The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday said that its stance on a “nuclear-free homeland” remains unchanged.
Vice President William Lai (賴清德), the DPP’s candidate for next year’s presidential election, at a forum on Sunday said that government agencies were studying the feasibility of maintaining closed nuclear reactors so they could be restarted in case of an emergency.
This led to speculation that President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) promise of a nuclear-free Taiwan by 2025 might not be fulfilled.
Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsien, Taipei Times
Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱), spokesperson for Lai’s election campaign, yesterday said that Lai’s remarks were in response to a student’s question: If Taiwan got into an extreme situation such as a war or a blockade, how can the energy gap be filled?
Lai’s answer was based on a hypothetical situation in which national security is at risk due to “extreme” external conditions, Chen said.
Taiwan should boost its energy self-sufficiency, Lai said, adding that it should develop plans to respond to emergencies and extreme situations.
Decisions made during unusual and extreme situations require social consensus, he said.
Lai did not mention or support extending the use of the Jinshan Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Shihmen District (石門) or the Guosheng Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Wanli District (萬里), the reactors of which have been shut down, Chen said.
DPP spokesman Chang Chih-hao (張志豪) yesterday said that the party’s promise of a “nuclear-free homeland” remains unchanged and the government would continue to develop and increase the ratio of energy from renewable sources.
Lai repeatedly emphasized the importance of renewable energy development and energy self-sufficiency at the forum, Chang said.
It is the DPP’s priority to expand self-sufficient renewable energy and energy storage equipment, to save electricity and reduce consumption, he said.
Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) has said many times that the goal of a “nuclear-free homeland” is a consensus in Taiwan, Cabinet spokesman Alan Lin (林子倫) said yesterday, adding that it has always been the government’s goal.
New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate for the presidential election, yesterday said that if elected, he would ensure nuclear safety and manage nuclear waste.
Nuclear power is one option among the nation’s diverse energy sources that he supports, Hou said, making his first statement on nuclear power as a presidential candidate.
He said he would ensure that energy sources are in line with global trends, and that there would be no shortage of electricity.
Asked about the DPP’s goal of creating a nuclear-free Taiwan by 2025, he said that “it can’t be done, really can’t be done.”
Meanwhile, regarding the Supreme Court’s ruling to uphold the life imprisonment of a man who was initially sentenced to death for setting fire to his rented residence, killing nine people, Hou said that the death penalty is fair, just and in line with public expectations.
“I’m against abolishing the death penalty,” he added.
Additional reporting by Lai Hsiao-tung and Chung Li-hua
ALIGNED THINKING: Taiwan and Japan have a mutual interest in trade, culture and engineering, and can work together for stability, Cho Jung-tai said Taiwan and Japan are two like-minded countries willing to work together to form a “safety barrier” in the Indo-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday said at the opening ceremony of the 35th Taiwan-Japan Modern Engineering and Technology Symposium in Taipei. Taiwan and Japan are close geographically and closer emotionally, he added. Citing the overflowing of a barrier lake in the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) in September, Cho said the submersible water level sensors given by Japan during the disaster helped Taiwan monitor the lake’s water levels more accurately. Japan also provided a lot of vaccines early in the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic,
Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) on Monday announced light shows and themed traffic lights to welcome fans of South Korean pop group Twice to the port city. The group is to play Kaohsiung on Saturday as part of its “This Is For” world tour. It would be the group’s first performance in Taiwan since its debut 10 years ago. The all-female group consists of five South Koreans, three Japanese and Tainan’s Chou Tzu-yu (周子瑜), the first Taiwan-born and raised member of a South Korean girl group. To promote the group’s arrival, the city has been holding a series of events, including a pop-up
TEMPORAL/SPIRITUAL: Beijing’s claim that the next Buddhist leader must come from China is a heavy-handed political maneuver that will fall flat-faced, experts said China’s requirement that the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation to be born in China and approved by Beijing has drawn criticism, with experts at a forum in Taipei yesterday saying that if Beijing were to put forth its own Dalai Lama, the person would not be recognized by the Tibetan Buddhist community. The experts made a remarks at the two-day forum hosted by the Tibet Religious Foundation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama titled: “The Snow Land Forum: Finding Common Ground on Tibet.” China says it has the right to determine the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation, as it claims sovereignty over Tibet since ancient times,
Temperatures in some parts of Taiwan are expected to fall sharply to lows of 15°C later this week as seasonal northeasterly winds strengthen, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. It is to be the strongest cold wave to affect northern Taiwan this autumn, while Chiayi County in the southwest and some parts of central Taiwan are likely to also see lower temperatures due to radiational cooling, which occurs under conditions of clear skies, light winds and dry weather, the CWA said. Across Taiwan, temperatures are to fall gradually this week, dropping to 15°C to 16°C in the early hours of Wednesday
RSS