A draft amendment by the New Power Party (NPP) that seeks to rename some of the nation’s highest commendations to remove authoritarian symbols yesterday failed to enter committee review due to a boycott by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus.
That was the fourth time the KMT caucus has blocked the draft amendment to the Medals Act (勳章條例) from entering committee review since it was first submitted by NPP Legislator Freddy Lim (林昶佐) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lu Sun-ling (呂孫綾) on Sept. 22.
Through the proposed amendment, the pan-green lawmakers seek to rename honorary civilian orders that are reminiscent of the past party-state system to appellations more representative of contemporary Taiwan.
The five orders, in descending order of importance, are the Order of Brilliant Jade with Grand Cordon (采玉大勳章), the Order of Dr Sun Yat-sen with Grand Cordon (中山勳章), the Order of Chiang Chung-cheng with Grand Cordon (中正勳章), the Order of Propitious Clouds (勳雲勳章) and the Order of Brilliant Star (景星勳章).
The Order of Brilliant Jade, which reads caiyu in Mandarin, was named after Chiang Kai-shek’s (蔣中正) mother, Wang Tsai-yu (王采玉), and can only be presented by the president or an emissary to the head of state of a foreign nation.
The Order of Dr Sun Yat-sen and the Order of Chiang Chung-cheng were named after Republic of China founder Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙) and Chiang respectively. Chiang Chung-cheng is a less commonly used romanization of Chiang’s name.
The bill proposes renaming the Order of Brilliant Jade to Jade Mountain, Taiwan’s highest mountain, and the Order of Dr Sun Yat-sen to Black Tide (黑潮), the Kuroshio Current that flows northward along the nation’s eastern coast, which the lawmakers said has nurtured the nation.
It also suggests abolishing the Order of Chiang Chung-cheng.
The names of those three orders were apparently influenced by political ideology, Lim said.
“Chiang was a controversial dictator, while his mother had nothing to do with Taiwan, nor was she Taiwanese,” Lim said, adding that an order named after such a “stranger” cannot represent the nation.
The KMT will only grow more out of sync with society if it continues to dwell on the past and block efforts to rid the nation of outdated laws that should have ended with the former authoritarian regime, he added.
DPP Legislator Tsai Yi-yu (蔡易餘) said the DPP caucus has thrown its support behind the draft amendment, as it is inappropriate for the government’s highest civilian honor to be named after someone who has made no contribution to the nation’s defense and diplomatic development, and who carried no significance to ordinary Taiwanese.
“We also plan to pass a draft transitional justice promotion act in the current legislative session to help remove other lingering authoritarian symbols from the nation,” Tsai said.
DPP Legislator Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) said the civilian orders do not necessarily have to carry the name of a specific individual, adding that since Taiwan has become democratized, changes must be made to past authoritarian practices.
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
The Taiwan Experience Education Program (TEEP) has funded short-term internships in Taiwan for more than 4,500 young people from more than 40 countries since 2015, with the goal of attracting and retaining international talent, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. Fifty-five colleges launched 514 projects this year, including in fields such as semiconductors, artificial intelligence, medicine and biotechnology, green energy, and sustainability, it said. The program provides research and practical internships in Taiwan for two to six months, and offers cultural exchange and networking opportunities, the ministry said. For example, National Formosa University’s Embedded System and Autopilot Laboratory developed two solar-powered drones in
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
Taipei resident Mu Chu-hua caught some glimpses of China’s mighty military parade on YouTube on Wednesday. As she watched hypersonic missiles roll down Beijing’s Changan Avenue and troops march in lockstep, she did not feel like they posed a threat to Taiwan. Mu, a 69-year-old retiree, said she saw the parade as simply a way for Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to “say thank you to the troops.” “I thought it was quite normal,” she said. “It was very cool.” China’s military parade commemorating the end of World War II was being watched internationally for insights into Beijing’s military advances and its show
RSS