Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

Legislator eyes loyalty oath for Chinese spouses

Taipei Times

A Democratic Progressive Party legislator yesterday introduced a draft amendment that would require Chinese spouses to swear an oath of loyalty to Taiwan and take a test of civic knowledge before becoming citizens.

Legislator Huang Jie (黃捷) proposed the changes amid controversy around a proposal to allow Chinese spouses to obtain citizenship after four years of marriage, down from six.

Under the proposal, the oath of loyalty would be legally binding, with contravention of it resulting in the person losing their household registration.

National consciousness in Taiwan

Chen Chiao-chicy 陳喬琪

A few days ago, it was nice and sunny outside, so I went to take a walk in a park. There, I overheard an elementary-school student ask: What countries do you like besides Taiwan?

The child called Taiwan by its name and said it was a country, showing that consciousness of “Taiwan is a nation” has been internalized, which delights me.

There are a few other examples of this.

As of this year, 110 countries recognize the Taiwanese passport and allow entry without a visa. Twelve of these have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan — and welcome Taiwanese with open arms — while the rest use our country’s name, Taiwan.

Tibetan uprising commemoration

Khedroob Thondup

We commemorate the Tibetan uprising today, when thousands of Tibetans rose up against Chinese occupation and oppression on March 10, 1959.

We honor the courage and sacrifice of those who fought and died for the country’s freedom and dignity.

We also express our solidarity with and support for the Tibetans who continue to resist and struggle for their rights and autonomy in the face of China’s brutal crackdown and assimilation policies.

Submarine fleet could deter China

Ou Si-fu 歐錫富

The nation’s indigenously produced submarine, the Hai-kun (“Narwhal”), was recently unveiled in a public ceremony.

China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is attempting to combine the Taiwan Strait and the South China and East China seas into one body of water, to extend the boundaries of its defensive sphere to the western Pacific Ocean.

This is being done to deny the US a strategic solution in case of a limited war between China and the US, particularly as the US military possesses superior underwater warfare capabilities, the US-based think tank RAND Corp said.

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