Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

‘Journal’ editorial warns Obama not to appease China by withholding jets

Taipei Times

As China intensifies its campaign to stop US President Barack Obama from selling F-16C/D aircraft to Taiwan, some friends of Taipei are hitting back.

The Wall Street Journal has published an editorial on its Web site, warning Obama not to appease Beijing.

It says that Beijing is “lobbying furiously” against the F-16 deal and that if the US administration gives in “China will conclude it can intimidate the US from assisting its allies.”

To be or not to be Taiwanese or Chinese

James Wang 王景弘

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is in full electioneering mode, focusing on the issue of national identity and saying in Chinese, “I am Taiwanese.”

One can imagine his soul shrieking as he uttered those words, but when he said it in English he chose not to use the word “Formosan” or the word that came into common usage in the 1960s, “Taiwanese.”

Instead he declared himself to be an “R.O.C.er,” an invented phrase that is neither here nor there, a play on Republic of China (ROC), which could also be pronounced like “rocker.”

Taiwan’s ‘freedom of action’ in danger

Taipei Times

A leading US academic is predicting that as Taiwan moves closer to China under the policies of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), Taipei’s “freedom of action” will erode.

Robert Sutter of George Washington University told a conference titled “The Future of US-Taiwan Relations” that there is a dark underside to the very positive sentiments that are expressed toward Taiwan by Washington.

“There is a lot of good feeling for Taiwan in Washington, but underneath this positive dynamic, Taiwan’s freedom of action is eroding,” he said.

“It cannot reverse its path. That’s the basic conclusion that I have come to,” he said.

Ma Ying-jeou's Political Manipulations Draw Another Open Letter

Jerome F. Keating Ph.D.

As the presidential campaign heats up, President Ma Ying-jeou of Taiwan continues to use his minions to attempt to squash any criticism or opposition. In word, he professes he is not involved, but in reality, he has those under him carry out the dirty work; the timing of the indictment of Lee Teng-hui after 16 years is but one example of a continuing form of harassment; as a result, some thirty plus scholars and writers take him to task with this open letter.

Open letter to President Ma

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