Public split on ‘one China’ phrase: poll

BONDING FACTORS:A majority of respondents agreed that Taiwan and China shared a common blood relationship, language and text, history and culture and religions
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

A public opinion poll published yesterday showed that a majority of respondents view the current state of relations across the Taiwan Strait as a state-to-state relationship, but that a new nation formed by Taiwan and China in the future was also acceptable.

The survey, conducted by Taiwan Indicator Survey Research (TISR) focused on cross-strait relations and found that 56.2 percent of respondents described current Taiwan-China relations as state-to-state, while 26.4 percent disagreed and 17.4 percent declined to answer.

Lu warns on ‘silent annexation’ by China

MATTER OF OPINION:Lu reiterated her idea of a ‘1996 Consensus,’ which she said represents the collective will and decision making of the nation’s 23 million people
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Former vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) yesterday described China’s political maneuvers and increasing economic ties with Taiwan as a “silent annexation” and warned of the gradual erosion of Taiwan’s sovereignty.

“The silent annexation is ongoing. The Democratic Progressive Party’s [DPP] loss of power might be tolerable, but the loss of sovereignty in our time would be an irreversible mistake that would jeopardize future generations,” Lu said in a speech during the founding ceremony of the Anti-One China Principle Union.

DPP pledges reform on membership application

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) pledged reform on party membership applications and reviews yesterday in response to a snowballing controversy over member recruitment.

The party would change the review process for its member applications from nominal reviews to a stricter substantial review after recent mass membership applications involving gang members, Su told a press conference.

Independence advocates call on Japan for support

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Independence advocates yesterday appealed to the Japanese government, saying Tokyo is obligated to help Taiwan, a former Japanese colony, gain sovereignty.

Dozens of representatives from pro-independence groups submitted their appeal in a letter addressed to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in front of the building of the Interchange Association, Japan.

Academics urge energy liberalization

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

The liberalization of the energy industry is a likely solution to the nation’s current disputes over nuclear energy, the root cause of which lies in the sector’s monopolization by state-owned Taiwan Power Co (Taipower), academics said yesterday.

The administration of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is insisting on raising electricity prices and ensuring the commercial operation of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮) “to make up for Taipower’s losses,” National Taipei University economics professor Wang To-far (王塗發) told a seminar.

China advocates ‘positive’ approach to political talks

‘FIRST THE EASY’:Most speakers at a cross-strait forum said Taiwan was not ready for political talks, but a former SEF chairman urged talks and opening to Chinese media

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Both sides of the Taiwan Strait should create a “positive environment” for resolving political differences and adopt a “first the easy, then the difficult” approach to furthering bilateral ties, a visiting Chinese official told a forum in Taipei yesterday.

“Without proper management or being partially dealt with, the political differences [between the two sides] will hamper the development of cross-strait relations,” said Sun Yafu (孫亞夫), deputy director of China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO).

Independence group to establish union against ‘one China’

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

An advocacy group focusing on opposition to the so-called “one China” principle and the erosion of Taiwan’s sovereignty under President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration is set to be established on Monday, the group’s founding members told a press conference yesterday.

The Anti-One China Principle Union is a non-partisan group cofounded by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Mark Chen (陳唐山), Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) Legislator Hsu Chung-hsin (許忠信) and former DPP lawmaker Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮).

EDITORIAL: The DPP’s China policy

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has always strived to embrace different opinions and internal debates on any topic, which its sees as one of its proud traditions.

However, when a member’s comments — in a recent example, on the DPP’s China policy — make headlines, stir controversy and force party officials and senior politicians to respond, something needs to be done.

Sexual assault case handling slammed

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers yesterday accused the Taipei City Police Department of malfeasance for allowing a Chinese businessman with government ties to leave Taiwan after he allegedly sexually assaulted a woman in a Taipei hotel earlier this year.

The Chinese-language Next magazine on Wednesday reported that Liu Zhongkui (劉忠奎), president of Great Dragon Century, a Chinese cultural and arts management firm, allegedly sexually assaulted a hotel intern in his hotel room on Jan. 9, but was released by the police despite the alleged victim reporting the case.

Treat flu as matter of national security: DPP

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

The opposition yesterday urged the government to strengthen its efforts on epidemic prevention and to treat avian influenza as a matter of national security after the first human infection of H7N9 in Taiwan was confirmed on Wednesday.

The government has been slow in its preparation for the expected H7N9 case, despite Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers’ warnings, the DPP caucus told a press conference, where it issued a list of six demands.

Taiwan asks for share of sale of Chen’s US property

MANHATTAN ABODE:：The government wants a slice of the US$1.275 million that the US made from the sale, as well as the US$225,000 that Chen’s family will receive
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter, with CNA
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 - Page 3

The government has officially asked the US for part of the money from the sale of a New York property that was owned by the family of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), a prosecutor said yesterday.

The condominium in Manhattan, which was registered under the name of Chen’s son, Chen Chih-chung (陳致中), was seized by the US Department of Justice in November last year on allegations that it was purchased by the family with funds obtained through bribery.

Koo voices concern over China and Diaoyutais

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Saying establishing some level of control over Taiwan could be China’s real motive behind its conflict with Japan over the Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台), former presidential advisor and senior Taiwan independence advocate Koo Kwang-ming (辜寬敏) yesterday called on Japan to refrain from responding to Chinese provocation.

Koo said he was worried that China may either demand an agreement from Taipei to allow Chinese naval vessels to dock in Taiwanese ports, or ask for medical care for wounded military personnel in the event that a military conflict breaks out between China and Japan, adding that Taiwan would be seen as a part of China if that occurred.

DPP supports calls for retrial of senior politicians

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday that it supported a retrial or an extraordinary appeal for senior politicians Hong Chi-chang (洪奇昌) and Wu Nai-jen (吳乃仁), who in March were convicted of breach of trust in an apparently flawed case.

“The party’s Central Standing Committee has reached a resolution to call for a retrial or an extraordinary appeal by the prosecutor-general, to prove Hong and Wu’s innocence,” DPP spokesperson Lin Chun-hsien (林俊憲) said after the party’s weekly standing committee meeting.

Yao’s comments draw reactions

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Comments from a former aide of former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) that Taiwan’s independence is no longer a marketable ideology among voters has created a buzz.

National Tsing Hua University professor Yao Jen-to (姚人多), who gained fame as one of the primary speechwriters for Tsai’s presidential campaign and the author of her concession speech, made the comments at a forum on Monday.

Opposition boycotts plenary session

By Chris Wang and Lee I-chia  /  Staff reporters
Wed, Apr 24, 2013 - Page 1

A Legislative Yuan plenary session to discuss the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) national referendum proposal on the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮) went idle again yesterday without any progress as opposition lawmakers continued to boycott the agenda and a cross-party negotiation failed.

In a repeat of Friday’s session, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) lawmakers occupied the podium and boycotted the session, saying that the government should immediately order a halt to construction of the plant, rather than pushing through the referendum.

Pension reform exploits private sector, DPP says

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration should not “exploit” private-sector workers’ retirement benefits before reforming civil servants’ pensions because occupational gaps are among the most important issues in the government’s pension reform plan, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday.

“We support labor groups’ planned demonstration on Workers’ Day on May 1 to protest the Ma administration’s draft reform plan for the Labor Pension Fund and reiterate that reforming civil servants’ retirement benefits should be the priority,” DPP spokesperson Lin Chun-hsien (林俊憲) told a press conference.

DPP legislator concerned about Matsu gaming draft

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

From left to right, Alliance Against the Legalization of Gambling executive director Ho Tsung-hsun, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chen Chieh-ju and Green Party Taiwan spokesperson Pan Han-shen protest in Taipei yesterday against the drive to legalize gambling in Taiwan.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Chieh-ju (陳節如) yesterday raised concerns over a fellow lawmaker’s promotion of a draft act on gambling in Matsu, saying that gambling would harm the island in the long term.

Ability to handle nuclear waste questioned

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

A former government nuclear official yesterday said that Taiwan should abandon nuclear power because it is not capable of handling nuclear waste and its regulation of nuclear activity and radiation has been awful.

“People called me a nuclear expert with a conscience, a good person. Not that I am a good guy, but the fact is that [government officials in charge of nuclear affairs] are bad guys,” said He Li-wei (賀立維), a nuclear expert who used to work at the Atomic Energy Council’s Institute of Nuclear Energy Research.

Support human rights on both sides of Strait: group

MANIFESTO:Taiwan Democracy Watch said a human rights clause should be included in cross-strait pacts and rights protected on both sides of the Taiwan Strait
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Taiwan Democracy Watch yesterday released a manifesto entitled the “Declaration of Free Men” and called for a step-by-step process to remold relations across the Taiwan Strait on the basis of human rights.

The group of pro-democracy academics, which is scheduled to host a seminar today to discuss cross-strait human rights development, called for a two-stage approach to promote peace across the Strait in a press release, proposing an “early harvest human rights list” as a short-term goal and the signing of a human rights charter as a long-term goal.

DPP to sue minister over Chen dispute

’CHICKEN’:：Chen Shui-bian’s transfer to Taichung led DPP lawmakers to storm Minister of Justice Tseng Yung-fu’s office, who they called a ‘chicken’ for trying to hide from them
By Chris Wang and Rich Chang  /  Staff reporters
Tue, Apr 23, 2013 - Page 1

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus yesterday said it would file a lawsuit against Minister of Justice Tseng Yung-fu (曾勇夫) for fraud, assault and coercion following a dispute between DPP lawmakers and Tseng over the abrupt transfer of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) from Taipei to a Taichung prison hospital.

The Ministry of Justice relocated Chen from Taipei Veterans General Hospital to Taichung Prison’s Pei-te Hospital in Greater Taichung on Friday morning, without giving prior notice to Chen or his family.

DPP Chairman Su urges parole for Chen Shui-bian

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) should seize the opportunity to facilitate social harmony and accommodate mainstream public opinion by granting former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) medical parole, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said yesterday.

Su made the appeal again after visiting the imprisoned Chen, who was moved from Taipei Veterans General Hospital to Taichung Prison’s Pei Teh Hospital in Greater Taichung on Friday.

Academics mull legality of vote

DRASTIC MEASURES:A number of civic groups have planned to file a lawsuit against Premier Jiang Yi-huah if the referendum proposal is passed by the Legislative Yuan
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) may have violated the Referendum Act (公民投票法) through their collaboration in launching a national referendum proposal on the construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮), a group of academics and lawmakers said yesterday.

Article 13 of the Referendum Act prohibits the nation’s administrative bodies from carrying out referendums or commissioning other organizations to carry out referendums, lawyer Huang Di-ying (黃帝穎) told a press conference organized by the Taiwan Association of University Professors.

EDITORIAL: Implications of a broadcast

Fri, Apr 19, 2013 - Page 8

Taiwan’s television news channels are becoming as well-known for making news as for covering it, and not in a good way. This is why the excessive coverage given by several channels to the Chinese entertainment show I Am A Singer (我是歌手) should not have been a surprise, although the National Communications Commission is probing the matter and could slap Eastern TV (ETTV) and CtiTV — and other stations — each with a NT$2 million (US$66,000) fine for their obsequious pandering.

However, the implications of the attention paid to the Chinese TV show make the incident more than just a violation of regulations and journalistic ethics these stations regularly commit with their over-the-top coverage of the deaths of entertainers and gruesome homicide cases.

Hsieh promotes constitution idea to US academics

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday told US academics that his “constitutions with different interpretations” (憲法各表) initiative for achieving a consensus across the Taiwan Strait is better than the so-called “1992 consensus” because it is pragmatic and reflects the reality of the “status quo.”

Hsieh, who is visiting Washington, made the comments in his meeting with former American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) chairman Richard Bush, former US National Security Council official Kenneth Lieberthal — who was council member during former US president Bill Clinton’s administration — and former council official Jeffrey Bader from the Brookings Institution, a press release issued by Hsieh’s office showed.

Pension reform plan will worsen labor’s plight: opposition

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) yesterday expressed strong opposition to the government’s draft labor pension reform plan, saying it would worsen the plight of 9.7 million workers.

“The terms offered in the proposed plan are worse, with the increased premium rate, less payment [to workers] and an expansion of the basis for calculating pensions from the insured’s average monthly salary from the last five years of employment to 15 years,” DPP Legislator Pan Men-an (潘孟安) told a press conference.

DPP urges KMT support on vote

NUCLEAR POWER:The DPP is hoping that 14 KMT lawmakers representing Taipei, New Taipei City and Keelung would side with the DPP on halting the plant’s building
By Chris Wang and Shih Hsiu-chuan  /  Staff reporters

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday appealed to Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers ahead of today’s scheduled vote on proposals about the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant, asking them to break party ranks and support the suspension of the controversial plant.

DPP and KMT lawmakers are expected to launch motions today to have their proposals — the DPP’s wants construction of plant in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮) suspended immediately, while the KMT wants a national referendum on the issue — discussed in the legislature’s plenary session.

DPP to repeat proposal to halt plant’s construction

HIGH HOPES:The party says it knows there are KMT legislators not supporting the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant and is hoping for their support to pass a crucial motion
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said it would repeat its proposal of a week ago to suspend construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in the Legislative Yuan tomorrow and called on Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators to support the cause.

The DPP’s Central Standing Committee (CSC) reached a resolution yesterday that the party caucus would again launch a motion to have the proposal discussed in the plenary session after the same motion failed to pass on Friday, DPP spokesperson Lin Chun-hsien (林俊憲) said.

AIDC privatization plan draws mixed reactions

BIG RISKS:A legislator said that the corporation could fall into foreign hands if privatized, which could lead to national security being breached because of leaks
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

A plan to privatize state-owned Aerospace Industrial Development Corp (AIDC) has drawn mixed reaction after the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) endorsed the move, while a lawmaker raised national security concerns.

Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) Legislator Hsu Chung-hsin (許忠信) told a press conference yesterday that he opposed the privatization plan submitted by the Taichung-based aerospace company under the ministry to the Executive Yuan on March 28.

DPP’s Ker denies report of gangsters, party membership

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative caucus convener Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) yesterday rejected a media report that he endorsed known criminals for DPP membership.

“I have never referred anyone with a criminal background for membership of the DPP,” Ker said in a press release issued by his office.

Ma claims fishing pact is proof of peace initiative

STANFORD TALK:：Ma talked about the agreement and his cross-strait efforts during a videoconference with the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law
By Mo Yan-chih and Chris Wang  /  Staff reporters
Wed, Apr 17, 2013 - Page 1

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) used a videoconference with US academics to praise the recent fishery agreement with Japan as a successful application of his East China Sea peace initiative, adding that the government would seek cooperation with China on the joint development of natural resources in the area, while shelving territorial disputes over the Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台).

Taiwan and Japan signed a fisheries agreement last week in a bid to end controversies over fishing in waters surrounding the Diaoyutais, known as the Senkaku Islands in Japan.

Ma broke pledge on nuclear safety, lawmakers say

By Chris Wang and Lee I-chia  /  Staff reporters
Wed, Apr 17, 2013 - Page 3

President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration has betrayed its pledge to make the safety of the controversial construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in Gongliao Dictrict (貢寮), New Taipei City (新北市) a priority by sending the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) referendum proposal to the legislature’s plenary session, the pan-green camp said yesterday.

The Legislative Yuan’s Procedure Committee, in which the KMT enjoys a majority, on Monday listed the referendum proposal initiated by KMT Legislator Lee Ching-hua (李慶華) on the agenda for the plenary session on Friday.

Frank Hsieh briefs US academics on cross-strait proposal

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

The very nature of a specific constitution will be able to provide stability and continuity for Taiwan to seek domestic consensus and closer engagement with China, former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said yesterday in Washington.

Hsieh delivered a 60-minute briefing on his cross-strait initiative of “constitutions with different interpretations (憲法各表)” to US academics in the China Studies program at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies, according to a press release issued by his office.

Former DPP chairman’s QQ account suspended

SILENCED:Hsu Hsin-liang’s microblogging account was shut down by the Chinese authorities less than two hours after being opened, following similar shutdowns
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Hsu Hsin-liang’s (許信良) microblogging account on the Chinese Web site QQ.com, operated by Tencent Inc, was suspended for unknown reasons less than two hours after its creation.

An aide to Hsu aide yesterday afternoon said that the account was suspended, but declined to comment on the development.

Lee Teng-hui appears at corruption hearing

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) yesterday appeared in court for a first hearing after being indicted on charges of embezzling state funds in 2011, saying that he was upbeat about having an opportunity to defend his integrity.

“I am glad that I could speak my mind in court and answer the Taiwanese people’s doubts for the first time in two years,” the 90-year-old said after a three-and-a-half-hour proceeding yesterday evening.

Shieh Ching-jyh files malicious prosecution suit

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Former National Science Council (NSC) deputy minister Shieh Ching-jyh (謝清志) yesterday filed a lawsuit against a prosecutor for malicious prosecution following his acquittal of corruption charges after a five-and-a-half year judicial ordeal.

Shieh, the first government official from the former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration to be indicted on corruption charges in 2006, filed the lawsuit at the Taipei District Court against the Kaohsiung Prosecutors’ Office chief prosecutor, Kao Feng-chih (高峰祈), who was serving in the Tainan Prosecutors’ Office when Shieh was indicted.

Cross-strait offices plan gets mixed reception

By Chris Wang and Stacy Hsu  /  Staff reporter and staff writer, with CNA
Tue, Apr 16, 2013 - Page 3

The government’s “vague” explanations of the legality of China establishing a representative office in Taiwan are akin to justifying bringing an enemy into one’s house because Beijing would be able to gather intelligence and carry out its unification ambition under the protection of Taiwanese law, the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) caucus said yesterday following the announcement last week that Taiwan and China may set up cross-strait representative offices later this year.

Currently, there are offices on both sides that issue travel documents, TSU Legislator Lin Shih-chia (林世嘉) told a press conference, adding that the moves to set up representative offices could be politically motivated and the result of a “wink-wink deal” between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party to promote bilateral political talks.

DPP must change China policy: Hsieh

CHANGING TIMES:The former DPP presidential candidate said his ideas may not be perfect, but encouraged reconciliation with the KMT to address the nation’s problems
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) should adjust its China policy and ensure that it is accepted by a majority of Taiwanese, as well as by Washington and Beijing if it is serious about getting back in power, former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said on Sunday in Washington.

“If the DPP fails to make adjustments [to its China policy], the party will be marginalized due to a lack of international support,” Hsieh told the Taiwanese-American community during a speech titled “Taiwan restoration and its future” that he delivered at the Taiwanese Church of Greater Washington.

Su warns of growing Chinese influence

‘INTO THE BRAINS’:The DPP chairman said that China’s economic and cultural power is being used to absorb Taiwan, saying it had used the same strategy in Hong Kong
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

China may have toned down its military threats against Taiwan, but its strategy of adopting the “soft power” of economic and cultural influence to absorb Taiwan appears to be working, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said yesterday.

“Chinese influence and presence is everywhere, as far as I’m concerned,” Su said at an event organized by the Ketagalan Institute, an educational institution founded by former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).

A-bian’s son confirms legislature bid

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Chen Chih-chung (陳致中), the son of imprisoned former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), yesterday said that he intends to run in the 2016 legislative elections after suffering a defeat last year, and also appealed to the Ministry of Justice to grant his ailing father medical parole.

“I said after the setback last year that I am going to give it another try. Currently, that goal remains unchanged,” Chen told reporters on the sidelines of an event organized by the Ketagalan Institute, an educational institution founded by Chen Shui-bian, who is serving an 20-year sentence for corruption.

Former DPP chairman calls for grand coalition

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Hsu Hsin-liang (許信良) yesterday called for the establishment of a grand coalition government and immediate cross-strait political negotiations to rejuvenate stagnant economic exchanges across the Taiwan Strait.

With President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) receiving low approval ratings and domestic politics stagnating due to fierce political competition, it is time to establish a grand coalition government to provide the nation with much needed political mobility to move forward, Hsu said.

KMT lawmakers break rank in voting

PAYING THE PRICE:：The KMT caucus said that party lawmakers who failed to vote as they had been instructed risked being punished with fines of at least NT$10,000
By Shih Hsiu-chuan  /  Staff reporter
Sat, Apr 13, 2013 - Page 1

Five Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers yesterday went against the party line in several rounds of voting initiated by the opposition to try to stop the construction of the controversial Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮), but the attempts all ended in failure.

At the plenary session, KMT lawmakers Lo Shu-lei (羅淑蕾) and Ting Shou-chung (丁守中) voted in favor of a motion calling for a proposal which demanded an immediate halt to construction of the power plant to be discussed at the meeting.

Professors should not be charged as civil servants: court

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

The Supreme Court yesterday ruled that professors at public universities are not civil servants, in a case that could affect more than 100 similar cases nationwide.

The Supreme Court sent the case of Lin Tsao-jen (林昭任) — a professor at National Chung Cheng University who received a five-year sentence for moving a National Science Council (NSC) subsidy for equipment into his personal account — back to the High Court’s Tainan Branch.

EDITORIAL: Stop sowing the seeds of hatred

Fri, Apr 12, 2013 - Page 8

The Control Yuan was smart enough to realize that a report by Control Yuan members Chou Yang-shan (周陽山) and Lee Ping-nan (李炳南) on the 228 Incident was likely to prove unpopular, so it pulled the report from its Web site one day after it was made public.

However, it was dumb enough to not realize beforehand that what Shih Hsin University adjunct assistant professor Chi Chia-lin (戚嘉林) was quoted as saying in the report — that former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) may be the illegitimate son of a Japanese man — would enrage the public.

Lee Teng-hui says nuclear power plants still needed

HSINCHU OUTING:The former president said that nuclear energy was not all bad, but he would not vote in the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant referendum
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter, in Hsinchu City

Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) yesterday said Taiwan could not afford to abandon nuclear power in the near future and should enhance its nuclear energy program by developing advanced technologies, such as nuclear fusion.

“Taiwanese scientists should work on nuclear fusion research and engineering to explore new methods to replace current technologies, which are based on nuclear fission, and are a by-product of the Manhattan Project developed during World War II,” Lee said on the second day of a two-day visit to Hsinchu County.

Hsieh defends cross-strait initiative

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday answered critics of his cross-strait initiative, which suggests Taiwan and China recognize each other’s constitutions, saying that the proposal was practical and was most likely to be accepted at home and in China.

The former Democratic Progressive Party chairman, currently on a trip to the US, has called for “constitutions with different interpretations” as the basis of promoting better ties between the DPP and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Tsai Ing-wen voted most trustworthy politician: survey

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

An opinion poll published yesterday showed that former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and New Taipei City (新北市) Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) are seen as politicians most capable of fighting corruption, with each winning support from more than 40 percent of respondents.

Tsai was named as the most trustworthy politician among a selection of 10 politicians when it comes to tackling corruption, with a support rate of 46.5 percent in the survey conducted by Taiwan Indicators Survey Research (TISR). Chu was second with 41.1 percent.

Lee planning trip to Japan, health permitting

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter in Hsinchu City

Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) yesterday confirmed that he would visit Japan next month, health permitting, and said that an all-out war waged by North Korea was unlikely.

Kyodo news agency reported yesterday that Lee, 90, would travel to Japan and deliver speeches in Tokyo and Zama City, Kanagawa Prefecture.

Su says little about trip to Singapore upon return

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) returned from a three-day visit to Singapore yesterday afternoon, calling the trip fruitful and successful.

Speaking at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Su did not provide any details of his trip, except to say that he had met with many politicians in the city-state and exchanged opinions

Wang discusses rumors about Lee’s parentage

By Shih Hsiu-chuan and Chris Wang  /  Staff reporters

Control Yuan President Wang Chien-shien yesterday weighed in on former president Lee Teng-hui’s (李登輝) family amid controversy caused by a Control Yuan report that said that Lee was the illegitimate child of a Japanese man.

Wang said he was of the opinion that the identity of Lee’s father should be clarified because “there have been endless rumors” about it.

Ministry to ask ‘most appropriate decision’ on A-bian

By Chris Wang and Rich Chang  /  Staff reporters

The Ministry of Justice will ask the Taipei Prison and the Agency of Corrections to make the “most appropriate decision” on former president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) treatment in about three weeks’ time, Justice Minister Tseng Yung-fu (曾勇夫) said yesterday.

The ministry on Monday received a medical report from Taipei Veterans General Hospital, where the imprisoned former president has received treatment since September last year, and would authorize the two institutions to make a final decision on Chen’s future, Tseng told lawmakers in a plenary session yesterday.

Premier spurns report of PRC nuclear storage offer

GLOWING LEGACY:：The premier said a Chinese storage option would not be politically feasible. Meanwhile, academics said Taiwan’s storage and disposal options are limited
By Chris Wang and Lee I-chia  /  Staff reporters
Wed, Apr 10, 2013 - Page 1

Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) told the legislature yesterday that he was unaware of any offer from Beijing to help with Taiwan Power Co’s (Taipower, 台電) storage of nuclear waste and said there would be political considerations involved in any such offer.

Responding to a question from Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Alex Tsai (蔡正元) at a plenary session at the legislature in Taipei, Jiang said he had no information on whether Chinese state-owned China National Nuclear Corp (CNNC, 中國核工業集團公司) had offered to store Taiwanese nuclear waste in its storage site in Gansu Province.

DPP boss meeting with Singaporean leaders: newspaper

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday declined to comment on Chairman Su Tseng-chang’s (蘇貞昌) reported visit to Singapore and meeting with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (李顯龍).

The Chinese-language United Evening News reported yesterday that Su began a low-key three-day visit to the city-state yesterday and was scheduled to meet today with Lee and his father, former Singaporean prime minister Lee Kuan Yew (李光耀), before returning to Taiwan.

Legislators question tuition plan

FINANCIAL CHALLENGE:DPP lawmakers questioned the wisdom of a government proposal to raise tuition by 5 percent next year if GDP growth surpasses 3 percent
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

A Ministry of Education proposal that would raise university tuition by 6 percent this year and as much as 11 percent next year could hurt the nation’s disadvantaged families and social mobility, lawmakers said yesterday.

The ministry has completed a draft that aims to relax a university tuition freeze with a two-phase plan for all public universities and certain private universities to allow them to raise tuition by 6 percent in August, the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) reported yesterday.

Xi Jinping accepting of Siew’s ‘three-point vision’

BOAO FORUM:：Siew called for cooperation on regional economic integration, trade agreements and mutual interests. The DPP called for China to respect human rights
By Stacy Hsu and Chris Wang  /  Staff writer and staff reporter, with CNA
Tue, Apr 09, 2013 - Page 3

Former vice president Vincent Siew (蕭萬長) yesterday received positive feedback from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) over his three-point vision for cross-strait development during the pair’s closely-watched meeting on economic, trade and industrial cooperation between both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

Siew met Xi at noon at the Boao State Guesthouse in Hainan Province, China, where the 11th annual Boao Forum for Asia is underway.

Former legislator Hong Chi-chang demands retrial

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator Hong Chi-chang (洪奇昌) yesterday cited new evidence to demand a retrial of his conviction in a case involving property sales by Taiwan Sugar Corp (Taisugar) at the Greater Taichung branch of the High Court, saying that he would do whatever it takes to prove his innocence.

“I do not believe there is no justice in Taiwan … as an intellectual, my integrity is more important than my life,” Hong told a press conference in the afternoon in Taipei after filing for a retrial at the Greater Taichung branch of the High Court in the morning.

New China policy needed: Hsieh

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) should take a good, hard look at its “failed” China policy, which had alienated the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), Beijing and Washington and which, if it remains unchanged, will hinder it from returning to power, former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said yesterday.

“The DPP should conduct a thorough review of its China policy and think about how it could possibly return to power with an unchanged cross-strait policy,” Hsieh told reporters before a student debate on nuclear energy organized by his Taiwan Reform Foundation.