Publications Topics Archive Topics Archive 2009 Vol.39- No.11 Briefs | Briefs |
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CROSS-STRAITPALACE MUSEUM HOSTS EXHIBITION FROM CHINAThe National Palace Museum in early October displayed artworks lent directly by Beijing for the first time. The 37 pieces are included in an exhibition that will run until early January next year on Emperor Yongzheng, the fourth ruler of the Qing Dynasty. Beijing said earlier this year that similar exchanges could be worked out in 2010. But the Palace Museum, which houses one of the world’s greatest collection of historic treasures – around 654,500 Chinese artworks and artifacts that were taken by the Kuomintang (KMT) government when it fled China at the end of the civil war in 1949 – has declined to reciprocate, fearing that China would seize any pieces lent by Taipei, claiming rightful ownership. In a related report, Pierre Berge, the partner of the late fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent, told French radio that he considered offering Taiwan two Qing Dynasty bronzes – of a rat head and rabbit head – that were seized in 1860 from Beijing’s Summer Palace by French and British troops. Local media said Berge had approached the National Palace Museum with the proposition, but Museum director Chou Kung-hsin has denied it. She added that the museum in any case would never have accepted the items, as it would be a violation of professional ethics to take in stolen property. PRC CELEBRATES 60TH ANNIVERSARYThe People’s Republic of China marked its 60th anniversary on October 1 with a parade in Beijing involving thousands of soldiers, gaudy floats, hundreds of tanks, and a show of nuclear-capable missiles. President Hu Jintao said in a speech that China was “able and confident in playing its global role” and vowed that China would seek peaceful reunification with Taiwan. The opposition Democratic Progressive Party slammed China for trying to intimidate the world by showcasing its military prowess, but Premier Wu Den-yih told lawmakers he held a “neutral position,” saying that “any sovereign country has the right to decide on its national day activities.” He added that missiles targeted at Taiwan are not beneficial to cross-Strait relations.
DOMESTICMA TAKES OFFICE AS KMT CHAIRMANPresident Ma Ying-jeou formally took on the chairmanship of the KMT in mid-October, following a party election in late July in which he was the sole candidate. Ma, who analysts said hoped to centralize control of the party’s often fractious apparatus and create a cleaner image ahead of the December 5 local elections, vowed to dispose of the KMT’s controversial party assets. Lin Yong-ruei, director of the KMT’s administrative management commission, told local media that the party plans to sell its largest asset, the Central Investment Co., by 2012, and use about NT$15 billion in proceeds to pay off debt, make charitable donations, and cover pensions for retiring party personnel. Critics have accused the KMT of acquiring the assets through special privilege and asked that the money be returned to the public treasury. A new KMT Central Standing Committee (CSC) was elected on October 11, but amid widespread charges of vote-buying, most of those elected tendered their resignations, forcing a second election to be held in mid-November. CHEN SHUI-BIAN UNDER NEW INVESTIGATIONFormer pro-independence president Chen Shui-bian is being investigated by prosecutors on possible charges of treason, following his bizarre claims that he was an American agent. After Chen was sentenced to life imprisonment for embezzlement, money-laundering, and bribe-taking to the tune of millions of dollars in early September, he sued the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces for failing to intervene, arguing that Taiwan should technically be regarded as under U.S. occupation. Although Chen said he did this to clarify that Taiwan was separate from China, most local analysts attributed it to his desperation to get out of jail. In his petition for extraordinary relief presented to the American appeals court, the president declared that extreme circumstances had forced to him to reveal to the world “the existence of the United States Military Government for Taiwan” and said he had taken orders on its behalf. The court declined to hear the case, saying it lacked jurisdiction. The American Institute in Taiwan also had no comment. In a separate case, the U.S. Supreme Court in early October also declined to consider a lawsuit utilizing similar arguments launched by a group of independence activists known as the Formosa Nation Legal-strategy Association. The association asserts that the San Francisco Peace Treaty signed in 1951 did not award sovereignty over the former Japanese colony of Taiwan to either the PRC or the Republic of China. This treaty overrides all subsequent international agreements, the association maintains, with the result that Taiwan is lawfully still a military territory of the United States. The association had already lost its case with a Washington, D.C. district court and the court of appeals before Chen in August threw his weight behind the argument, offering to give evidence to the Supreme Court in person and submitting an affidavit alleging that during his presidential term he had taken orders from the Americans “even when their instructions interfered with my presidential decision-making.” Even without potential treason charges, Chen’s judicial outlook is grim. The Council of Grand Justices on October 16 ruled that a controversial switch of the judges presiding over his case in December 2008 was constitutional. If the judgment had been otherwise, Chen’s life sentence would have been rendered invalid and he would have to undergo a new trial. The High Court, after protracted communication with the Supreme Court, also ruled that Chen, who is appealing his sentence, should remain in detention until the end of December. LARGE GAY-PRIDE PARADE HELD IN TAIPEIAt the end of October, Taipei was the venue for what organizers said was the largest gay pride march ever held in Asia. Around 25,000 demonstrators dressed in exotic costumes and representing or showing their support for lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and the transgendered thronged the streets of the capital as they called on the government to better protect gay rights, organizers said. More than 100 organizations, including academic ones, took part. INTERNATIONALTAIWAN LOSES GROUND IN PRESS FREEDOMThe 2009 Press Freedom Index compiled by Reporters Without Borders and released in late October ranked Taiwan in 59th place in the world, a drop of 23 spots from its 36th place in 2008. “The new ruling party in Taiwan tried to interfere in state and privately-owned media while violence by certain activists further undermined press freedom,” the organization said on its website. The United States, which ranked 36th in 2008, in contrast jumped to 20th place this year. Taiwan was ranked 32nd in 2007 and 43rd in 2006. NEW POLICY ON U.S. BEEF SPARKS OBJECTIONSThe Ma administration in October announced it would end a ban on U.S bone-in beef imports, ground beef, and intestines, provoking furor among numerous Taiwan’s politicians – mostly from the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) but also from the KMT – as well as consumer groups, culminating in a protest rally attracting thousands in mid-November. A ban on these cuts of meats had been in force since the mad cow scare of 2005 and the issue had become a major trade irritant between Washington and Taipei. Lifting the ban is expected to improve overall relations with the United States. Prepared for a backlash from the political opposition, the Department of Health said bone-in beef imports and offal must be from cows under 30 months old and must be inspected first by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Taiwan also affirmed that it would reinstate the ban if the disease resurfaced. However, there was still widespread negative publicity. On October 31, the DPP paralyzed parliament as lawmakers occupied the speaker’s podium, demanding fresh negotiations with the United States. Civic groups including the Consumer Foundation are also pushing for a referendum to overturn the government’s decision. JAMES LILLEY, FORMER AIT DIRECTOR, MOURNEDAmbasador James Lilley, who died on November 12 after a long and distinguished career as a U.S. diplomat, public servant, and China expert, was the only person to have headed the U.S. missions in both Taipei and Beijing. Born in China in 1928, Lilley served as the second Director of AIT from 1981 to 1984, during a period when the United States and Taiwan were redefining their relationship. “Then-Director Lilley's astute guidance was a key factor in the emergence of America's strong unofficial relationship with Taiwan,” AIT said in a statement. Lilley later served as U.S. ambassador in Korea and in Beijing during the period of the Tiananmen Incident. He was widely respected in and out of government both for promoting U.S. interests in East Asia and helping Americans to better understand the region. In recent years he several times met with AmCham Taipei Doorknock delegations visiting Washington, D.C. A book review of Lilley’s memoirs, China Hands, appeared in the January 2005 issue of Taiwan Business TOPICS. AMCHAM MEMBERS’ MORAKOT DONATIONS EXCEED NT$5 BILLIONForeign companies operating in Taiwan responded promptly to the Typhoon Morakot disaster in August with generous donations of money, goods, and services to help those injured or displaced by the storm and ensuing flooding and mudslides. To better understand the scope of the contributions, AmCham Taipei surveyed its corporate members about the nature and amount of the assistance they rendered. Based on replies from 70 companies surveyed, the total monetary contribution came to NT$4.9 billion (about US$148 million). In addition, many companies donated goods of various kinds, including pharmaceuticals and other healthcare products, milk powder, clothing, furniture, computers, bleach, daily-use items such as toothbrushes and toothpaste, and other commodities. For those cases in which the value of the goods was estimated, the total amounted to another NT$13.8 million (over US$400,000). Other companies made available various types of services, and some are involved in continuing assistance programs – either through special projects or as part of their regular Corporate Social Responsibility activity – to schools or households in affected regions. “For the local operations of foreign-invested companies, Taiwan has become home,” says AmCham President Andrea Wu. “It’s where their employees, their suppliers, and their customers are located. Because they are rooted in this society, when a natural catastrophe of this kind of magnitude occurs, they naturally do everything they can to provide resources to help alleviate the suffering.”
BUSINESSITRI INVENTION WINS WSJ INNOVATION AWARDTaiwan’s Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) received the 2009 Wall Street Journal Technology Innovation Award in consumer electronics for its FleXpeaker, a paper-thin flexible speaker technology. The arrays of tiny, bendable speakers can be combined to produce high-fidelity speaker systems of almost any size and can even be cut with scissors into any shape. “The judges believe that this looks like a significant breakthrough in speaker design,” said Wall Street Journal editor John M. Ledger in making the award. “It has many potential applications although it is too early to be commercialized.” REGULATORS LOOK AT AIG SALE OF NAN SHANThe American International Group (AIG) agreed in mid-October to sell its Taiwanese life insurance unit to a group led by Primus Financial Holdings for US$2.15 billion in a move aimed at helping AIG repay its US$183.2 billion in bailout loans from the U.S. government. AIG said in a statement it would sell its almost 98% stake in Nan Shan Life Insurance to Primus Financial and China Strategic Holdings Ltd. The acquisition, which requires regulatory approval, was under a cloud by the end of November, however, amid government suspicions that the prospective purchasers are backed by China-sourced funds. The acquisition process needs approval first from the Investment Commission of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, and then from the Financial Supervisory Commission. UK FIRM IN COOPERATION ON WIND ENERGY PROJECTBritish renewable energy company SeaEnergy announced in late October that it would work with Taiwan Generations Corp. (TGC) on a variety of windfarm projects. The Taiwan government has set a target of 8,450 MW or 15% of the island’s installed electrical generation capacity to be derived from renewable resources by 2025. In August, the government said it would invest NT$45 billion (US$1.4 billion) in this sector. SeaEnergy and TGC did not place a value on the project, but Sea Energy said the companies would first work on a jointly-owned Chang-hua Offshore Windfarm on Taiwan’s western coast. FAILED CHINFON BANK SOLD AT AUCTIONIn the latest consolidation move for Taiwan’s fragmented banking sector, the government in late October auctioned off “good bank” and “bad bank” segments of the failed Chinfon Commercial Bank. The government will pay NT$19 million each to Yuanta Financial and Far Eastern Bank to take over Chinfon’s local assets and debts. Fubon Financial, however, will pay the government NT$2.53 billion to buy Chinfon’s branches in Vietnam, and Taishin Financial will pay NT$4.1 billion to acquire Chinfon’s credit card business, officials said. POWER DISRUPTION HURTS GLASS PRODUCTIONCorning, the largest marker of glass for liquid crystal display screens, said in mid-October that a power disruption at its plant in Taichung will hurt glass production in the fourth quarter, a Reuters report said. The U.S. company said volume in the fourth quarter would be flat or down slightly from the third quarter. Without the disruption, glass volume would have increased by as much as 5%, Corning said. Stability of the power supply in Taiwan has long been among AmCham’s key concerns.
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