taking office as president in May last year, Ma rejected a proposed trip by the Dalai Lama last December, saying the timing was “inappropriate.”
The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader’s visit this time marks his third trip to Taiwan. He first visited Taiwan in 1997.
The Presidential Office approved the visit on Aug. 26, saying the decision was based on religious and humanitarian considerations.
Tropical Storm Gaemi strengthened into a typhoon at 2pm yesterday, and could make landfall in Yilan County tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The agency was scheduled to issue a sea warning at 11:30pm yesterday, and could issue a land warning later today. Gaemi was moving north-northwest at 4kph, carrying maximum sustained winds near its center of up to 118.8kph and gusts of 154.8kph. The circumference is forecast to reach eastern Taiwan tomorrow morning, with the center making landfall in Yilan County later that night before departing from the north coast, CWA weather forecaster Kuan Shin-ping (官欣平) said yesterday. Uncertainty remains and
SEA WARNING LIKELY: The storm, named Gaemi, could become a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, with the Taipei City Government preparing for flooding A tropical depression east of the Philippines developed into a tropical storm named Gaemi at 2pm yesterday, and was moving toward eastern Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Gaemi could begin to affect Taiwan proper on Tuesday, lasting until Friday, and could develop into a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, it said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued as early as Tuesday morning, it added. Gaemi, the third tropical storm in the Pacific Ocean this typhoon season, is projected to begin moving northwest today, and be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday, the agency said. Today, there would likely
DISRUPTIONS: The high-speed rail is to operate as normal, while several airlines either canceled flights or announced early departures or late arrivals Schools and offices in 15 cities and counties are to be closed today due to Typhoon Gaemi, local governments announced last night. The 15 are: Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Tainan, Keelung, Hsinchu and Kaohsiung, as well as Yilan, Hualien, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang counties. People should brace for torrential rainfall brought by the storm, with its center forecast to make landfall on the east coast between tonight and tomorrow morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The agency issued a sea warning for the typhoon at 11:30pm on Monday, followed by a land warning at 11:30am yesterday. As of
CASUALTY: A 70-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree in Kaohsiung as the premier warned all government agencies to remain on high alert for the next 24 hours Schools and offices nationwide are to be closed for a second day today as Typhoon Gaemi crosses over the nation, bringing torrential rain and whipping winds. Gaemi was forecast to make landfall late last night. From Tuesday night, its outer band brought substantial rainfall and strong winds to the nation. As of 6:15pm last night, the typhoon’s center was 20km southeast of Hualien County, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. It was moving at 19kph and had a radius of 250km. As of 3pm yesterday, one woman had died, while 58 people were injured, the Central Emergency Operation Center said. The 70-year-old