Gerrit van der Wees, a former Dutch diplomat and founder of a pro-democracy publication in Taiwan, was awarded a presidential medal by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday for his contributions to the country.
Tsai conferred the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon on van der Wees, primarily for his work as chief editor of Taiwan Communiqué, a bi-monthly publication chronicling developments in and around Taiwan’s transition to democracy, from 1980 to 2016.
The publication was launched in the aftermath of the “Kaohsiung Incident” of December 1979, in which the then authoritarian Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) regime cracked down on pro-democracy demonstrations in the southern Taiwan city.
Photo: CNA
Taiwan Communiqué brought attention to Taiwan’s human rights developments to the US and the international community. It also documented Taiwan’s transition from a martial law regime to a full democracy, as well as from one-party rule to a multi-party system, Tsai said.
In receiving his honor, van der Wees, who currently teaches history at George Mason University in the US, said the publication aimed to keep records of Taiwan’s transformation for future generations.
However, he stressed that there remained challenges for Taiwan, such as continued threats from Beijing to isolate it on the international stage.
Other challenges facing Taiwan include how to ensure that future generations understand Taiwan’s arduous path to freedom and the need to make a concerted effort to preserve the democracy and freedom Taiwan now has, van der Wees said.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
RSS