The Taiwan Farmers Party (TFP) will ally with Grace T.H.W. Group president Winston Wang (
TFP Secretary-General Hsiao Han-chun (
The discussion focused on forming a third political force to give local voters more choices amid the protracted standoff between the ruling Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) pan-green camp and the pan-blue alliance led by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), the TFP said.
Also present at the meeting were members of a new forum organized by academics to boost the nation's competitiveness.
Although Wang did not promise to join the TFP at the meeting, he did say he looked forward to seeing a third "neutral" force in Taiwanese politics, Hsiao said.
Both sides agreed it was necessary to have candidates participate in the upcoming legislative elections, although they did not touch upon the details of such cooperation, Hsiao said.
He said that whether the "third force" will have a candidate contesting next year's presidential election would be determined after the legislative elections.
The TFP and Wang both believe that the "third force" must be strong in order to ensure peace and development in Taiwan, he said, adding that the "third force" could also help solve the political standoff and fierce conflicts between the pan-green and pan-blue camps.
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “(we) appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
A Vietnamese migrant worker on Thursday won the NT$12 million (US$383,590) jackpot on a scratch-off lottery ticket she bought from a lottery shop in Changhua County’s Puyan Township (埔鹽), Taiwan Lottery Co said yesterday. The lottery winner, who is in her 30s and married, said she would continue to work in Taiwan and send her winnings to her family in Vietnam to improve their life. More Taiwanese and migrant workers have flocked to the lottery shop on Sec 2 of Jhangshuei Road (彰水路) to share in the luck. The shop owner, surnamed Chen (陳), said that his shop has been open for just
MUST REMAIN FREE: A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would lead to a global conflict, and if the nation blows up, the world’s factories would fall in a week, a minister said Taiwan is like Prague in 1938 facing Adolf Hitler; only if Taiwan remains free and democratic would the world be safe, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The ministry on Saturday said Corriere della Sera is one of Italy’s oldest and most read newspapers, frequently covers European economic and political issues, and that Wu agreed to an interview with the paper’s senior political analyst Massimo Franco in Taipei on Jan. 3. The interview was published on Jan. 26 with the title “Taiwan like Prague in 1938 with Hitler,” the ministry