Taiwan must not revert back to reliance on China’s economy, Vice President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that opening to more Chinese students and workers as advocated by the opposition could lead to difficult conditions for young Taiwanese.
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate elaborated on his economic platform while visiting two Matsu temples and a local market in Taipei’s Songshan District (松山) yesterday morning.
Boosting the economy involves not just developing science and technology sectors, but also its medium, small and microenterprises, Lai said.
Photo: Ritchie B. Tongo, EPA-EFE
“In traditional markets, we like to see all vendors have active businesses to make a living, then our society can strive forward,” he said. “It is my job to take care of everyone, to help their livelihood.”
“Our government has approved free tuition for highschools and vocational schools starting next year, as well as tuition and school expense subsidies for students at private colleges,” Lai said.
“When our citizens pursue their goals, our nation can make progress,” he added.
Lai asked local residents and market vendors if they want the government to restart the Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement (CSSTA) talks with China, which the presidential candidates of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party have said they favor.
“If they sign the agreement, then [Chinese citizens] can come here and open chicken rice restaurants,” he said, pointing to a nearby restaurant sign.
“There are correct ways to boost our economy and stimulate growth. It is wrong to go backward and regress onto past roads. It is the wrong policy to push for economic growth by locking Taiwan up to only depend on China’s economy,” he said.
He also quoted the KMT’s presidential candidate, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), who said that he supports welcoming more Chinese university students, who could take jobs in Taiwan after graduating.
“If Chinese students come to Taiwan in large numbers, what would Taiwan’s young people be left with?” Lai added.
Experts say that China is facing an economic crisis, and its youth jobless rate was at 20 percent in June before Beijing stopped releasing figures, with some observers saying it has likely now reached 40 percent, he said.
Afterward, Lai headed south to Nanshan Fude Temple in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和) to stump for DPP legislative candidate Justin Wu (吳崢), who was a student leader in the 2014 Sunflower movement.
“Justin was an activist in his university days. He joined in the occupation of the legislature when protests began in March 2014,” Lai said.
“Students and young people at the time were fighting against the KMT’s forcing through of the CSSTA in the legislature without proper deliberation procedures,” he said.
“It was young people and student activists, Wu among them, who successfully blocked the KMT’s cross-strait economic deal. They were the ones who safeguarded Taiwan’s healthy economic development,” he added.
POLAM KOPITIAM CASE: Of the two people still in hospital, one has undergone a liver transplant and is improving, while the other is being evaluated for a liver transplant A fourth person has died from bongkrek acid poisoning linked to the Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, as two other people remain seriously ill in hospital. The first death was reported on March 24. The man had been 39 years old and had eaten at the restaurant on March 22. As more cases of suspected food poisoning involving people who had eaten at the restaurant were reported by hospitals on March 26, the ministry and the Taipei Department of Health launched an investigation. The Food and
The long-awaited Taichung aquarium is expected to open next year after more than a decade of development. The building in Cingshui District (清水) is to feature a large ocean aquarium on the first floor, coral display area on the second floor, a jellyfish tank and Dajia River (大甲溪) basin display on the third, a river estuary display and restaurant on the fourth, and a cafe and garden on the fifth. As it is near Wuci Fishing Port (梧棲漁港), many are expecting the opening of the aquarium to bring more tourism to the harbor. Speaking at the city council on Monday, Taichung City Councilor
A fourth person has died in a food poisoning outbreak linked to the Xinyi (信義) branch of Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in Taipei, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said on Monday. It was the second fatality in three days, after another was announced on Saturday. The 40-year-old woman experienced multiple organ failure in the early hours on Monday, and the family decided not to undergo emergency resuscitation, Wang said. She initially showed signs of improvement after seeking medical treatment for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but her condition worsened due to an infection, he said. Two others who
Taiwanese should be mindful when visiting China, as Beijing in July is likely to tighten the implementation of policies on national security following the introduction of two regulations, a researcher said on Saturday. China on Friday unveiled the regulations governing the law enforcement and judicial activities of national security agencies. They would help crack down on “illegal” and “criminal” activities that Beijing considers to be endangering national security, according to reports by China’s state media. The definition of what constitutes a national security threat in China is vague, Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) said. The two procedural regulations are to provide Chinese