Diplomatic success does not necessarily correspond to the amount of money spent, and with “environmental diplomacy” Taiwan can shine on the international stage with a small budget, a number of local environmental groups said yesterday.
Earlier this month, 22 environmentalists represented Taiwan at the Global Greens (GG) 2008 conference in Brazil, a “UN for green organizations,” which drew representatives from 87 countries, Green Party Taiwan (GPT) secretary-general Pan Han-shen (潘翰聲) said.
The group was partially funded by the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA), Deputy Minister Chang Feng-teng (張豐藤) said, adding that the decision to sponsor the group was “one of the most meaningful things I have done since I have been in office.”
“Under oppression from China and control from the US, Taiwan’s space for survival in the international community is very limited, however we were able to attend the conference with full membership, a status that even China did not enjoy at GG 2008,” Pan said.
Instead of obsessing over the number of international allies and “dollar diplomacy,” the success of Taiwan’s international future lies in human rights and environmental diplomacy, Taiwan Wild at Heart Legal Defense Association director Robin Winkler said.
Using full membership, the representative group participated in environmental discussions, voted on green effort proposals, introduced to GG 2008’s other participating countries the political and environmental status of Taiwan, and showcased current environmental efforts with presentations of case studies, Pan said.
One of the representative group’s biggest accomplishments was its initiation of an anti-nuclear effort proposal, he said.
“During the meeting, three proposals were discussed and voted on, including support for human rights in Tibet, eliminating nuclear energy as an option to combat climate change and the request to immediately release kidnapped Colombian Green Party spiritual leader Ingrid Betancourt,” he said.
“Not only did we vote on the former two proposals, which concerned Taiwan, we initiated the anti-nuclear pitch with Japan, and received unanimous consensus from all 87 countries,” he said.
Such proposals give participating countries an idea of environmental trends in other areas in the world, and are brought back to their respective governments for references in forming related political strategies, he said.
In addition, “During the Global Young Greens (GYG) meeting, our youth representatives presented a case study of their anti-Suhua Freeway efforts,” he said.
“The presentation was one of the most well-prepared at GYG and won them thundering applause at the conference, which was another example that, with devotion, NGOs can help Taiwan shine internationally with little money,” he said.
Following the success of the conference, the group plans to campaign to host the Asia Pacific Greens Network meeting next year, Pan said.
“Even in an age where technological advancement seems to connect people around the globe more tightly, such face-to-face interactions and discussions cannot be replaced by artificial meetings,” Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇) said.
Friendly relationships have developed during Taiwan’s participation in such international events and could eventually transform into friendly relationships for the country with other nations, she said.
“Even China cannot disagree with us on environmental diplomacy; with universal values such as human rights and environmental protection, the road we travel on — no matter how few companions we have in the beginning — is bound to connect us with more and more allies,” she said.
ANOTHER EMERGES: The CWA yesterday said this year’s fourth storm of the typhoon season had formed in the South China Sea, but was not expected to affect Taiwan Tropical Storm Gaemi has intensified slightly as it heads toward Taiwan, where it is expected to affect the country in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, the 120km-radius storm was 800km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving at 9kph northwest, the agency said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued tonight at the earliest, it said, adding that the storm is projected to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday. Gaemi’s potential effect on Taiwan remains unclear, as that would depend on its direction, radius and intensity, forecasters said. Former Weather Forecast
As COVID-19 cases in Japan have been increasing for 10 consecutive weeks, people should get vaccinated before visiting the nation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said. The centers reported 773 hospitalizations and 124 deaths related to COVID-19 in Taiwan last week. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) on Tuesday said the number of weekly COVID-19 cases reported in Japan has been increasing since mid-May and surpassed 55,000 cases from July 8 to July 14. The average number of COVID-19 patients at Japan’s healthcare facilities that week was also 1.39 times that of the week before and KP.3 is the dominant
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) working group for Taiwan-related policies is likely to be upgraded to a committee-level body, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said. As Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is increasingly likely to upgrade the CCP’s Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, Taiwanese authorities should prepare by researching Xi and the CCP, the report said. At the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP, which ended on Thursday last week, the party set a target of 2029 for the completion of some tasks, meaning that Xi is likely preparing to
US-CHINA TRADE DISPUTE: Despite Beijing’s offer of preferential treatment, the lure of China has dimmed as Taiwanese and international investors move out Japan and the US have become the favored destinations for Taiwanese graduates as China’s attraction has waned over the years, the Ministry of Labor said. According to the ministry’s latest income and employment advisory published this month, 3,215 Taiwanese university graduates from the class of 2020 went to Japan, surpassing for the first time the 2,881 graduates who went to China. A total of 2,300 graduates from the class of 2021 went to the US, compared with the 2,262 who went to China, the document showed. The trend continued for the class of 2023, of whom 1,460 went to Japan, 1,334 went to