Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

People watch a traditional lion dance during the opening ceremony of the President A-bian Hotel, named in honor of former president Chen Shui-bian, in Greater Kaohsiung’s Sanmin District on July 29.
Photo: Huang Chih-yuan, Taipei Times

As households nationwide gathered yesterday to celebrate Father’s Day, five-year-old Chen Chieh-hsin (陳潔歆), the granddaughter of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), expressed her hope for a family reunion in a hand-written card.

“Dear Grandpa, this is my first time to write you a card. Are you happy? People often told me how much I resemble you, but when can you finally come home for a family reunion?” Chen Chieh-hsin wrote in a card delivered to her grandfather during a visit to Taipei Prison on the eve of Father’s Day.

Aug. 8, 2012, is a notable date for Tibet. Last year on this day I was inaugurated as the first democratically elected Tibetan leader under a new political system in which the Dalai Lama ceased to have a presiding role.

Last year, despite impassioned appeals by many Tibetans, the Dalai Lama officially relinquished his political power, including his power to dismiss the Tibetan parliament, judiciary and executive and to sign or veto bills. The Dalai Lama remains only as Tibet’s spiritual leader.