The 11th Global Assembly of the World Movement for Democracy is to convene in Taipei tomorrow, with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) scheduled to attend the opening of the three-day event.
About 300 delegates from 70 countries are registered to take part in the conference, event organizer National Endowment for Democracy said.
Participating democracy advocates, parliamentarians, academics and other international experts are to deliberate on efforts to counter authoritarian challenges and foster democratic momentum, the Washington-based organization said.
Endowment president Damon Wilson said during a visit to Taipei in March that a historic moment is being presented as the world faces growing troubles with crackdowns against democracy movements in Myanmar and Hong Kong in particular
Taiwan’s vibrant democracy is a success story amid global setbacks, he added.
The assembly is to highlight a new generation of leaders in democracy movements, hoping that hosting the conference in Taipei could inspire democracy efforts worldwide.
“Taiwan will be at the center of a global agenda for freedom, as part of integrating Taiwanese perspectives into the world, ensuring that Taiwan is a hub for democrats,” Wilson said in March as he announced Taipei as this year’s host city.
The theme this year is “Claiming the Democratic Future: Unifying Voices for a New Frontier,” as Taiwan and Ukraine are on the front lines of the global fight for democracy, the organization said.
Scheduled discussions include ways to combat disinformation, strengthen mobilization of democracy efforts and bolster solidarity among global democratic alliances, it said.
Taiwanese scientists have engineered plants that can capture about 50 percent more carbon dioxide and produce more than twice as many seeds as unmodified plants, a breakthrough they hope could one day help mitigate global warming and grow more food staples such as rice. If applied to major food crops, the new system could cut carbon emissions and raise yields “without additional equipment or labor costs,” Academia Sinica researcher and lead author the study Lu Kuan-jen (呂冠箴) said. Academia Sinica president James Liao (廖俊智) said that as humans emit 9.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide compared with the 220 billion tonnes absorbed
The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Wanda-Zhonghe Line is 81.7 percent complete, with public opening targeted for the end of 2027, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said today. Surrounding roads are to be open to the public by the end of next year, Hou said during an inspection of construction progress. The 9.5km line, featuring nine underground stations and one depot, is expected to connect Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station to Chukuang Station in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和). All 18 tunnels for the line are complete, while the main structures of the stations and depot are mostly finished, he
Taipei is to implement widespread road closures around Taipei 101 on Friday to make way for large crowds during the Double Ten National Day celebration, the Taipei Department of Transportation said. A four-minute fireworks display is to be launched from the skyscraper, along with a performance by 500 drones flying in formation above the nearby Nanshan A21 site, starting at 10pm. Vehicle restrictions would occur in phases, they said. From 5pm to 9pm, inner lanes of Songshou Road between Taipei City Hall and Taipei 101 are to be closed, with only the outer lanes remaining open. Between 9pm and 9:40pm, the section is
China’s plan to deploy a new hypersonic ballistic missile at a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) base near Taiwan likely targets US airbases and ships in the western Pacific, but it would also present new threats to Taiwan, defense experts said. The New York Times — citing a US Department of Defense report from last year on China’s military power — on Monday reported in an article titled “The missiles threatening Taiwan” that China has stockpiled 3,500 missiles, 1.5 times more than four years earlier. Although it is unclear how many of those missiles were targeting Taiwan, the newspaper reported
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