The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday decided to set up a party development committee to delineate the future role of the party in the wake of President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) announcement that he will resign the party chairmanship early next year, after the December legislative elections.
The 13-member committee approved at the Central Executive Committee (CEC) meeting yesterday comprises senior party officials from across the administrative branches and party factions with the aim of re-examining the party's previous line of synchronization of state and party affairs.
DPP Secretary-General Chang Chun-hsiung (
Chang yesterday said that in light of recent criticism that the DPP ties together party and state affairs, a regulation added to the party charter two years ago that the president is required to serve concurrently as the party chairman was not well thought-out.
"For the purpose of sustainable and long-term governance, the party needs to think of how to reposition itself in the future including whether it will be positioned as a soft party or one that closely works with government. The way in which Chen will relinquish his chairmanship will also be included as one of the committee's tasks," Chang said.
Members of the committee include Vice President Annette Lu (
Lu will be involved in party operations for the first time, creating a balance of power among Su, Yu, Hsieh and Lu, who are all considered possible successors to Chen in the 2008 presidential election.
The CEC meeting yesterday also passed revisions to nomination rules governing the politicians groups of the DPP legislators-at-large. The new rule stipulates that the scoring of the candidate's performance on the party member vote and opinion poll will be changed to 30-70 percent respectively, as opposed to the previous 50-50 percent weighting.
Meanwhile, candidates contending for legislator-at-large seats have to possess one of the following qualifications: have held public office at county commissioner or city mayor, legislators for two terms, or vice ministers of the Cabinet agencies.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
The brilliant blue waters, thick foliage and bucolic atmosphere on this seemingly idyllic archipelago deep in the Pacific Ocean belie the key role it now plays in a titanic geopolitical struggle. Palau is again on the front line as China, and the US and its allies prepare their forces in an intensifying contest for control over the Asia-Pacific region. The democratic nation of just 17,000 people hosts US-controlled airstrips and soon-to-be-completed radar installations that the US military describes as “critical” to monitoring vast swathes of water and airspace. It is also a key piece of the second island chain, a string of
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
RSS