Taiwan is obligated to reciprocate to the international community and stand with global religious leaders and the pan-democratic camp, Vice President William Lai (賴清德) told the opening ceremony of the Taiwan International Religious Freedom Summit yesterday.
Lai thanked Samuel Brownback, who in February 2020 invited him to attend the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, for allowing him to participate in the international religious summit and roundtable conference.
He said that event had taught him a lot, such as how religious freedom is still severely persecuted in many places.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
Taiwan has been through its share of dictatorial oppression, and the liberty and democracy it enjoys is the result of the people bravely standing against such pressure, he said.
Taiwan’s has been ranked 10th in the world and first in Asia in terms of democratic achievements, according to The Economist, while US-based Freedom House has given Taiwan a score of 94 in terms of democracy, placing it only slightly behind Japan and ranking second in Asia, he said.
Taiwan has 100 percent religious freedom, regardless of the institution, he added.
Lai also commented on the venue, the Grand Hotel, which was where the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was founded.
Legislative Yuan Speaker You Si-kun (游錫?) was there on that day, Lai said as You looked on.
As long as there is autocracy, there will be religious persecution, he said.
Like many other emerging countries, Taiwan has been through its share of colonization and oppression, but it has matured into a fully democratic country, touted as the “Beacon of Democracy in Asia,” You said.
Taiwan’s efforts and achievements show that the words of former Singaporean prime minister Lee Kuan Yew (李光耀) — who died in 2015 — that “human rights and democracy are Western creations that are unsuitable for Asian nations” were false, You added.
Pew Research Center in 2014 put Taiwan second among 232 countries on its Religion Diversity Index, while Freedom House had the nation 17th on its Freedom Index, he said.
Taiwan’s experience of fighting oppression and autocracy has created a tolerant society that respects cultural diversity, he said.
Religious freedom is a fundamental right guaranteed by the Constitution, and the government fully respects different cultures and beliefs, You added.
“We are proud to say that a church can exist side by side with a mosque, both of which can exist side by side with a traditional Taiwanese temple,” he said.
The German city of Hamburg on Oct. 14 named a bridge “Kaohsiung-Brucke” after the Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung. The footbridge, formerly known as F566, is to the east of the Speicherstadt, the world’s largest warehouse district, and connects the Dar-es-Salaam-Platz to the Brooktorpromenade near the Port of Hamburg on the Elbe River. Timo Fischer, a Free Democratic Party member of the Hamburg-Mitte District Assembly, in May last year proposed the name change with support from members of the Social Democratic Party and the Christian Democratic Union. Kaohsiung and Hamburg in 1999 inked a sister city agreement, but despite more than a quarter-century of
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday expressed “grave concerns” after Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) reiterated the city-state’s opposition to “Taiwanese independence” during a meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強). In Singapore on Saturday, Wong and Li discussed cross-strait developments, the Singaporean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “Prime Minister Wong reiterated that Singapore has a clear and consistent ‘one China’ policy and is opposed to Taiwan independence,” it said. MOFA responded that it is an objective fact and a common understanding shared by many that the Republic of China (ROC) is an independent, sovereign nation, with world-leading
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
The Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau (MJIB) has been investigating nine shell companies working with Prince Holding Group, and the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office is seeking further prosecution of alleged criminals, a source said yesterday. The nine companies and three Taiwanese nationals were named by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Oct. 14 as Specially Designated Nationals as a result of a US federal court indictment. Prince Holding founder Chen Zhi (陳志) has been charged with fraud, conspiracy, money laundering and overseeing Prince Holding’s suspected forced-labor camps in Cambodia, the indictment says. Intelligence shared between Taiwan,
RSS