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The top story from this past week involved President Ma Ying-jeou saying the government will not take back a trade in services agreement with China.
Ma made the comments in a press conference on Saturday. He was responding to student protestors who have been occupying the legislature.
During the conference, Ma expressed concerns that the standoff over the pact has led to social unrest. He also said that any protests must be within what is allowed by law.
In response to student demands that a law allowing close scrutiny of cross-strait agreements must be passed before the trade in services pact can be reviewed, Ma said he supports an item-by-item review. He said that the Mainland Affairs Council, Taiwan’s top China-policy maker, is expected to unveil scrutiny measures next week, and he also urged legislators to work to pass the law within the current legislative session.
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Also this past week a senior US official has commended Taipei and Beijing for “historic progress” made in improving relations. But he is also emphasizing that Washington’s policy on Taiwan has not changed, despite a recent “mischaracterization” by Beijing.
The official was Senior Director for Asian Affairs of the National Security Council Evan Medeiros. He said on Friday that the US hopes better relations between Taiwan and China will continue “in ways acceptable to both sides”.
Medeiros’ comments came at a seminar organized by a Washington-based think tank, the Brookings Institution. The seminar marked the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the US and China.
In prepared remarks, Medeiros said that the issue of Taiwan has been one of the “perennial difficulties” in US-China relations. But he insisted that the position of the US has not changed.
Medeiros also decried a statement released by the Chinese foreign ministry following a meeting between US President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.
The Chinese statement seemed to indicate a change in US position on the issue of Taiwan. But Medeiros called it a “willful mischaracterization”.
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And finally this past week, Taipei has been named the 2016 World Design Capital. The agreement was signed by Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin and International Council of Societies of Industrial Design President Dr. Brandon Gien in Taipei on Friday. Taipei is following in the steps of Turin, Seoul, Helsinki, and Cape Town with this prestigious title.
Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin spoke on Friday about the city’s plans:
"Taipei was built over 130 years ago," said Hau. "We have a rich culture and history. But what’s more important at this time is that we use innovation and design – not just for city management – but also to get the participation of our citizens to make design become a mark of the city of Taipei."
Mayor Hau said there were 16 plans to transform the city to enable design to become integrated throughout all facets of Taipei.
The color purple is the base for the logo for Taipei World Design Capital. It symbolizes nobility, passion and vitality. Vice President Wu Den-yi said Taiwan has visa-free status to 135 countries. The number of annual visits to Taiwan is already over 8 million, and he expects that figure to be over 10 million by 2016.