Formosa Foundation Student Ambassador Program

Jerome Keating passed this around:

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Subject: Now Accepting Applications to 2007 Ambassador Program

The Formosa Foundation is accepting applications to the 2007 Ambassador Program now through March 16, 2007. Application instructions and forms are now available online at http://www.formosafoundation.org/ourwork/upcoming-events.php

Please forward this email message to everyone you think may be interested to apply.

The Ambassador Program is a unique training program of its kind. We recruit students from the United States and Taiwan , who will work together to help develop a closer relationship between the U.S. and Taiwan . The Program provides a rare opportunity to meet with United States Congressmen and Senators to discuss U.S. policies toward Taiwan .

The 2007 Ambassador Program will begin on June 17and conclude on June 29, 2007. Ambassadors will spend the first week Los Angeles and the second week in Washington D.C. The Formosa Foundation will cover expenses for tuition, meals and lodging for the duration of the Program, plus round-trip transportation from Los Angeles to Washington D.C.

The Program is designed primarily for college and/or graduate students who support the advancement of human rights, democracy and the right of self-determination for the people of Taiwan . Selection criteria includes academic achievements, extracurricular activities, participation in community affairs, and interest in promoting the U.S.-Taiwan relationship.

To Apply, Submit items below:
1. Application Form (Taiwan Applicants click here)[LINKS DON'T WORK - MT]
2. Personal Statement
3. Copy of recent transcript
4. Two letters of recommendation
See Application Form for full instructions.

Application Deadline - March 16, 2007
Selection Results will be announced on April 16, 2007.

Amy Lin
Formosa Foundation
Ambassador Program Director

[Taiwan]

Amnesty and the Death Penalty in Taiwan

For many years Amnesty International has been carrying out a campaign to eliminate the death penalty, and Taiwan is one of their targets.

A recent case is that of arsonist and murderer Chong Deshu:

Chong Deshu is at risk of imminent execution. His execution order was reportedly signed by the Minister of Justice on 1 December 2006. Under standard procedure, execution should have taken place three days after the notice of final judgment from the Ministry of Justice – that is, 4 December 2006. However, the execution has not yet been carried out. It is possible that the Chong Deshu could be executed at any moment without notice.

The article gives some background information on the death penalty here:

Between 70 and 100 prisoners are believed to be held on death row in Taiwan, of whom at least 22 have had their sentences confirmed. Execution is carried out by a shot in the heart through the back or lethal injection although so far no-one has been executed by lethal injection in Taiwan. So far, no executions have been carried out in Taiwan during 2006, continuing a downward trend in the use of the death penalty since 2000. Local anti-death penalty activists had hoped that 2006 would be an "execution-free year" helping to increase momentum towards abolition. Several Taiwanese officials have indicated support for abolition of death penalty in recent years, including President Chen Shui-bian.

The Taiwanese authorities have taken some measures to reform the death penalty system over recent months: the use of shackles for those on death row has been reduced; and legal aid has been extended to death penalty prisoners. However, the government's promises to move towards abolition have yet to be fulfilled.

I've worked with Amnesty in the past, and they are truly a wonderful organization.

[Taiwan] [Amnesty] [Chen Shui-bian]

The Hermit Kingdom

Remember when Shih Ming-teh was going to camp out in front of the Presidential Palace until Chen Shui-bian stepped down? All bluster of course. As the media have reported, Shih is going to be a recluse -- until Chen Shui-bian steps down. Jerome Keating notes:

Shih Ming-deh has recently returned from the sunny climes of Thailand where he basked while whatever remnants (if any) there were left of his red shirts withstood the wind, rain and cold outside Taipei Main Station. Now Shih is plying another grandstanding move. He pledges that he will be true to his word, that since his coup did not topple Chen Shui-bian, he will become a recluse. He will retire into a small apartment near the main Taipei Main Station and stay there until Chen steps down in 2008.

Lots of people live a reclusive life in a small apartment near the train station, but only Shih can manufacture any media moments from it. Long past his sell-by date, as Shih was bidding reporters good-bye and closing the door to his new apartment, he told reporters that the public should vote Blue, and if they don't vote Blue, they should cast an invalid ballot.

I'm not worried, though. I'm sure the BBC will go right on breathlessly reporting about how Shih's demonstration was a non-partisan demonstration designed to "highlight corruption." It's one thing to err, but another to persist in it. As my favorite Vulcan once observed, just be sure you're not confusing empiricism with stubbornness.

But enough scoring on the klueless BBC. Bottom line: it's heartbreaking to see Shih Ming-teh, whom so many of us admired for so long, become a shill for the people who once put him in jail. What was it all for, Nori?

[Taiwan] [Shih Ming-deh/Shih Ming-te] [Chen Shui-bian] [BBC]

Drive By Shooting

A whip scorpion, perfectly common, sometimes seen around house and home.

The Iron Law of Taiwan Driving: there is no crowd so dense I can't shove a car through it.

Parked and waiting whilst the wife ran errands, I wondered: what is this fellow up to?

Carefully he arranged each can...

...and when at last, when he had them all in the right place...

...he crushed them. Never say there is nothing to do in Taiwan.

Cars running the red light. Cars making illegal right turns. Night.

Here's some more pics from the geocaching day in Hsinchu. We spent the day driving all over Hsinchu peeking into the many small towns along the way.

What's the chief skill needed to photograph in Taiwan? Handling shutter speed? Controlling the depth of field? Weather-proofing the camera? Nope. It's keeping the wires out of the picture.

Police station.

[Taiwan]

Daily Links, December 7, 2006

Planning a crime? Don't pee here!

December 7, a day that will live in infamy. Lots of blogging out there.

Several blogs complained about BenQ's insensitive ad that exploits the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. The Taipei Kid has the call.

Sean Reilly has a sardonic and informative article on Taiwan's prehistory and modern political claims.

Poagao writes poignantly on the old amusement park in Bitan.

Taiwan Matters debates What Does Soong want? Wulingren has the latest installment.

Scott Sommers ponders the disappearing foreign teacher program in local schools. Announced with so much fanfare years ago, slowly attenuating...

Patrick Cowsill has some great posts on aborigines...

Kinship in Chinese culture? Jon Benda muses...

Todd at the Daily Bubble Tea aptly describes the Shida Language program...

Jerome predicts Shih Ming-teh will be busted living the high life. And muses on discontent in Taiwan in part I and part II.

Pinyin info blogs on signage snafus in Taichung. Welcome to central Taiwan.....

What's up in Taiwan podcasts Robin Erik Ruizendaal, the Administrator of the Lin Liu-Hsin Puppet Theatre Museum.

The Levitator is gone. Sadly. Come write for us at Taiwan Matters! Battphotos is back photoblogging. Andres has some drop dead great photos. Don't miss'em. Greg at Kaoliang hangover also has take-me-back photos of Taiwan.

[Taiwan] [Taiwan Blogs]

Six Degrees of Desperation

The Blues fantasy that Chen Shui-bian staged his own assassination sustained them in defeat... and the China Post is still livin' the dream....

Police confirmed yesterday President Chen Shui-bian was wounded on March 19, 2004, by a bullet made at home by Tang Shou-yi, who is now claiming he was scapegoated in the investigation of the mystery-shrouded shooting in Tainan.

President Chen was reelected, thanks to the sympathy votes cast on the day following the incident, in which the gunman police identified later committed suicide and no smoking gun was found.

In a self-produced DVD confession sent from China, Tang charged police investigators framed him and Chen Yi-hsiung, the gunman who they said drowned himself "out of remorse" ten days after his "attempt to assassinate" the president.

The China Post, pro-KMT to the core, is playing coy: the DVD "sent from China" was not sent from just anywhere. Tang the bullet maker has gone to stay with Chang An-lo, one of Taiwan's most prominent gangsters. Tang is yet another example of a criminal in Taiwan, with strong gang connections, released on bail, and easily able to jump bail and leave the country -- to head (where else?) to China. The Post is downplaying the infinity of connections here between the pro-Blue side and Taiwan's underworld. Has Tang been coerced by the police, as he claims, or was his testimony bought and paid for by the Blues? You make the call....

Maddog reminded me in a private email that Chang An-lo is connected to Lin Chen-chieh, that gentleman who beat up a democracy supporter on TV -- and who showed up at Shih Ming-teh's anti-Chen protest and wanted to be his bodyguard (Lin is actually Chairman of Chang An-lo's political party). Wang Lan, who runs the female arm of the Bamboo Union gang, the Phoenix Corps, also volunteered to help bodyguard Shih Ming-teh. These gangsters are all pro-Blue -- Chang has ancient connections to Taiwan's martial law-era security services and was involved in the 1984 murder of writer Henry Liu -- just to keep the dizzying conections coming -- who was once a dinner pal of current PFP Chairman and KMT turncoat James Soong. Shih Ming-teh himself is connected to Chen Yu-hao, the notorious embezzler, who is apparently under the thumb of the Chinese government. Chang and his Bamboo Union gang pals all have China connections as well.

So, let me ask again. Did the police coerce Tang? Or did someone buy him? And who is pulling the strings?

[Taiwan]

Over at Taiwan Matters

Over at Taiwan Matters, where it is all Taiwan politics, all the time, Feiren is back from travels abroad and posting again, discussing the mayoral elections. Meanwhile Wulingren has posted on the elections. Oh, and me too! Sorry about the long hiatus there, but coincidentally several us had significant life events that all happened at the same time. But I expect that the blog will grow with plenty of quality posts. Looking forward to seeing your IP address there!

[Taiwan]