Taiwan is a sovereign nation whose official title is the Republic of China, Premier William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that “the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are independent of each other.”
Lai made the remarks when asked to clarify his cross-strait policy during a question-and-
answer session at the legislature with People First Party Legislator Chen Yi-chieh (陳怡潔).
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
When asked whether his cross-strait policy of “showing an affinity toward China while loving Taiwan” contradicts President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) policy of maintaining the “status quo,” Lai said it does not.
“Showing an affinity toward China while loving Taiwan is based on a Taiwan-centric perspective, whereby we extend a hand of friendship to convey goodwill,” Lai said.
“Hopefully, through exchanges, the two sides will be able to improve mutual understanding, reconciliation and forgiveness, thereby achieving peaceful development,” he said.
The premier added that he would follow Tsai’s policy for Taiwan and China to engage in mutually beneficial collaboration and continue to convey goodwill, while not yielding to political pressure.
Asked whether he felt he had a responsibility to improve cross-strait ties, Lai said he believes Taiwan and China should work together, since they have common goals, as well as common “enemies.”
These common enemies include typhoons, AIDS and pandemics, while their common goals should be set with the intent of improving the welfare of people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, which underpins cross-strait exchanges, Lai said.
Asked about China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Minister Zhang Zijun (張志軍) comment that he did not have any expectations upon learning that Lai had been named premier, Lai said: “Taiwan is a sovereign nation. Its goal is to serve the best interests of people on both sides [of the Strait]. We need not subject ourselves to a framework imposed by a superpower and there is absolutely no reason to care about certain people’s remarks.”
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus secretary-general Lin Wei-chou (林為洲) and vice secretary-general Wang Hui-mei (王惠美) also asked the premier to elaborate on his cross-strait policy.
“As I said before at the Tainan City Council, I am without a doubt a politician who supports Taiwanese independence. I will never change this stance no matter what office I hold,” Lai said.
His support for independence does not contradict his “affinity” remark, he added.
Lin asked Lai whether Tsai is considering reforming the nation’s semi-presidential system with her pledge to form a government whose power is proportionate to its accountability when she unveiled plans to push for constitutional reforms on Sunday.
He also asked Lai whether constitutional reforms espoused by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) would involve changing the nation’s title and territory, since the Constitution, promulgated in Nanjing in 1947, includes China as the ROC’s territory.
Lai said that constitutional reforms must be carried out on the strength of public opinion, which would shape the reforms, so it is unnecessary to become overly worried about the issues brought up by Lin.
The government would value draft constitutional amendments tendered by the KMT, he added.
Lai also reaffirmed the DPP administration’s resolve to achieve a “nuclear-free homeland” by 2025.
The DPP administration has no choice but to achieve a balance of 50 percent coal-fired power, 30 percent natural gas and 20 percent renewables by 2025, given that all nuclear power plants are set to be decommissioned by 2024 under the Electricity Act (電業法), Lai said.
He reiterated the administration’s goal to boost the nation’s energy reserves from 10 percent to 15 percent.
Wang warned Lai about the potential pitfall of making natural gas one of the nation’s baseloads for energy supply, citing difficulties in replenishing it.
Lin urged Lai to advise Tsai to adjust the government’s “five plus two” initiative to upgrade and transition the nation’s industries, which he said “misses the point.”
Quoting Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co chairman Morris Chang (張忠謀), Lin said the greatest challenge facing the nation’s industries are shortages of water and electricity supply, workers, talent and land, and called on Tsai to tackle these issues rather than propose a policy that is out of touch with the private sector.
Taiwanese Olympic badminton men’s doubles gold medalist Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) and his new partner, Chiu Hsiang-chieh (邱相榤), clinched the men’s doubles title at the Yonex Taipei Open yesterday, becoming the second Taiwanese team to win a title in the tournament. Ranked 19th in the world, the Taiwanese duo defeated Kang Min-hyuk and Ki Dong-ju of South Korea 21-18, 21-15 in a pulsating 43-minute final to clinch their first doubles title after teaming up last year. Wang, the men’s doubles gold medalist at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics, partnered with Chiu in August last year after the retirement of his teammate Lee Yang
FALSE DOCUMENTS? Actor William Liao said he was ‘voluntarily cooperating’ with police after a suspect was accused of helping to produce false medical certificates Police yesterday questioned at least six entertainers amid allegations of evasion of compulsory military service, with Lee Chuan (李銓), a member of boy band Choc7 (超克7), and actor Daniel Chen (陳大天) among those summoned. The New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office in January launched an investigation into a group that was allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified medical documents. Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) has been accused of being one of the group’s clients. As the investigation expanded, investigators at New Taipei City’s Yonghe Precinct said that other entertainers commissioned the group to obtain false documents. The main suspect, a man surnamed
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
The government is considering polices to increase rental subsidies for people living in social housing who get married and have children, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. During an interview with the Plain Law Movement (法律白話文) podcast, Cho said that housing prices cannot be brought down overnight without affecting banks and mortgages. Therefore, the government is focusing on providing more aid for young people by taking 3 to 5 percent of urban renewal projects and zone expropriations and using that land for social housing, he said. Single people living in social housing who get married and become parents could obtain 50 percent more
RSS