The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) must align with citizens in their mass recall movement to safeguard the country, President William Lai (賴清德) said at the party’s national congress yesterday in his capacity as party chairman.
At the party congress, themed “Better democracy, better Taiwan,” Lai said the biggest challenge of domestic politics was in the legislature, as the opposition, which holds a majority, conducted legislative meetings without following procedure, passed bills that contradicted the Constitution, and undermined government operations and national development by slashing the central government’s budgets.
Beijing has been using influence warfare and military intimidation against Taiwan, and regards the annexation of Taiwan as part of its policy to achieve “the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” he said.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
It also intends to annex the nation as part of its attempt to expand its hegemony across the western Pacific, with the ultimate goal of reshaping the rules-based international order, Lai said.
That would not change simply because Taiwan changes its governing party or head of state, he added.
The power of civil society is indispensable to building better democratic mechanisms and a better Taiwan, Lai said, adding that the nation’s vibrant democracy would not have existed were it not for strong civic forces.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
For many years, there has been a latent, invaluable strength rooted in Taiwanese society that would be brought out whenever the country is in urgent need, Lai said.
For example, the Wild Lily movement of 1990 called for reform and democratization, and people in the Sunflower movement of 2014 gathered to stop the passage of the Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement and prevent Taiwan from steering toward a pro-China course, Lai said.
The DPP stood by the people, the consensus of society, in such civic movements, in a collective effort to defend Taiwan’s sovereignty and democracy, he said.
While many countries have become vigilant of Chinese hegemonic expansion, Taiwan’s opposition parties have blocked national defense budgets and national security bills proposed by the government, Lai said.
In response, Taiwanese, concerned about the nation’s existence, unleashed their civic strength again through the “Bluebird movement” and mass recall movements, so the DPP must stand by the people and safeguard the country, he said.
The “Bluebird movement” refers to the people who protested against opposition lawmakers outside the Legislative Yuan last year.
National self-defense and economic development are key to building a better Taiwan, Lai said.
Given that China would exploit Taiwan’s inclusion of diversity for its “united front” and infiltration tactics, an all-out national defense system must be constructed to counteract its mischief, he said.
National defense capabilities must continue to be enhanced through arms procurement, and private military research and development to bolster national defense autonomy amid increasing Chinese military coercion, he added.
On economic development, the advanced technology and innovation capacity of Taiwan should be leveraged to improve the domestic investment environment and attract more foreign investments, Lai said.
The fruits of economic development should also be shared among all people of Taiwan to fulfill balanced regional developments and intergenerational justice, he added.
CREDIT-GRABBER: China said its coast guard rescued the crew of a fishing vessel that caught fire, who were actually rescued by a nearby Taiwanese boat and the CGA Maritime search and rescue operations do not have borders, and China should not use a shipwreck to infringe upon Taiwanese sovereignty, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said yesterday. The coast guard made the statement in response to the China Coast Guard (CCG) saying it saved a Taiwanese fishing boat. The Chuan Yu No. 6 (全漁6號), a fishing vessel registered in Keelung, on Thursday caught fire and sank in waters northeast of Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台). The vessel left Keelung’s Badouzih Fishing Harbor (八斗子漁港) at 3:35pm on Sunday last week, with seven people on board — a 62-year-old Taiwanese captain surnamed Chang (張) and six
RISKY BUSINESS: The ‘incentives’ include initiatives that get suspended for no reason, creating uncertainty and resulting in considerable losses for Taiwanese, the MAC said China’s “incentives” failed to sway sentiment in Taiwan, as willingness to work in China hit a record low of 1.6 percent, a Ministry of Labor survey showed. The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) also reported that the number of Taiwanese workers in China has nearly halved from a peak of 430,000 in 2012 to an estimated 231,000 in 2024. That marked a new low in the proportion of Taiwanese going abroad to work. The ministry’s annual survey on “Labor Life and Employment Status” includes questions respondents’ willingness to seek employment overseas. Willingness to work in China has steadily declined from
The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee yesterday approved proposed amendments to the Amusement Tax Act (娛樂稅法) that would abolish taxes on films, cultural activities and competitive sporting events, retaining the fee only for dance halls and golf courses. The proposed changes would set the maximum tax rate for dance halls and golf courses at 50 and 20 percent respectively, with local governments authorized to suspend the levies. Article 2 of the act says that “amusement tax shall be levied on tickets sold or fees charged by amusement places, facilities or activities” in six categories: “Cinema; professional singing, story-telling, dancing, circus, magic show, acrobatics
INFLATION UP? The IMF said CPI would increase to 1.5 percent this year, while the DGBAS projected it would rise to 1.68 percent, with GDP per capita of US$44,181 The IMF projected Taiwan’s real GDP would grow 5.2 percent this year, up from its 2.1 percent outlook in January, despite fears of global economic disruptions sparked by the US-Iran conflict. Taiwan’s consumer price index (CPI) is projected to increase to 1.5 percent, while unemployment would be 3.4 percent, roughly in line with estimates for Asia as a whole, the international body wrote in its Global Economic Outlook Report published in the US on Monday. The figures are comparatively better than the IMF outlook for the rest of the world, which pegged real GDP growth at 3.1 percent, down from 3.3 percent
RSS