Several Control Yuan members yesterday called on President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to implement the goal of seeing a civilian Minister of National Defense exercise leadership over the armed forces, an idea that was enshrined in the two national defense acts passed 10 years ago.
“Over the past 10 years, the country’s commanders in chief have shown concern about civilian control of the military and the military hasn’t been ready for such a development, which would be a symbol of military modernization,” Control Yuan member Huang Huang-hsiung (黃煌雄) said.
Huang and his colleagues Yu Teng-fang (余騰芳), Lee Ping-nan (李炳南) and Chao Chang-ping (趙昌平) called a press conference announcing their review of the implementation of the National Defense Act (國防法) and the Organic Act of the Ministry of National Defense (國防部組織法).
The two acts established the principle of civilian control over the armed forces, but aside from Michael Tsai (蔡明憲), who was unexpectedly appointed defense minister after his predecessor, Lee Tien-yu (李天羽), resigned over an alleged scandal, other defense ministers were all members of the military.
During that period, three defense ministers were transferred directly from the position of chief of general staff — Tang Yao-ming (湯曜明), Lee Jye (李杰) and Lee Tien-yu — while former defense minister Chen Chao-ming (陳肇敏) and incumbent minister Kao Hua-chu (高華柱) became minister after being discharged from the army after four years and five years respectively.
“It is a shame that former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) did not accomplish the goal during his term and now the opportunity is in Ma’s hands,” Huang said.
Lee Ping-nan said there was plenty of room to improve the defense ministry’s policy of enlisting more civilian officials in the ministry.
“While it is true that it takes time for practices imported from Western society to take root in this country, 10 years should be enough time,” he said.
Huang said that Kao supported a suggestion by Control Yuan members that the law should require that individuals with a military background could only be appointed defense minister after having been discharged from the military for a number of years.
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
ON PAROLE: The 73-year-old suspect has a criminal record of rape committed when he was serving in the military, as well as robbery and theft, police said The Kaohsiung District Court yesterday approved the detention of a 73-year-old man for allegedly murdering three women. The suspect, surnamed Chang (張), was arrested on Wednesday evening in connection with the death of a 71-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙). The Kaohsiung City Police Department yesterday also unveiled the identities of two other possible victims in the serial killing case, a 75-year-old woman surnamed Huang (黃), the suspect’s sister-in-law, and a 75-year-old woman surnamed Chang (張), who is not related to the suspect. The case came to light when Chao disappeared after taking the suspect back to his residence on Sunday. Police, upon reviewing CCTV
Johanne Liou (劉喬安), a Taiwanese woman who shot to unwanted fame during the Sunflower movement protests in 2014, was arrested in Boston last month amid US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigrants, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said yesterday. The arrest of Liou was first made public on the official Web site of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Tuesday. ICE said Liou was apprehended for overstaying her visa. The Boston Field Office’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) had arrested Liou, a “fugitive, criminal alien wanted for embezzlement, fraud and drug crimes in Taiwan,” ICE said. Liou was taken into custody
TRUMP ERA: The change has sparked speculation on whether it was related to the new US president’s plan to dismiss more than 1,000 Joe Biden-era appointees The US government has declined to comment on a post that indicated the departure of Laura Rosenberger as chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Neither the US Department of State nor the AIT has responded to the Central News Agency’s questions on the matter, after Rosenberger was listed as a former chair on the AIT’s official Web site, with her tenure marked as 2023 to this year. US officials have said previously that they usually do not comment on personnel changes within the government. Rosenberger was appointed head of the AIT in 2023, during the administration of former US president Joe