A former National Security Bureau (NSB) chief returned to the post yesterday after he was tapped by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) on Thursday to take over the helm of the country’s top intelligence body.
Tsai Chao-ming (蔡朝明), first non-Mainlander to hold the country’s top intelligence post, succeeded Shi Hwei-yow (許惠祐) as the NSB director-general after Shi’s resignation on Tuesday.
Media reports said Ma chose Tsai because of his knowledge of intelligence affairs and his belief that illegal wiretapping must not be allowed.
Tsai was first promoted to the top NSB post in 2001 by then-president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).
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He resigned in 2004 to take responsibility for the March 19 shooting of Chen and then vice president Annette Lu in Tainan City on the eve of their re-election.
Shi confirmed on Wednesday that he had tendered his resignation a day earlier to facilitate Ma’s efforts to rearrange his administration’s lineup.
He said he did not tender his resignation until a month after Ma’s inauguration because he was waiting to pass his job to his successor.
Also yesterday, new National Police Agency (NPA) Director-General Wang Cho-chiun (王卓鈞) assumed office in a changeover ceremony presided over by Minister of the Interior Liao Liao-yi (廖了以) at the NPA headquarters in Taipei City.
Wang, a former director-general of the Taipei City Police Department, took control of the nation’s top police post from Hou You-yi (侯友宜), who has been appointed as the new president of the Central Police University.
Speaking at the ceremony, Liao praised Hou for his outstanding performance as NPA chief, noting that the public’s level of satisfaction with public order increased dramatically during his two-plus years in the post.
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Liao also lauded Hou’s success in boosting the morale of the police force and securing salary raises.
Liao expressed the hope that Wang will be able to build on the foundation laid down by Hou and lead the 70,000-strong police force in making Taiwan the safest country in Asia.
For his part, Wang said that his task as new head of the NPA will focus on the four goals of improving human rights, boosting the police force’s effectiveness, increasing discipline and improving the force’s image.
LOW RISK: Most nations do not extradite people accused of political crimes, and the UN says extradition can only happen if the act is a crime in both countries, an official said China yesterday issued wanted notices for two Taiwanese influencers, accusing them of committing “separatist acts” by criticizing Beijing, amid broadening concerns over China’s state-directed transnational repression. The Quanzhou Public Security Bureau in a notice posted online said police are offering a reward of up to 25,000 yuan (US$3,523) for information that could contribute to the investigation or apprehension of pro-Taiwanese independence YouTuber Wen Tzu-yu (溫子渝),who is known as Pa Chiung (八炯) online, and rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源). Wen and Chen are suspected of spreading content that supported secession from China, slandered Chinese policies that benefit Taiwanese and discrimination against Chinese spouses of
PROMOTION: Travelers who want a free stopover must book their flights with designated travel agents, such as Lion Travel, Holiday Tours, Cola Tour and Life Tours Air Canada yesterday said it is offering Taiwanese travelers who are headed to North America free stopovers if they transit though airports in Japan and South Korea. The promotion was launched in response to a potential rise in demand for flights to North America in June and July next year, when the US, Canada and Mexico are scheduled to jointly host the FIFA World Cup, Air Canada said. Air Canada offers services to 13 of the 16 host cities of the tournament’s soccer games, including Toronto and Vancouver; Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey in Mexico; Atlanta, Georgia; Boston; Dallas; Houston;
The US approved the possible sale to Taiwan of fighter jet spare and repair parts for US$330 million, the Pentagon said late yesterday, marking the first such potential transaction since US President Donald Trump took office in January. "The proposed sale will improve the recipient's capability to meet current and future threats by maintaining the operational readiness of the recipient's fleet of F-16, C-130," and other aircraft, the Pentagon said in a statement. Trump previously said that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has told him he would not invade Taiwan while the Republican leader is in office. The announcement of the possible arms
ALIGNED THINKING: Taiwan and Japan have a mutual interest in trade, culture and engineering, and can work together for stability, Cho Jung-tai said Taiwan and Japan are two like-minded countries willing to work together to form a “safety barrier” in the Indo-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday said at the opening ceremony of the 35th Taiwan-Japan Modern Engineering and Technology Symposium in Taipei. Taiwan and Japan are close geographically and closer emotionally, he added. Citing the overflowing of a barrier lake in the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) in September, Cho said the submersible water level sensors given by Japan during the disaster helped Taiwan monitor the lake’s water levels more accurately. Japan also provided a lot of vaccines early in the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic,
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