More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years.
The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758.
Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from participating in the international organization and its affiliates.
Photo courtesy of Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Wu Chun-cheng’s office
Saturday’s rally attracted many young Taiwanese expats as well as international students, and event-organizers said that more than 500 people participated in the event, more than in the past few years.
Last year, about 300 people took part in the event, while the number was about 250 in 2022.
Participants gathered on Saturday afternoon in front of the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in midtown Manhattan to join the March for Taiwan, under the theme of “United and Marching Forward, Supporting Taiwan’s Entry into the UN.”
Photo courtesy of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York via CNA
The march was led by Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Ngalim Tiunn (張雅琳) and Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Wu Chun-cheng (吳春城) and crossed midtown to end at the New York Public Library.
Participants distributed flyers and materials advocating for Taiwan’s entry to the UN, and chanted slogans such as “Keep Taiwan Free” and “UN for Taiwan.”
The 79th UN General Assembly opened on Tuesday last week under the theme of “Leaving no one behind: Acting together for the advancement of peace, sustainable development and human dignity for present and future generations.”
Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York Director Tom Lee (李志強) said the primary task in this year’s march was to help the international community correctly understand the content of Resolution 2758 and call on the international body to include Taiwan’s contribution to its sustainable development goals.
“It is important for the international community to understand that China’s interpretation of Resolution 2758 does not equate to the real 2758 and has no bearing on Taiwan’s status,” Lee said, adding that the goal is for Taiwan to engage with the UN fairly and appropriately.
After reaching the New York Public Library, Taiwanese lawmakers participating in the event from across the political spectrum expressed thanks to those who joined the march, reiterated their support for Taiwan’s UN inclusion and emphasized the need for unity.
Taiwan’s diplomatic approach on the world stage needs to be unified and nuanced, and the government should work with the overseas Taiwanese community, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Wu Tsung-hsien (吳宗憲) said.
The visiting legislators also engaged in activities with officials from Paraguay and Tuvalu, diplomatic allies of Taiwan.
Resolution 2758 provides Taiwan an opportunity for more meaningful participation in UN affairs and greater welfare for its people, Tiunn said.
On Saturday, there were also advertisements and billboards in Times Square about the nation’s UN bid and tourism.
Earlier this month, the Australian parliament passed a motion stating that the resolution does not prohibit Taiwan’s participation in international organizations, nor does it affirm China’s sovereignty over Taiwan.
Meanwhile, the Dutch House of Representatives on Thursday passed a resolution stating that Resolution 2758 does not involve Taiwan, making it the first parliamentary body in Europe to approve such a motion.
Right-wing political scientist Laura Fernandez on Sunday won Costa Rica’s presidential election by a landslide, after promising to crack down on rising violence linked to the cocaine trade. Fernandez’s nearest rival, economist Alvaro Ramos, conceded defeat as results showed the ruling party far exceeding the threshold of 40 percent needed to avoid a runoff. With 94 percent of polling stations counted, the political heir of outgoing Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves had captured 48.3 percent of the vote compared with Ramos’ 33.4 percent, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal said. As soon as the first results were announced, members of Fernandez’s Sovereign People’s Party
EMERGING FIELDS: The Chinese president said that the two countries would explore cooperation in green technology, the digital economy and artificial intelligence Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday called for an “equal and orderly multipolar world” in the face of “unilateral bullying,” in an apparent jab at the US. Xi was speaking during talks in Beijing with Uruguayan President Yamandu Orsi, the first South American leader to visit China since US special forces captured then-Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro last month — an operation that Beijing condemned as a violation of sovereignty. Orsi follows a slew of leaders to have visited China seeking to boost ties with the world’s second-largest economy to hedge against US President Donald Trump’s increasingly unpredictable administration. “The international situation is fraught
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to make advanced 3-nanometer chips in Japan, stepping up its semiconductor manufacturing roadmap in the country in a triumph for Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s technology ambitions. TSMC is to adopt cutting-edge technology for its second wafer fab in Kumamoto, company chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) said yesterday. That is an upgrade from an original blueprint to produce 7-nanometer chips by late next year, people familiar with the matter said. TSMC began mass production at its first plant in Japan’s Kumamoto in late 2024. Its second fab, which is still under construction, was originally focused on
GROWING AMBITIONS: The scale and tempo of the operations show that the Strait has become the core theater for China to expand its security interests, the report said Chinese military aircraft incursions around Taiwan have surged nearly 15-fold over the past five years, according to a report released yesterday by the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) Department of China Affairs. Sorties in the Taiwan Strait were previously irregular, totaling 380 in 2020, but have since evolved into routine operations, the report showed. “This demonstrates that the Taiwan Strait has become both the starting point and testing ground for Beijing’s expansionist ambitions,” it said. Driven by military expansionism, China is systematically pursuing actions aimed at altering the regional “status quo,” the department said, adding that Taiwan represents the most critical link in China’s