Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

Lee indictment is politically motivated: Ellen Huang

Taipei Times

Independent presidential candidate Ellen Huang (黃越綏) said yesterday that the indictment of former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) over embezzlement of public funds was aimed at attacking Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).

“The most pathetic thing about Lee’s indictment was political intervention through the judiciary, making it a political tool to blow away [the ruling party’s] political rivals,” Huang said during a -gathering with netizens in Taipei yesterday evening.

Huang said that Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chiu Yi (邱毅) recently said the charge against Lee would point to Tsai’s involvement in an “816 project” under the secret diplomacy funds from which Lee allegedly embezzled. The 816 project was part of the Mingteh Project (明德專案) focusing on secret diplomacy with the US and Japan. Chiu alleged that Tsai received NT$2.62 million (US$91,147) from the 816 project and passed the money to Yang Chih-heng (楊志恆), who Chiu said was involved in the money-laundering charge against Lee.

Credibility gap wider than the Strait

Taipei Times Editorial

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) raised concerns when he said the idea of Taiwan and China functioning as separate governments within a “one China” framework could be up for discussion. The Presidential Office quickly clarified that what he meant was that the idea should be discussed on an academic level, not in cross-strait negotiations anytime soon. That did little to ameliorate the concerns of critics, and rightly so.

Ma’s statements, even as bland as they are, cause concern because he suffers from a credibility gap that no amount of platitudes or photo opportunities can bridge. It is a gap that keeps growing. To be fair, however, it is not a gap that is his alone; he shares it with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).

The Next Step: Taiwan Needs New Leadership for 2012

Jerome F. Keating Ph.D.

The January 2012 presidential elections draw near and Taiwan's citizens must do some serious soul searching. As they look back at the past four years under Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) president Ma Ying-jeou, basic questions must be asked. "Is Taiwan better off now than it was back in 2008? Has the economy and overall status of the nation improved significantly since Ma's infamous 6-3-3 promise?" No president could have stepped into office with a better position and with better support than Ma. Not only did he receive some 58 per cent of the vote, but also by disproportionate representation in the Legislative Yuan (the pan-blue alliance had only 54 per cent of the vote), Ma was able to get an unstoppable 76 per cent majority of the seats. With this majority Ma should have achieved anything he wanted; he could have established any desired progressive programs. What more could a president ask for? This was the ticket for great achievement. Progress would be a walk in the park for an average president; for a competent president it would mean fantastic strides for Taiwan, so what happened? Instead of four years of wished for progress, Taiwan has had four years of mediocre stagnation.

Memorial held for Chen Wen-cheng at NTU site

Taipei Times

More than 100 people gathered yesterday evening at National Taiwan University (NTU) in memory of former Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) assistant professor Chen Wen-cheng (陳文成), whose death 30 years ago remains a mystery to this day.

Chen, a graduate of NTU’s Department of Mathematics, went to study in the US and later became an assistant professor at CMU’s Department of Statistics.

He was called by the Taiwan Garrison Command — a military state security agency during the Martial Law era — for interrogation on July 2, 1981, when he returned to Taiwan to visit his family, because of his support for the pro-democracy movement.

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