Family members and descendants of former president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) yesterday stood alongside President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) at an official ceremony to unveil a plaque that reads “Ching-kuo Hall” (經國廳) over the entrance to the Presidential Office Building’s auditorium.
Ma said the plaque was hung in the hope that people would realize the extraordinary contributions of the former president, adding that he hoped the nation would continue to uphold Chiang’s legacy of loyalty, spirit of reform and seeing the nation’s people as his own children.
Chiang was the hand behind the steadily improving economy and political reform of the Republic of China (ROC) in Taiwan following its defeat in the Chinese Civil War in 1949, Ma said.
The ceremony coincided with Youth Day, as Chiang had placed a lifelong emphasis on the importance of young people to the nation through his efforts to foster young talent, Ma said.
Under Chiang, the ROC saw the lifting of martial law, in place since 1949, and a gradual transition to the democratic republic the nation was meant to be, Ma said, adding that Chiang also improved cross-strait relations and presided over the Ten Major Infrastructure Projects (十大建設) that drove Taiwan’s economic success.
Chiang was a far-sighted politician who ended the authoritarian rule under which he was born, Ma said, adding that his lifting of a ban on veterans in Taiwan visiting their families in China greatly contributed to thawing relations across the Taiwan Strait.
Ma said that over his eight years as president, he has striven to follow Chiang’s tenet of “making Taiwan the primary concern [of policies] and [making policies that] benefit Taiwanese.”
Among those also in attendance at the ceremony were former premiers Hao Pei-tsun (郝柏村) and Liu Chao-hsuan (劉兆玄), as well as 99-year-old former Presidential Office deputy secretary-general Chang Tzu-yi (張祖詒).
Chang was critical of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who removed a plaque from the auditorium’s entrance that read “Chieh Shou Hall” (介壽堂), written by then-Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) heavyweight Wu Chih-hui (吳稚暉). Chang called Chen’s removal of the plaque a “crude, shallow act” and lauded Ma for his restraint in not replacing the plaque immediately after assuming office in 2008.
Chang said he was honored to be invited to the ceremony, and that in his mind, Chiang was a great and wise leader, as well as a kind and benevolent elder, adding that Chiang always placed himself at the forefront when dealing with the nation’s needs.
“Wherever the people needed him, he was always there,” Chang said.
Chang suggested that Ma donate recordings of the process of naming and hanging the plaque over the auditorium to the Academia Historica.
Also in attendance were KMT chairperson-elect Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) and KMT Acting Chairperson Huang Min-hui (黃敏惠), as well as Chiang’s daughter-in-law Chiang Fang Chih-yi (蔣方智怡), his son John Chiang (蔣孝嚴) and other members of the family, including Chiang Yu-sung (蔣友松) and Andrew Chiang (蔣友青).
STAY AWAY: An official said people should avoid disturbing snakes, as most do not actively attack humans, but would react defensively if threatened Taitung County authorities yesterday urged the public to stay vigilant and avoid disturbing snakes in the wild, following five reported snakebite cases in the county so far this year. Taitung County Fire Department secretary Lin Chien-cheng (林建誠) said two of the cases were in Donghe Township (東河) and involved the Taiwan habus, one person was bit by a Chinese pit viper near the South Link Railway and the remaining two were caused by unidentified snakes. He advised residents near fields to be cautious of snakes hiding in shady indoor areas, especially when entering or leaving their homes at night. In case of a
ENERGY RESILIENCE: Although Alaska is open for investments, Taiwan is sourcing its gas from the Middle East, and the sea routes carry risks, Ho Cheng-hui said US government officials’ high-profile reception of a Taiwanese representative at the Alaska Sustainable Energy Conference indicated the emergence of an Indo-Pacific energy resilience alliance, an academic said. Presidential Office Secretary-General Pan Men-an (潘孟安) attended the conference in Alaska on Thursday last week at the invitation of the US government. Pan visited oil and gas facilities with senior US officials, including US Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy and US Senator Daniel Sullivan. Pan attending the conference on behalf of President William Lai (賴清德) shows a significant elevation in diplomatic representation,
Credit departments of farmers’ and fishers’ associations blocked a total of more than NT$180 million (US$6.01 million) from being lost to scams last year, National Police Agency (NPA) data showed. The Agricultural Finance Agency (AFA) said last week that staff of farmers’ and fishers’ associations’ credit departments are required to implement fraud prevention measures when they serve clients at the counter. They would ask clients about personal financial management activities whenever they suspect there might be a fraud situation, and would immediately report the incident to local authorities, which would send police officers to the site to help, it said. NPA data showed
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 7pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the temblor was at sea, about 69.9km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 30.9km, it said. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County’s Changbin Township (長濱), where it measured 5 on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 4 in Hualien, Nantou, Chiayi, Yunlin, Changhua and Miaoli counties, as well as
RSS