TAIPEI, Taiwan, June 28 (UPI) -- A first-ever legislative bid to oust scandal-plagued Taiwanese President Chen Shui-ban has failed to reach a required two-thirds majority.
The recall needed 148 votes to pass, but many legislators cast invalid ballots with "abstention" written on them, and the measure got 119 votes out of 221, the Taipei Times reported.
Dissent came to a head last month when allegations of family insider trading arose, involving Chen's wife and son-in-law, the BBC reported. more ...
China's Subtle Pressure On TaiwanTaking A More Low-Key Stance, Beijing Is Betting That Growing Economic Ties With Taipei Will Lead To Political Reunification.
A couple of years ago, Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian regularly outraged Beijing with his rhetorical blasts suggesting the high-tech island economy might someday pursue full-fledged independence from mainland China. Nowadays, he is fighting for his political life. On June 27, Chen barely narrowly survived a no-confidence vote in the opposition-controlled Taiwanese legislature after charges surfaced in May that some of his family members. more ...
Beijing plays down vow to take Taiwan by force
Gradually and without fanfare, the mainland has substantially softened its stand on Taiwan, according to senior officials and diplomats.
The Standard - Friday, June 16, 2006
Gradually and without fanfare, the mainland has substantially softened
its stand on Taiwan, according to senior officials and diplomats.
President Hu Jintao, they said, has begun to play down Beijing's long-
standing vow to recover the island by force if necessary and shifted the
focus to preventing any move toward formal independence. more
...
Asia's longest road tunnel opens
By Caroline Gluck
BBC News , Taipei
Last Updated: Friday, 16 June 2006, 10:16 GMT 11:16 UK
The Snow Mountain tunnel is the fifth longest in the world.
The longest underground road tunnel in Asia, and the 5th longest in the world, has opened to traffic in Taiwan.
The Hsuehshan, or Snow Mountain, tunnel is nearly 13km (8 miles) long and took nearly 14 years to complete.
A special commemoration service was held to unveil a memorial paying tribute to the 25 people who lost their lives during its construction.
The tunnel forms a key section of a new national expressway, which cost nearly $2bn. more ...
Taiwan, China agree on flight deal
Move comes amid president's woes
By Keith Bradsher
New York Times News Service
Published June 15, 2006
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Facing an attempt in the legislature to pass a referendum on
recalling the president, Taiwan's government unexpectedly announced Wednesday
that it has reached a deal with Beijing to allow many charter flights to and
from mainland China.
The agreement is the latest of several signs that relations between Taipei
and Beijing may be thawing, a change that has occurred as a political crisis
surrounding the president, Chen Shui-bian, has deepened.
more
...
Court denies Chao bail
NO CAN DO: Lawyers argued that the president's son-in-law needed to be with his wife when she gives birth, but prosecutors refused, saying he may destroy evidence
By Rich Chang Staff Reporter
Taipei Times - Thursday, Jun 08, 2006,Page 2
The Taipei District Court yesterday rejected the bail application of President
Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) son in-law, Chao Chien-ming (趙建銘), who is being detained on suspicion of insider trading of Taiwan Development Corp (TDC) shares. more ...
Xin Haonian Gave Lectures Forecasting Relationship between China and Taiwan
By Huang Xing
The Epoch Times Jun 04, 2006
Mr. Xin Haonian giving a lecture in Hamburg on the afternoon of May 27, 2006 (The Epoch Times) FRANKFURT - By invition of the Global Alliance for Democracy and Peace German branch, Mr. Xin Haonian, Director of the Chinese Contemporary History Research Institute and Editor-in-Chief of Huanghuagang Journal, a quarterly publication on history and culture, gave public lectures in Frankfurt and Hamburg on May 25 and 27 respectively, titled "A look from an historical angle on the influence that the rising of China has on Taiwan." more ...
Taiwan wants a space of its own, says would-be president
By Hamish McDonald Asia-Pacific Editor
May 10, 2006
THE making and breaking of Pacific Islands governments by Chinese bribery would
finish if Beijing's communists cut their diplomatic arch-rivals in Taiwan more
space.
This is the argument of the man who might lead Taiwan in two years, Ma Ying-jeou,
touching on a delicate subject during a visit to Sydney yesterday. more
...
Traditional vs. Simplified Chinese Debate Grows
Debate grows as Chinese regime tries to popularize simplified
Chinese abroad
Central News Agency May 09, 2006
TAIPEI - In the wave of Chinese learning abroad,
the Chinese communist regime tries it best to popularize simplified Chinese
via its robust political and diplomatic tactics. Many people fear that traditional
Chinese, which is used in Taiwan and overseas Chinese communities, is in danger
of being marginalized and eliminated. Chinese character experts, however, point
out that on the surface, traditional Chinese appears to be in an inferior position,
but time may prove that it may be in a better position in the long run because
of its cultural heritage and beauty. more
...
Shameless Commerce: US Policy Toward China and Taiwan
Trade / From Dave Lindorff
By davelindorff on May 05, 2006 - 12:24 PM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shameless Commerce: US Policy Toward China and Taiwan
By Dave Lindorff
Bush’s passion for “exporting democracy” doesn’t apply
where U.S. corporations think there’s money to be made in a repressive
dictatorship.
The embarrassing American policy of toadying to China while selling out Taiwan
was on display over the past couple of weeks in all its glory.
First China's president Hu Jintao was welcomed to the White House, given a
fancy lunch and a military salute, and generally treated like the maximum leader
he wanted to present himself as to his repressed subjects. (Okay, our own maximum
leader George Bush made the faux pas of pulling Hu by the sleeve when the confused
Hu headed off a stage in the wrong direction, but that was just Bush being
Bush.)
Then, when Chen Shui-bian, the twice-elected president of Taiwan, tried to
stop over for the night in San Francisco, en route to a visit to South America,
he was denied permission by the U.S. government.
Note that since the U.S. technically doesn't recognize the Taiwanese government,
Mr Chen is officially a private citizen, and Taiwanese citizens travel freely
to the U.S.--in fact they are one of the largest group of visiters to America
annually. He should not have even needed permission to visit.
The denial of President Chen's request to sleep in San Francisco was a deliberate
slap-down designed to register the Bush administration's anger at Chen for
having continued to promote Taiwan's independence from China, which continues
to say it wants to take over Taiwan.
If the Bush administration is serious (yeah, right) about its rhetoric of promoting
democracy around the globe, it should be backing Taiwan, the first example
of a functioning democracy in China's history, to the hilt.
But that would not make American corporations, which are falling all over themselves
trying to kowtow to the Chinese government and get permission to invest in
the Chinese market, happy.
American corporate leaders are ready to sell Taiwan's 23 million people down
the river in a flash if they can get to market their wares to China's 1.3 billion
would-be consumers.
So in China, we have the repulsive example of American companies like Yahoo
and Google actually helping the Chinese government to shut down democratic
debate on the Internet, even to the point of helping China's police apparatus
to track down and arrest people who are posting pro-democracy essays on the
web, all the while espousing the Freedmanesque bromide that bringing capitalism
to China will inevitably bring freedom along with it.
The next time Bush mouths his platitudes about America spreading democracy,
some reporter ought to have the guts to ask: "What about Taiwan?"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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http://www.ilcaonline.org/
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http://www.ilcaonline.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=2957
Taiwan’s US stopover denial seen against Iran
backdrop
Pakistan Daily Times
Saturday, May 06, 2006
By P Parameswaran
The Taiwanese president’s apparent refusal to second the US line on the Iran issue has made relations between both countries tense
The United States decided to bar a stopover by Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian on his way to Latin America to avoid angering China, whose backing for UN action against Iran is critical, analysts said. more ...
U.S. Denies Taiwan Leader Overnight Stay HereBy JOSEPH KAHN
Published: May 3, 2006
BEIJING, May 3 — Taiwan's president, Chen Shui-bian, delayed an overseas trip at the last minute today after the United States denied him permission to stop overnight on American soil, a diplomatic setback for the independence-leaning Taiwanese leader.
The rebuke suggests that the Bush administration remains displeased by Mr. Chen's move in February to abolish a government agency set up to study reunification with mainland China. Washington is also eager to avoid antagonizing China after a troubled visit to the United States by its president, Hu Jintao, late last month.
more ....
PRC offers clarity by blocking Su visit
2006-05-02 / Taiwan News /
The People's Republic of China again provided another reason for Taiwan's citizens to abandon illusions about the good will of our hegemonic western neighbor Saturday by engaging in an outright act of "diplomatic" blackmail against the small and troubled Caribbean island nation of Haiti.
In an action that again exposed Beijing's arrogance toward Third World nations, the PRC forced the president-elect of Haiti to cancel the planned visit of Taiwan Premier Su Tseng-chang to attend the May 14 inauguration of Haitian President-elect Rene Preval as President Chen Shui-bian's special envoy. more ...
Taiwan a powerhouse of the old and the newPosted: 04/23/2006 12:00 AM CDT
L.A. Lorek
San Antonio Express-News
TAIPEI, Taiwan — While growing up, I always felt like I had some
kind of link to this place.
Maybe it was because the label inside my clothes and toys often had the
familiar "Made in Taiwan" stamp.
I remember thinking that Taiwan operated as a big factory somewhere far away churning out everything.
That's still pretty much true today. But instead of cranking out cheap knickknacks, T-shirts and dolls, Taiwanese companies are powerhouses in the electronics industry, making the bulk of the world's laptop computers, liquid crystal displays and personal digital assistants. more ...
China's defense minister warns Taiwan over talk
of independence
April 10, 2006 - (Japan Economic Newswire Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)KUALA LUMPUR,
April 10_(Kyodo) _ Chinese Defense Minister Cao Gangchuan told Malaysian Defense
Minister Najib Abdul Razak on Monday that China will never allow Taiwan to seek
independence. more
...
Why Taiwan is different from mainland China
2006/3/25
Sometime in the not too distant past, probably in the eighteenth century,
Europe passed an economic milestone, which was not recognized exactly
at the time -- the average European was better off than in Roman times.
The Western Roman Empire was finally over thrown in AD 476 by the barbarian
Odoacer. This ushered in the Dark Ages, so called from the idea that
this period in Europe was characterized by intellectual stagnation, widespread
ignorance and poverty, and cultural decline. People looked back towards
a golden past -- the ancient times when things were better and life more
stable and prosperous. more ...
Taiwan's secret: Island is territory of U.S.!
Posted: March 22, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern
By Richard W. Hartzell and Roger C. S. Lin
© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com
TAIPEI, Taiwan – When discussing Taiwan's international position,
we are frequently told that after World War II there was a peace treaty
where Japan renounced all right, claim and title to "Formosa and
the Pescadores" (aka Taiwan), but these areas were not given to
any other country. Based on a simple analysis of these treaty provisions,
it could be held that Taiwan's international legal position is undetermined.
In the past few years, however, many people have begun to disagree with
such an interpretation. more ...
Taiwan's Ma fears "confrontation" with
China
Mon Mar 20, 2006 10:00 PM GMT
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Taiwan's opposition leader and potential presidential front-runner Ma Ying-jeou called on Monday for multilateral talks with China to avoid confrontation.
"Without negotiations, I think the current state across the Taiwan Strait could move from stagnation to confrontation," Ma told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.
Relations with China have been strained since February when pro-independence President Chen Shui-bian scrapped the National Unification Council (NUC), a dormant but politically significant body aimed at one day reuniting China and Taiwan.
Ma, the mayor of Taipei, is chairman of the main opposition Kuomintang (KMT), or the Nationalist Party, which favours closer ties with China. He called the abolition of the council "unnecessary and unwise." more ...
Ma is 100% pro-unification: Wu
The debate on cross-strait relations has heated up in recent months,
triggered by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou's
statement last December that the KMT's 'eventual goal' is unification
with China. President Chen Shui-bian counteracted that statement by 'ceasing'
the activity of the National Unfication Council and guidelines. Mainland
Affairs Council Chairman Joseph Wu sat down with 'Taipei Times' reporter
Chang Yun-ping on Friday to give the DPP government's view on the KMT's
cross-strait policy
Sunday, Mar 19, 2006,Page 3
Taipei Times: Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九)
is leaving for the US today, and is likely to try to dispel US concerns
that the KMT will not be pro-China, anti-US and anti-Japan if Ma is elected
president in 2008. What do you think about this? more
...
U.S. envoy pledges to stand side-by-side with Taiwan
(updated 12:42 a.m.)
2006/3/19
The China Post staff
The new U.S. envoy to Taiwan pledged yesterday to work with the island
to strengthen relations with Washington as well as help it manage its
tense relations with rival China and deal with the security implications.
"There are real challenges out there, including, in particular, careful
management of cross-strait relations with a rapidly growing and increasingly
self-confident China," Stephen M. Young said upon arrival at the Chiang
Kai-shek International Airport.
"This has posed new security challenges for Taiwan which the United
States, under the Taiwan Relations Act, remains committed to closely
cooperating on with you," he said. more
...
Taiwan's Chen plans to join anti-China protest
Reuters Thu Mar 16, 2006 8:03 AM GMT
TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian said on Thursday he plans to join a massive rally this weekend to protest China's threat to use force against the self-ruled island.
Chen, keen to shake off Beijing's claim of sovereignty over the island, said a decision to scrap a dormant but symbolic body and 15-year-old guidelines on unification would prove to be an important milestone in history.
The move triggered condemnation from China, which considers Taiwan part of its territory, to be brought into the fold by force if necessary. China and Taiwan split at the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949.
"All efforts to deepen our democracy have been viewed as fierce
floods and savage beasts that are equal to war and disaster, and misunderstood
as so-called de jure independence," Chen said in a speech to a group
of Taiwanese living in Japan. more ....
Taiwan's prerogative
International Herald Tribune
THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 2006
Regarding the article "Beijing upset over Chen's step in Taiwan" (March
1): President Chen Shui-bian's recent decision to cease the functioning
of an anachronistic body, the National Unification Council, and shelve
the National Unification Guidelines, represents no change to the status
quo in the Taiwan Strait.
It is incomprehensible how the cessation of a nonfunctioning body could
result in a change to the present situation. Chen is Taiwan's elected
leader, and as the national leader he has made an administrative adjustment
to a body that advises only his office. The National Unifcation Council
was not empowered by the legislature and has no constitutional relevance. more
...
Chinese PM sends mixed message to Taiwan
By Edward Lanfranco Mar 14, 2006, 20:09 GMT
BEIJING, China (UPI) -- Prime Minister Wen Jiabao said China was 'prepared
for all eventualities' when it came to countering moves by Taiwanese
authorities towards declaring independence for the island.
Wen made the statement at his annual press conference following the final session of the National People`s Congress Tuesday morning in Beijing. The premier`s comments on Taiwan were a combination of tough talk and hopes for renewed dialogue. more ...
KMT candidate wins Chiayi seat by-election
2006/3/12
The China Post staff
The main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) yesterday recorded another victory
over the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) as Chiang Yi-hsiung,
the KMT candidate for a lawmaker by-election in Chiayi City, southern
Taiwan, won the race, making the KMT and the DPP even as the largest
party with 88 seats each in the Legislative Yuan.
Just three months ago, the KMT scored a landslide victory in the election
of local county magistrates and city mayors, in which KMT Lawmaker Huang
Min-hui was elected as Chiayi mayor. The by-election was held to fill
the vacancy left by Huang. more ...
US restates Taiwan commitment
FRIENDLY WARNING: The US Pacific Command chief said that while it remained
committed to Taiwan's defense, it expected the nation to do more to help
itself
CNA , WASHINGTON
Saturday, Mar 11, 2006,Page 3
Advertising A high-ranking US Department of Defense official on Thursday reaffirmed Washington's commitment to defend Taiwan against any military action by China, while again urging Taiwan to beef up its capability to defend itself. more ...
Taiwan’s ruling party declares ’Anti-Invasion Day’;
plans mass rally against China
(AP) 8 March 2006
TAIPEI, Taiwan - Taiwan’s ruling party said on Wednesday it would stage a mass protest against rival China to mark the first anniversary of a Chinese law codifying the use of military force against the island if it moves toward formal independence.
Leaders of the Democratic Progressive Party and its allies said they
hoped the March 18 demonstration in Taipei would draw up to 100,000 people
to protest China’s anti-secession law. more
...
Taiwanese premier says Taiwan not part of China
Mar 6, 2006, 14:10 GMT
Taipei - Taiwan's Premier Su Tseng-chang Monday rejected as unacceptable
a development draft plan by China that describes the island as an inseparable
part of the People's Republic of China (PRC).
'It is unacceptable for our country to be called a part of the PRC.
We are not its local government, nor are we subject to the PRC,' said
Premier Su in a parliament session. more
...
Taiwan rebuffs China warning; says Taiwanese should decide their own
future
03.05.2006, 04:29 AM
TAIPEI (AFX) - Taiwanese authorities rebuffed Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's warning against the island's independence movement saying Taiwan's future should be decided by the people here rather than Beijing.
'It was nothing new at all. We are not surprised,' Huang Wei-feng, deputy chief of Taiwan's China policy decision-making body Mainland Affairs Council, told reporters when asked to comment on Wen's remarks. more ...
Taiwan puts out poll to justify scrapping unification council
Mar 5, 2006, 13:34 GMT
Taipei - Taiwan Sunday said close to 90 per cent of Taiwanese believe
they should have the final say in deciding the island's future, in a
bid to justify its termination of a token council for unification with
China amid escalating cross-strait tension.
In a poll commissioned by the government-funded Institute for National
Policy Research, 87.1 per cent of 1,067 eligible voters think Taiwan's
future should be decided by the 23 million people of Taiwan, not anybody
else. more ...
China condemns scrapping of Taiwan unification body
Reuters Tue Feb 28, 2006 08:14 AM ET
By Benjamin Kang Lim and Alice Hung
BEIJING/TAIPEI (Reuters) - Chinese President Hu Jintao accused Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian on Tuesday of provoking confrontation by scrapping a council on unification, and China warned the United States not to offer Chen any leeway.
Chen declared an end to the National Unification Council and its 15-year-old unification guidelines on Monday, defying warnings from Beijing and Washington.
Chen's move was "a grave provocation to the one China principle universally upheld by the international community and to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait," Hu told the visiting Swiss Defense Minister Samuel Schmid in Beijing, the state-run Xinhua News Agency reported. more ...
China warns Taiwan of 'disaster'
China has warned that Taiwan's decision to scrap a council on reunification with the mainland could bring disaster.
The move will "create antagonism and conflict within Taiwan and across the strait," China's ruling Communist Party and government said in a statement.
Mr Chen announced on Monday that the National Unification Council and its guidelines would "cease to function" due to China's "military threat". more ...
China warns Taiwan of new 'crisis'
Tuesday, February 28, 2006;
Posted: 12:08 a.m. EST (05:08 GMT)
(CNN) -- China is warning of a new crisis in its relations with Taiwan
following the latter's decision to scrap a "reunification" council
-- a move Beijing regards as deliberatively provocative.
Taiwan's President Chen Shui-bian on Monday abolished the National Unification
Council -- which was set up in 1990 -- saying the grouping "ceases
to function." more
...
China warns Taiwan to stay course on unification
Warning comes day after Taiwanese president calls for abolishment of government
unification body.
By Arthur Bright | csmonitor.com
posted February 23, 2006 at 11:00 a.m.
China issued a warning that Taiwan should stay the course toward eventual
unification with the mainland Thursday, a day after Taiwanese President
Chen Shui-bian called for the abolition of the National Unification Council. more
...
US to supply 8 subs to Taiwan
Taipei (dpa) - The United States has told Taiwan that it is ready to
supply eight diesel submarines to Taiwan to boost Taipei's defences against
China and to avoid layoffs at an American shipyard, US Representative
Rob Simmons (Republican of Connecticut) said in a statement on Thursday.
Simmons discussed the proposed sub sale with President Chen Shui-bian on Wednesday, according to the statement from Simmons's office, released through the de facto US embassy in Taiwan, the American Institute in Taiwan. more ...
Independence an option for Taiwan? Opposition party defends ad
Feb 15, 2006, 13:46 GMT
Taipei - Taiwan's largest opposition party on Wednesday defended calling
independence an option for Taiwan's future, saying it was still opposed
to the island seeking independence.
'In the present stage, the only way to preserve Taiwan's security is to keep the status quo,' the Chinese Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang (KMT), said in a statement.
'As for Taiwan's future, there can be many choices because we are a democratic nation,' the statement said. 'Either it is reunification, independence or maintaining the status quo. It must be decided by the Taiwan people.' more ...
Any China crisis will have impact on Taiwan
By Lee Yung-ming李永明
Monday, Feb 13, 2006,Page 8
In his book The World is Flat, Thomas Friedman, a US columnist who has
served as a visiting professor at Harvard, sounds a warning about China's
economic growth. According to Friedman, China will very quickly reach
a point at which further economic growth will be impossible unless
political reform takes place. Without freedom of the press, without
healthy public and social institutions, it will be impossible to root
out corruption. The economy will be stifled in the absence of an efficient
legal system. more ...
Beijing’s wrath finds little echo in Taiwan
By Mure Dickie
Financial Times
Published: February 9 2006 00:22 | Last updated: February 9 2006 00:22
When Japan’s foreign minister suggested recently that Taiwan’s high educational standards were a positive legacy of Tokyo’s 1895-1945 colonial rule, the reaction from China was fast and furious.
Japanese control over the island “made Taiwan people suffer enslavement”, thundered a Beijing official as Chinese internet users flooded chatrooms to denounce what they saw as foreign minister Taro Aso’s attempt to justify Japan’s imperialism. more ...
Letters: US' Taiwan policy is unjust
By Charles Hong
, COLUMBUS, OHIO
Thursday, Feb 09, 2006,Page 8 Taipei Times
The US employs a policy of maintaining the status quo across the Taiwan Strait and opposing any unilateral change in the relationship between Taiwan and China. This policy is lopsided.
In the last few years, the number of China's ballistic missiles aimed
at Taiwan has doubled to 784. Last year, China put its "Anti-Secession" Law
into effect, authorizing its military leaders to attack Taiwan at any
time without even first getting permission from Chinese President Hu
Jintao (胡錦濤). China has failed to deal effectively
with SARS and bird flu, but unilaterally blocks Taiwan from meetings
to control these epidemics. China also repeatedly prevents Taiwan from
joining the UN and the World Health Organization. more
...
China slams Taiwan 'troublemaker'
Wednesday 08 February 2006, 22:50 Makka Time, 19:50 GMT
China has condemned Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian's plan to scrap the
15-year-old official guidelines on unification, branding him a "troublemaker" and "saboteur" of
peace and stability in Asia.
Chen, seeking to shake off Beijing's claim of sovereignty over self-ruled
Taiwan, said last month that it was time to consider scrapping the island's
National Unification Council and its guidelines on unification with the
mainland. more ...
Aso says Taiwan quote was taken out of context
Foreign Minister Taro Aso Tuesday defended his assertion that Japanese colonial rule benefited Taiwan, saying his comments were taken out of context. Aso reportedly said on Saturday that Taiwan has high educational levels thanks to Japanese improvements in literacy during the 1895-1945 colonial era, prompting protests from Beijing and Taipei. more ...
Taiwan backs local
hero Ang Lee for Oscar
TAIPEI:
Ang Lee’s combination of Eastern
sensibilities with American storytelling could see him gallop off with
the Oscars for his gay cowboy love story Brokeback Mountain, Taiwan critics
said Wednesday as the island gave support to its local hero. more
...
China: Taiwan leader a 'saboteur'
Wednesday, February 8, 2006; Posted: 12:26 a.m. EST (05:26 GMT)
BEIJING, China (AP) -- China on Wednesday branded Taiwanese leader Chen Shui-bian a troublemaker and saboteur over recent remarks seen by Beijing as backing the island's formal independence. more ...
China's Stance on
Taiwan Unmoved by Bird Flu Concerns
By Patrick Goodenough
CNSNews.com International Editor
January 30, 2006
(CNSNews.com) -- China will not relent in its decade-old policy of actively
denying Taiwan participation at the world's top health gathering, despite
growing concerns about the threat posed by bird flu in Asia and beyond. more
...
Taiwan lawmaker warns
referendum could trigger attack from China
Jan 30, 2006, 15:20 GMT
Taipei - A Taiwan lawmaker warned on Monday that if President Chen Shui-bian
holds a referendum to amend the constitution amendment, it could give
China an excuse to attack Taiwan.
'Holding a referendum on amending the constitution
will give China the reason to attack Taiwan. When that happens, the
US will keep its hands off Taiwan,' Su Chi, an oposition KMT party
lawmaker, told reporters. more ...
China vows to oppose
Taiwan independence
Press Trust of India
Beijing, January 30,2006
China on Monday vowed to oppose "Taiwan independence",
saying it posed the "biggest obstacle" to cross-Straits
peace and national reunification. more ...
China, Taiwan, Japan: Three's a crowd
Beijing's communist regime has warned Japan to butt out of its
always delicate relationship with Taiwan, which China regards as
a breakaway province. At issue: a proposed visit by former Taiwanese
President and separatist politician Lee Teng-hui to the Yasukuni
Shrine in Tokyo, the controversial site that commemorates the dead
from several wars, including World War II Japanese war criminals.
(Japan Times) As it turns out, Lee's older brother is enshrined
there, too. (Thousands of Taiwanese were forced into military service
for Japan during its 50-year occupation of Taiwan, which lasted
until 1945. Many Taiwanese who died fighting for Japan are honored
at the shrine.) more ...
Taiwan towers as tech innovator
FIRMS
INCREASING R&D,
CREATING OWN BRANDS TO KEEP AHEAD OF CHINA
By John Boudreau
Mercury News
Posted on Sun, Jan. 22, 2006
TAIPEI,
Taiwan - Think of most tech gadgets, from the iPod to the PlayStation,
and an engineer on this island of 23 million has probably had a
hand in its creation.
While India and China share the spotlight as emerging giants, Taiwan
is already a huge behind-the-scenes maker of
the world's tech products more
......
China warns Japan about Taiwan visit
Thu Jan 12, 2006 6:37 AM ET
BEIJING (Reuters) - China warned Japan on Thursday that a possible
visit by former Taiwan president Lee Teng-hui could further raise
tensions between Beijing and Tokyo.
A Tokyo newspaper said on Wednesday Lee planned to travel to Japan
in May, and Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said the
government had yet to decide whether to grant him a visa.
China reviles Lee as a "splittist" who, as president from 1988 to 2000, pushed for Taiwan's independence from the mainland. China says Taiwan is a breakaway province that must accept reunification. more ...
Taiwan kills a monkey to scare all the others
By Kathrin Hille in Taipei -- Financial
Times
Published: January 10 2006 16:28 | Last updated: January 10 2006 16:28
When Taiwanese prosecutors charged Robert Tsao, former chairman of United Microelectronics, with alleged breach of trust on Monday, the most remarkable point about their move was the timing.
They are targeting the founder of one of the island’s most globalised companies for alleged illegal business dealings in China only days after the island’s president, Chen Shui-bian, pledged stricter management of cross-Strait trade and investment. more ...
Taiwanese Businessmen Blackmailed Into Spying For China
By Ben Hurley
Epoch Times Australia Staff
Jan 02, 2006
Former Chinese security agent Hao Fengjun has revealed to Taiwanese officials that over 2000 Taiwanese businessmen in China are forced by the Chinese Communist Party to spy on Taiwan, reported Taiwan News in December. more ...
One China, One Taiwan
Bush's democracy-promotion doctrine doesn't square with his China
policy.
by Ellen Bork
12/13/2005, The Weekly Standard, Volume 011, Issue 14
DURING
HIS RECENT TRIP TO Japan, South Korea, China, and Mongolia, President
Bush extolled the region's wave of democratization as "one
of the greatest stories in human history" and lamented the
holdouts who are "out of step with their neighbors and isolated
from the world." The president also made it clear that democratic
Taiwan, though itself isolated internationally, is as important
to the United States as Japan and South Korea. He pointedly held
Taiwan out to China as an example of a "free and democratic
Chinese society." more
...
Ex-AIT boss Bush praises Taiwan's democratic progress
By Jean Lin
Taipei Times STAFF REPORTER
Sunday, Dec 11, 2005,Page 3
Former American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Chairman Richard Bush
said yesterday that the US and other democracies will support the
efforts of democratic consolidation in
Taiwan. more ...
Why Taiwan's Voters Are Fed Up With Chen
BusinessWeek
Is Chen Shui-Bian a lame duck? Taiwan's President was voted into
office twice on the strength of his anti-China, pro-independence
stance. But the rhetoric is wearing thin. Promised economic reforms
are going nowhere fast, and his efforts to clean up government
have been set back by charges of alleged corruption involving
two senior advisers and a confidant from the business community.
Worst of all, Taiwan's economy is showing signs of stress because
of Chen's resistance to investment in the mainland. Result: A
recent poll by the island's United Daily News put Chen's approval
rating at 25% -- a nine-point drop from September. "The President
is facing the most severe political challenge of his life," says
Emile Sheng, a political scientist at Taipei's Soochow University. more
...
Bush on Taiwan
Friday, November 18, 2005
“Taiwan is another society that has moved from repression
to democracy as it liberalized its economy. Like South Korea, the
people of Taiwan for years lived under a restrictive political
state that gradually opened up its economy. And like South Korea,
the opening to world markets transformed the island into one of
the world’s most important trading partners. And like South
Korea, economic liberalization in Taiwan helped fuel its desire
for individual political freedom — because men and women
who are allowed to control their own wealth will eventually insist
on controlling their own lives and their own future.
“Like South Korea, modern Taiwan is free and democratic and
prosperous. By embracing freedom at all levels, Taiwan has delivered
prosperity to its people and created a free and democratic Chinese
society. Our “one China” policy remains unchanged.
It is based on three communiqués, the Taiwan Relations Act,
and our belief that there should be no unilateral attempts to change
the status by either side — the status quo by either side.
The United States will continue to stress the need for dialogue
between China and Taiwan that leads to a peaceful resolution of
their differences.” more
...
Bush praises Taiwan
U.S. President George W. Bush prodded China on Wednesday to grant
more political freedom to its 1.3 billion people and held up Taiwan
as a Chinese society that successfully moved from repression to
democracy as it opened its economy.
In remarks sure to rile
Beijing, Bush suggested China should follow Taiwan's path. "Modern
Taiwan is free and democratic and prosperous. By embracing freedom at all
levels, Taiwan has delivered prosperity to its people and created a free
and democratic Chinese society," the president
said. more
...
Bush to China:
Emulate Taiwan
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
KYOTO, Japan — Piquing China just days before meetings with its
leaders, President Bush on Wednesday held up the self-governing island
of Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own, as a model of freedom "at
all levels" that the communist giant should emulate.
more
....
Sale of Submarines to Taiwan Stirs Controversy in US
By Al Pessin, VOA.com
Washington
09 November 2005
Eight members of the U.S. Congress have sent a letter to the commander
of U.S. forces in the Pacific, demanding an explanation of his alleged
opposition to the proposed sale of submarines to Taiwan. The commander
says he does not oppose the sale, but is concerned about raising tensions
between Taiwan and China. more
...
Taiwan to attend WHO meet on avian influenza
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Thursday that Taiwan
representatives will attend the upcoming World Health Organization
international conference on avian flu next week in Geneva from
November 7 to 9.
According to the WHO, in recent weeks, a series of country, regional
and international meetings, field missions and conferences have clarified
the H5N1 challenge in many parts of the world. The meeting will put those
pieces into a global picture for a comprehensive assessment and will
identify the next steps for the control of avian influenza in animals
and preparedness efforts for a human influenza pandemic. more
...
Taiwan needs more support, US official says
INSECURITY: The lack
of overt support for Taiwan from Western democracies has contributed
to the nation's domestic political struggles, a former US diplomat said
By Chang Yun-ping
STAFF REPORTER
Taipei Times Sunday, Oct 30, 2005,Page 3
The US, Japan, the EU, Australia and other democracies
should be more supportive of Taiwan's democracy to prevent it from being
absorbed by China, a former US diplomat said. He added that should such
a fate occur, it would be a "grave historical mistake" on the part of
Western democracies.
John Tkacik, Jr, a retired US diplomat who served in Taiwan and China and is now a senior research fellow at the US Heritage Foundation's Asian Studies Center, said in a recent interview with the Taipei Times that the US and other Western democracies are partly to blame for Taiwan's political conflict, which has prevented a consensus on self defense. more .....
Taiwan
should be more proactive on security: researcher
CNA , TAIPEI
Monday, Oct 24, 2005,Page 3
Taiwan should play a more proactive role in the US-Japan security arrangements in the Asia-Pacific region, a researcher with the private policy research institute Taiwan Thinktank said yesterday. more ...
Taiwan prepares to make its own Tamiflu
By Kathrin Hille in Taipei
Published: October 24 2005 18:43 | Last updated: October 24 2005 18:43
Two Taiwanese pharmaceutical companies have
made small amounts of Tamiflu, the most effective treatment for avian
flu, in a step that readies the island to manufacture its own stockpiles
of the drug even if Roche declines to license a Taiwanese producer more
....
Chinese envoy warns Ottawa over Taiwan bill
By JEFF SALLOT
Thursday, October 13, 2005 Page A6
OTTAWA -- The Chinese ambassador to Canada warns of "very serious consequences" if
the minority Liberal government cannot kill a Conservative bill that would
strengthen Ottawa's ties with Taiwan.
The very underpinnings of Canada's 35 years of good relations with Beijing
could be destroyed if Parliament affords Taiwan any greater recognition
in diplomatic and political affairs, Lu Shumin said yesterday. more
...
Chen must revitalize Taiwan's democracy
2005-10-10 / Taiwan News /
Coinciding with the arrival of National Day today, Taiwan politics has reached a major historical crossroad in which potential political decay may well overwhelm the democratic evolution that our country has progressively realized to date.
Such concerns are underlined by the recent flurry of criticism over
the governing Democratic Progressive Party government's inept handling
of alleged malpractice in the hiring of foreign workers for the Kaohsiung
Rapid Transit System project and an apparent lack of decisiveness and
determination to push forward the so-called second phase financial reform. more
...
Americans celebrate link with Taiwan
Double Tenth Day event in Edison marks birth date
of Republic of China.
JOHN MAJESKI
Gannett New Jersey
EDISON -- For Belle Mead resident Fannie Luo, the message at Sunday's Republic of China National Day celebration was simple: Remember your roots. "Don't forget where your ancestors come from," the native of Taiwan said. "For me, it brings back memories (of Taiwan)."
Luo was one of more than 400 attendees who packed into the Clarion Hotel and Towers on Route 27 to celebrate Double Tenth Day, which is today. Double Tenth Day commemorates the 1911 Wuchang uprising in China, which led to the fall of the Qing Dynasty and the rise of the Republic of China. more ...
Taiwan plans launch of spy satellite
Taipei, Taiwan
10 October 2005 11:33
Taiwan may launch a spy satellite in three years to step up its surveillance
of military activities of rival China in the face of growing missile threats
from Beijing, a newspaper reported on Monday.
Costing up to $300-million, the planned satellite, codenamed "Follow-On
RSS" (remote surveillance satellite) would be able to take images
as close as 50cm from any scanned area, the major newspaper United Daily
News reported. more ...
Struggles Across Taiwan Strait: U.S. Sends Mixed Signals
by Ivy Sellers
Posted Oct 5, 2005
The unsettled status of America’s policy toward China confuses leaders in China and the United States, and it needs to be abandoned, said Rep. Steve Chabot (R.-Ohio), co-chairman of the Congressional Taiwan Caucus.
“One-China is a dangerous fiction that most of the international
community has bought into in order to mollify China,” said Chabot
at a recent conference hosted by the Heritage Foundation. more
...
Corning pours $425 million into Taiwan glass fab
Spencer Chin
EE Times
10/05/2005 5:43 PM EDT)
MANHASSET, N.Y. — Corning Inc. will allocate an additional $425 million
into expanding an liquid crystal display (LCD) glass substrate fab under
construction in Taichung, Taiwan.
This investment will be used to fund the third phase of the Taichung facility, with most of the expenditure to be incurred during 2006 to 2007.
Corning (Corning, N.Y.) announced plans for the first phase of the Taichung fab in July 2004, investing $750 million. Taichung is the company’s second glass fab in Taiwan, joining an existing plant in Tainan. more ...
Inside the Ring
The Washington Times
By Bill Gertz and Rowan Scarborough
Taiwan envoy
Douglas Paal, the U.S. government representative to Taiwan, is under fire from
the State Department for misrepresenting Taiwan's policies to his bosses.
A State inspector general report said Mr. Paal's leadership style caused low
morale among employees of the American Institute in Taiwan, the official U.S.
office in Taiwan.
The most serious IG charge, however, is that Mr. Paal falsely reported on Taiwanese
issues to senior State Department officials, a cardinal sin for envoys. more
...
The
Fourth Geneva Convention, Military Occupation, and Taiwan
The Taiwan Cession
Compiled by Richard W. Hartzel
Sovereign Nation, Province of the PRC, or Something Else?
Much talk in Taiwan centers on the terms of the
Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States (1934). According
to this Convention, there will be a State in the international sense
when four conditions are fulfilled: a defined territory; a permanent
population; a government (the political agent of the State); and ability
to have relations with other states (independence for action). Many claim
that Taiwan meets all four conditions. However, what is ignored when
reviewing the events of October 1945, and subsequent developments, is
the international law precedent that "foreign occupation does not
transfer sovereignty to the occupying power." more
......
Taiwan sees wider recognition
as key to upholding democracy
By KYOICHI MIYAGAWA
Staff writer
One recent effort of this endeavor was the establishing of the Democratic Pacific Union -- a body comprising political and civil leaders from 26 countries in the Pacific Rim region. Taiwan's Vice President Annette Lu, who has taken the initiative in organizing this club for years, was elected the first DPU president at the inaugural meeting in Taipei in mid-August. more ...
Taiwan reaches a US$3bn deal with farmers across US
BY CHARLES SNYDER
STAFF REPORTER IN WASHINGTON , WITH CNA
Friday, Sep 16, 2005,Page 2
Taiwan on Wednesday inked a new pact in which it committed to purchase
up to US$3.1 billion in agricultural produce from the US.
The agreement committed Taiwan's flour, grain and hide-processing industries
to purchase up to that amount in US wheat, corn, soybeans and animal
hides both next year and in 2007. more
...
Beijing warns US against missile help for Taiwan
AGENCIES , BEIJING
Friday, Sep 02, 2005,Page 3
China warned the US and other governments yesterday
against using missile-defense systems to protect Taiwan or helping Taipei
produce its own system. more ...
Amtrak sorry for saying `province'
BY JEAN LIN
STAFF REPORTER , WITH CNA
Friday, Sep 02, 2005,Page 2
The US' Amtrak apologized for listing Taiwan as a province of China
on its online reservation Web site after protests from Formosan Association
for Public Affairs (FAPA).
Amtrak, the National Railroad Passenger Corp, which operates most intercity passenger railroad routes in the US, corrected the mistake online and apologized for the misunderstanding, more ...
Son: Father innocent of spy charge
Saturday, August 20, 2005; Posted: 12:47 a.m. EDT (04:47 GMT)
NEW YORK (CNN) -- The son of an American being held under house arrest
in China on suspicion of conducting espionage for Taiwan said his father
is an apolitical businessman who has no contacts in Taiwan and no dealings
with any government agencies there. more
...
Taiwan struggles with Chinese dissidents
By Caroline Gluck
BBC News, Taipei
The self-ruled island of Taiwan is proud
of its democratic principles, even though the Chinese communist mainland
regards it as part of its territory. more
...
China eases travel rules to Taiwan
Move seen as way to promote exchanges
Sunday, July 24, 2005; Posted: 2:31 a.m. EDT (06:31 GMT)
BEIJING, China (Reuters) -- China has simplified
exit and entry rules for Taiwan residents as part of a campaign to foster
closer economic ties with the island, state television said on Sunday. more
...
Taiwan hails US report on China's
military might
Thu
Jul 21, 4:18 AM ET
TAIPEI (AFP) - Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian has hailed
a US
Pentagon report on China's military build-up that Beijing
protested as interference in its internal affairs. more...
Computex
Taipei: The New Comdex
By Cristina
McEachern, VARBusiness
VARBusiness, Thu. Jul. 14, 2005
From the July 11, 2005 VARBusiness
At its peak in the late '90s, Comdex
attracted more than 200,000 attendees to the Las Vegas desert for a look
into IT's future. But as the sun set on the ubiquitous trade show last
year, signaling the decline of the big shows in the West, Asia seems to
be trying to pick up the slack. Taking place in the shadow of Taipei 101--the
world's tallest building "right now," as anyone will remind you--the 25th
annual Computex Taipei trade show jockeyed once again for its big-show
status more ....
Lies from
Xinhua News RE:
Taiwan's "referendum"
Referendum on Taiwan's sovereignty status must involve
participation of people from the mainland, Hong Kong and Macao as well, should
there be such a popular vote at all more...
The "Six Assurances" to Taiwan
July 1982
In 1982, during negotiations for the third, United States - China, Joint Communiqué on Arms Sales to Taiwan, the Taiwan government presented the United States with six points that it proposed the United States use as guidelines in conducting United States - Taiwan relations. According to former Ambassador John Holdridge, the United States agreed to these points, conveyed this assent to Taiwan, and, in late July 1982, informed the Congress of the agreement. The six points are ,,,,
China seizes educational materials headed for Japanese school
06/28/2005
By KOICHI FURUYA The Asahi Shimbun
BEIJING--Customs officials in Dalian confiscated educational materials headed
for a Japanese school because of "inappropriate" references to Taiwan, including
maps that gave the island a different color than China's. more
...
Taiwan
Overtakes S. Korea as Top LCD Maker Again in May
Wednesday June 29, 2:53 PM
SEOUL, June 29 Asia Pulse - Taiwan eclipsed South Korea
as the largest manufacturer of liquid crystal displays (LCD) for the second
straight month in May, a Seoul-based market researcher said Wednesday.
Taiwanese LCD makers such as AU Optronics Corp. (TAIEX:2409), Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corp. (TAIEX:3009) and Chunghwa Picture Tubes Ltd. (TAIEX:2475) shipped a total of 7.32 million LCD panels sized greater than 10.4 inches last month, compared with South Korean firms' total 7.24 million units, the researcher Displaybank said in a statement. more ...
Canada Taiwan Act could harm relations with China
CTV.ca News Staff
Lawmakers will soon vote on a private member's bill that, if passed, could have serious ramifications for Canadian relations with China. more.....
Rumsfeld warns on China military
"I just look at the significant rollout of ballistic
missiles opposite Taiwan, and I have to ask the question: If everyone agrees
the question of Taiwan is going to be settled in a peaceful way, why this
increase in ballistic missiles opposite Taiwan?" more...
China's New Taiwan Tack
BusinessWeek
One move is to lean
on Taiwanese executives close to Chen
more
...
Why
Taiwan Matters
BusinessWeek
INTERNATIONAL
COVER STORY
The global economy couldn't function
without it. But can it really find peace with China? more
...
Protection
against the united front requires a united Taiwan
As
a former adviser to the late general secretary of the Chinese Communist
Party Hu Yaoban and himself a party memeber for 37 years, senior advisor
to the president Ruan Ming knows all-too-well Beijing's nature and
its aim of eventual unification with Taiwan. Ruan sat down with "Taipei Times" reporter
Huang Tai-lin and gave his insight on opposition party leaders' trip
to China and how Beijing aims to use these meetings to its advantage more
...