POLITICS
Debate schedule declined
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party members of the legislature’s Procedure Committee yesterday declined to schedule a debate of the central government budget for the next fiscal year, the fourth time it was rejected. There were 10 votes in support and eight against. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) hoped to review the budget on Friday. DPP Legislator Chuang Ruei-hsiung (莊瑞雄) said the KMT’s remanding the budget to the Procedure Committee was baseless, adding that the refusal to review the budget would render legislation against scamming useless without the funding. The opposition’s refusal to review the budget is hampering the government’s efforts to prevent and rebuild from damage caused by typhoons, the DPP said. The KMT said that all funding for disaster prevention has already been allocated, and it only called for the Executive Yuan to review budget allocations.
MILITARY
Soldier dies on range
A member of the air force died yesterday after he was hit by a live round during a small-arms training session on a shooting range on a military base in Taichung, the air force said in a statement. The private first class, surnamed Hsu (許), died after he was rushed to a hospital, the air force said. The China Times earlier reported that the soldier was engaged in T-91 rifle training when the gun apparently misfired, sending a bullet into his jaw. The air force has not commented on that detail, but said it has created a task force to investigate the incident. At a legislative meeting yesterday afternoon, Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said he was saddened by the incident when asked about it by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Huang Jen (黃仁). Koo said that he would instruct the military to review safety procedures for shooting training. The military would ensure that Hsu’s family receives a generous consolation payment as per regulations, he added.
DIPLOMACY
Minister greets new envoy
Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) on Monday welcomed Cheloy Garafil, the Philippines’ new top representative to Taiwan, and said he hoped bilateral exchanges and cooperation would continue to grow during her tenure. Lin met with Garafil, the new head of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Taipei headquarters, and highlighted the common interests and values shared by Taipei and Manila. He said he hoped that cordial bilateral exchanges in several areas, including trade, fisheries, agriculture, disaster prevention, education and healthcare, would continue, the ministry said in a statement. Garafil said that she was honored to be stationed in Taipei and was also happy to land in Taiwan for the first time. She said she would do her best to promote bilateral cooperation on all fronts and people-to-people ties during her tenure. Garafil, a former press secretary to Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, took over at the office as chairperson on Tuesday last week, succeeding Silvestre Hernando Bello III. She previously served as head of the Philippines Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board and as a prosecutor at the Department of Justice during the administration of former Philippine president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Prior to her government jobs, Garafil worked as a reporter at the Malaya newspaper and also for the Central News Agency.
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “(we) appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
TRUMP ERA: The change has sparked speculation on whether it was related to the new US president’s plan to dismiss more than 1,000 Joe Biden-era appointees The US government has declined to comment on a post that indicated the departure of Laura Rosenberger as chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Neither the US Department of State nor the AIT has responded to the Central News Agency’s questions on the matter, after Rosenberger was listed as a former chair on the AIT’s official Web site, with her tenure marked as 2023 to this year. US officials have said previously that they usually do not comment on personnel changes within the government. Rosenberger was appointed head of the AIT in 2023, during the administration of former US president Joe
MUST REMAIN FREE: A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would lead to a global conflict, and if the nation blows up, the world’s factories would fall in a week, a minister said Taiwan is like Prague in 1938 facing Adolf Hitler; only if Taiwan remains free and democratic would the world be safe, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The ministry on Saturday said Corriere della Sera is one of Italy’s oldest and most read newspapers, frequently covers European economic and political issues, and that Wu agreed to an interview with the paper’s senior political analyst Massimo Franco in Taipei on Jan. 3. The interview was published on Jan. 26 with the title “Taiwan like Prague in 1938 with Hitler,” the ministry