Dear friends in fapa-forum and fapa-board,

For your information hereby two press reports on the TRA-30 press conference organized by FAPA yesterday, and the arrival of the “March for Taiwan” at the US Congress.

The first one is from William Lowther at the Taipei Times, and the second one is from Reuters. A third article, by Taipei-based Jonathan Adams, is also about TRA-30, but not about the Washington events.

Happy reading and enjoy the weekend,

Gerrit van der Wees, FAPA

Taiwanese in US raise concerns over human rights

… growing worries about freedom of speech and freedom of expression became the dominant theme. … Taiwanese students in the US are now often frightened to give their names if they say anything critical of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration. … because they fear they will be harassed or made to suffer in some way when they go home,” …

“While a great majority of the Taiwanese people reject Chinese communist rule, the KMT government is rapidly paving the ground for annexation by China,” …. “Economic integration measures negotiated by the Chinese Communist Party and the KMT are implemented by the Executive Yuan without public debate or approval by the Legislative Yuan. Taiwan is in danger of being delivered into China’s grasp by stealth.”

Taipei Times Full Report

Reuters Report

America’s ‘special’ Asian relationship