Global weekly The Economist has blamed Taiwanese media for “gross mistranslations” of its article that branded President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) a “bumbler” and caused a recent stir in Taiwanese politics, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday
Ministry spokesperson Steve Hsia (夏季昌) said Dominic Ziegler, Asia editor of the weekly magazine, said he had noticed that “bumbler” had been “irresponsibly mistranslated” by some Taiwanese media as “笨蛋” (or “dimwit”), which he said was a “gross mistranslation.”
Ziegler said the two Chinese characters used in local media were an incorrect translation of “bumbler.”
Ziegler sent an e-mail reply to Representative to the UK Shen Lyu-shun (沈呂巡), Hsia said, in response to the ministry’s reaction to the article titled “Ma the bumbler” in its current edition, which in its body calls Ma an “ineffectual bumbler.”
Hsia quoted Ziegler as saying that the word “bumbler” is not an insult to Ma because it describes a man “who acts indecisively or in a slightly confused manner.”
Ziegler, who is on a trip overseas, also expressed his willingness to explain the matter in person to the Taiwanese government, Hsia said.
The Taipei Representative Office in the UK “registered concern” over the article, which was published on Friday last week, and received the reply from Ziegler on Monday, Hsia said.
The Ma administration reacted strongly to the article.
On Friday night, the Presidential Office called an impromptu press conference, timed to give a response to the piece, followed by Ma’s remarks the next day that he felt “distressed and wronged by incorrect reports,” in an apparent reaction to the article.
On Sunday, the ministry was reportedly told by the Presidential Office to file a complaint with The Economist, which was met by the disapproval of politicians across party lines. That led the ministry to clarify the issue to the media, saying that it had contacted The Economist to explain Ma’s policies, not to lodge a protest.
The Taipei Representative Office in the UK is preparing an article addressed to The Economist to explain in detail the achievements the government has made in every field since Ma assumed office in May 2008, Hsia said.
The Taiwanese economy posted an average growth rate of 3.43 percent between 2009 and last year, outperforming both South Korea and Hong Kong; while Taiwan outpaced the UK in terms of per capital income when adjusted for purchasing power parity last year — known as PPP-based per capita GDP — for the first time in history, Hsia said.
“Not to mention the achievements in diplomacy and cross-strait affairs — Ma’s policies have resulted in the signing of 18 cross-strait agreements, the maintaining of relations with all 23 of the nation’s diplomatic allies and the granting of visa-waiver privileges by 129 countries and regions,” Hsia said.
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue
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