Changing the national emblem should not be taken lightly, as it embodies the nation’s collective sentiment, but political party symbols can and should change with the times, the Ministry of the Interior said on Thursday in a report on the issues stemming from similarities between the national and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) emblems.
The ministry issued the report in response to a motion raised by the New Power Party caucus and passed on Jan. 29 requesting an evaluation within two months.
Since its installment in 1928, the national emblem has been broadly applied on the national and military flags, medals, uniforms, certificates, foreign embassies and other places, it said.
Photo: Chen Yu-fu, Taipei Times
Changing the emblem would involve difficult legal amendments and considerable expense to redesign all of the aforementioned applications, it said.
The ideological strife it would exacerbate is also a concern, potentially spilling over into the nation’s international dealings, the report added.
The nation went through a long period of authoritarian rule that erased the lines between party and state, but has been lauded the world over for its transition to democracy, earning it the moniker “the beacon of democracy in Asia,” it said.
Although the similarity between the national and KMT emblems is based in history, the national emblem is a symbol of the nation and changing it should not be considered lightly, the ministry said.
On the other hand, the symbols of political parties can and should change to reflect current sentiment, it said.
The party-state era is over and the political arena has become diversified, so political symbols should change to respect the national emblem, it added.
In response, KMT Chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) wrote on Facebook that the suggestion was a deliberate attempt by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to shift the public’s focus from the deadly train accident in Hualien County on Friday last week, claiming the lives of 50 people and injuring more than 200 others.
Taking up the issue is a scheme on the DPP’s part to shift the public’s attention from the tragedy and to dodge its responsibility, which is a disgrace to those who perished in the accident and their families, Chiang said.
He also questioned the DPP’s loyalty to the nation, its flag and the national emblem.
“If the DPP fully identifies with the Republic of China, the KMT will be happy to see it incorporate elements of the national flag and national emblem into its party emblem,” he said.
Deputy Minister of the Interior Chen Tsung-yen (陳宗彥) yesterday said the report only offers an analysis of the current situation and is not a demand for any political party to change their party emblem.
A 72-year-old man in Kaohsiung was sentenced to 40 days in jail after he was found having sex with a 67-year-old woman under a slide in a public park on Sunday afternoon. At 3pm on Sunday, a mother surnamed Liang (梁) was with her child at a neighborhood park when they found the man, surnamed Tsai (蔡), and woman, surnamed Huang (黃), underneath the slide. Liang took her child away from the scene, took photographs of the two and called the police, who arrived and arrested the couple. During questioning, Tsai told police that he had met Huang that day and offered to
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
A total lunar eclipse, an astronomical event often referred to as a “blood moon,” would be visible to sky watchers in Taiwan starting just before midnight on Sunday night, the Taipei Astronomical Museum said. The phenomenon is also called “blood moon” due to the reddish-orange hue it takes on as the Earth passes directly between the sun and the moon, completely blocking direct sunlight from reaching the lunar surface. The only light is refracted by the Earth’s atmosphere, and its red wavelengths are bent toward the moon, illuminating it in a dramatic crimson light. Describing the event as the most important astronomical phenomenon
BETTER SERVICE QUALITY: From Nov. 10, tickets with reserved seats would only be valid for the date, train and route specified on the ticket, THSRC said Starting on Nov. 10, high-speed rail passengers with reserved seats would be required to exchange their tickets to board an earlier train. Passengers with reserved seats on a specific train are currently allowed to board earlier trains on the same day and sit in non-reserved cars, but as this is happening increasingly often, and affecting quality of travel and ticket sales, Taiwan High-Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) announced that it would be canceling the policy on Nov. 10. It is one of several new measures launched by THSRC chairman Shih Che (史哲) to improve the quality of service, it said. The company also said
RSS