Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

The Alliance of Referendum for Taiwan yesterday marked the 1,000th day of their sit-in outside the legislature, vowing not to give up their fight for Taiwanese independence and to defend Taiwan’s sovereignty.

“We’ve been here for 1,000 days — this is a record in Taiwan’s history. We will continue our struggle to defend Taiwan’s sovereignty,” the alliance’s convener, Tsay Ting-kuei (蔡丁貴), told dozens of people gathered outside the Legislative Yuan in the evening.

Members of the alliance and their supporters launched their sit-in rally in October 2008 after taking part in a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-organized protest against President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).

Observing daily life in Rio de Janeiro, the most famous of Brazilian cities, one is instantly aware that Brazil’s economy is booming and that Rio, in particular, is about to be the scene of two mammoth international sporting events: the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games.

Brazil feels that it is now reaching its rightful position in the world community — one of the so-called “BRIC nations” — and that the international recognition of Brazil as an up-and-coming nation is an achievement it has largely reached as part of its partnerships with European nations — most specifically France.

Thus, when it comes to modernizing the economy in general and the military in particular, Brazil feels no sense of exclusivity about its relationship with the US. During Brazil’s period of military dictatorship, the nation was under a US embargo forbidding any trade in armaments, putting the Brazilian military in a difficult position.