Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

Exam-free policy risks Taiwan education quality

Taiwan News Editorial

The plan by the President Ma Ying-jeou's Chinese Nationalist Party government to replace the national examination system for senior high schools vocational schools with a new "examination-free admission system" threatens to breed even more social inequity and could throw the doors to Taiwan's secondary education to a flood of students from the People's Republic of China.

In June 2009, the Ministry of Education released a set of "Draft Guidelines for Exam-free Admission to Senior and Vocational High Schools and Junior Colleges" that announced its intention to phase out the current system of deciding admission primarily through distribution based on joint national examinations taken in the last year of junior high schools in favor of "examination free" admission.

Honesty is worth the risk of ulcers

Taipei Times

In view of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recent string of poor electoral showings, one would expect members who care about the state of the party to jump at the chance for a frank discussion with party leaders on how to stop the bleeding.

President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) dinner for KMT lawmakers on Monday night provided such a chance, giving the lawmakers a rare opportunity to deliver pan-blue supporters’ grievances in person to Ma, who doubles as KMT chairman.

Taiwan needs consensus before talks with PRC

Taiwan News Editorial

In the wake of the sweep of three legislative by-elections by the opposition Democratic Progressive Party, President Ma Ying-jeou and his right-wing Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang) administration should cease their habitual "black box" decision making style in favor of a more open and consultative method that can build consensus on the critical challenges facing Taiwan.

Saturday's sweep by the DPP of formerly KMT held seats in Taoyuan, Taichung and Taitung Counties displayed the gap between the Ma government's policies and the public will and demonstrated the vulnerability of both the KMT's current huge legislative majority and even Ma's own chances of re-election in early 2012 if his government does not change its ways.

PRC barks sanctions, but can it bite?

Taipei Times

Following announcements by the Obama administration last week that sales of weapons systems to Taiwan approved by the previous administration would proceed, Beijing reacted with its usual contempt, claiming that Washington’s decision would undermine US-China ties and represented meddling in China’s internal affairs.

One thing that Beijing did differently this time, however, was up the ante by hinting that the sale could result in trade sanctions against the US firms involved. This unprecedented threat — ostensibly targeting Lockheed Martin Corp, which was awarded a contract to sell Taipei an unspecified number of Patriot missiles — was yet another sign that China now perceives itself as a “Great Power” and that it can now threaten countermeasures that hitherto had mostly been the remit of leading states like the US, or groups like the EU.

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