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2018-05-05 03:00

AUTONOMY? A professor called for better protection of students and teachers, while the KMT accused the DPP of advocating free speech while intervening in school affairsBy Wu Po-hsuan, Sean Lin and Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporters, with staff writerVerbal clashes erupted on National Taiwan University’s （NTU） campus yesterday between students who support the election of Kuan Chung-ming （管中閔） as university president and those who oppose it.The Ministry of Education on Friday last week rejected Kuan’s election after a series of allegations, ranging from conflicts of interest in the selection process to plagiarism and teaching in China, prevented Kuan from taking office as scheduled on Feb. 1.The Action Alliance for University Autonomy, formed by a number of academics who support Kuan, held a rally on the campus near the landmark Fu Bell （傅鐘）. Former president Ma Ying-jeou （馬英九） and former Chinese Nationalist Party （KMT） chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu （洪秀柱） visited the campus to show their solidarity with faculty members and students supporting Kuan.Ma said that a university should not be polluted by politics, while Hung joined a sit-in.At about 4pm, more than 20 NTU students who oppose Kuan’s election raised banners near the bell that read: “Kuan’s purity cheated the entire country.”As the two sides traded barbs, a Kuan-supporter pulled the shirt collar of an anti-Kuan student, while another person drew on a student’s white shirt using lipstick.At one point, anti-Kuan students were cornered by people supporting the president-elect.Some Kuan supporters were heard shouting: “Students get off the campus,” “Red Guards” and “Japanese lackey （日本走狗）.”Campus police intervened, separating the two parties to prevent the conflict from escalating.NTU professor Chen Tung-sheng （陳東升） later yesterday said that if the university wants to ensure school autonomy, the first step would be to protect the personal safety of NTU students and teachers, and their freedom to express different opinions inside the campus.“NTU students were beaten for expressing their opinion inside their own school — this is a very serious matter and the darkest day in NTU’s history,” Chen said.The university’s acting president and administrative units must be held responsible for what happened and the people who used violence should be strongly condemned, he added.Earlier yesterday, KMT lawmakers rallied outside the ministry to protest the ministry’s decision not to confirm Kuan as NTU president.“On the 99th anniversary of the May Fourth Movement （五 四運動）, the Democratic Progressive Party [DPP] administration has crossed the red line of democracy and academic freedom,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lee Yen-hsiu （李彥秀） said, referring to an intellectual and reformist movement in China.The DPP has advocated against allowing politics to interfere in school affairs, but the charges it has fabricated against Kuan show that its so-called ideals are just tools for political struggle, Lee said.School autonomy is crucial for young people to cultivate democratic values, and the KMT caucus wants to show its support for student protesters who yesterday took a stand on the issue at the NTU to let the DPP and the ministry know that they must not tread on the nation’s hard-won democracy and freedom, she said.KMT caucus whip Lin Te-fu （林德福） accused President Tsai Ing-wen （蔡英文） and Premier William Lai （賴清德） of being the masterminds behind the ministry’s decision not to confirm Kuan.The caucus did not stage the rally to rescue Kuan, but to call for support for university autonomy and democracy, KMT caucus deputy secretary-general William Tseng （曾銘宗） said.There are 140 NTU faculty members who are also independent board directors, and most of them took up their posts in the private sector before informing the school — like what Kuan did when he accepted the Taiwan Mobile seat, Tseng said.Lai yesterday told legislators that he would “take responsibility” for the ministry’s decision against confirming Kuan.He made the remarks in response to KMT Legislator Alicia Wang’s （王育敏） question on whether the ministry had acted on his or Tsai’s orders, or whether the premier gave the order without first informing the president.Lai said that, as the premier, he is responsible for the appointment of ministers, as well as the decisions they make.Additional reporting by CNA新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES

多明尼加日前與台灣斷交，轉身投向中國大陸懷抱，多國表示，早在六年前就想與大陸建交，只是礙於當時兩岸「特殊情況（九二共識）」下，無法落實。外交部今（3）日對此表示，「那是多明尼加的發言，我們沒有評論。」

外交部發言人李憲章針對《NOWnews 今日新聞》記者提問時，做出以上表示。

李憲章也指出，大陸國力崛起，利用巨大的經濟力量，作為打壓台灣的工具，「這個我們不諱言」，不過台灣的強項，在於能具體嘉惠友邦，例如利用綠能解決缺電、培養健康飲食習慣等等，因地制宜，給予邦國必要協助，這樣的紮根工作，遠比大陸用鉅額的經貿誘引對方，這種「口惠而實不至」的作法，更有幫助；目前台灣和友邦的經貿狀況都逐漸加強，台灣從事邦交工作是一個務實、穩健的態度，會持續朝這方面努力。

台灣日本關係協會副祕書長范振國也強調，兩岸關係緊張或和緩，並不適用於台日關係上，不管兩岸關係緊張或緩和，台日關係，包括任何協商，都在持續進行中，目前台日關係是最緊密的時刻，在各方面都可看到大幅度的成長，各項會談，也都每年召開，沒受到任何影響，不果兩岸關係走向如何，都不應該引申到台日關係，「我們對日、對美、對其他重要國家的關係，都在推動，也都有成果，尤其對日關係這部分，我向大家保證，有非常大的進展。」

雖然台灣參加今年 WHA 仍面臨相當大的難度，截至目前為止仍未收到邀請函，范振國透露，日本向來公開支持台灣參加 WHA ，今年日本會用自己評估過後的方式，協助台灣，不過具體方式，「目前我不方面明講」。

亞東太平洋司副司長藍夏禮，也針對南太六友邦目前與我國的狀態做出表示，他表示，目前南太六友邦邦交穩定，台灣在業務上會加強與他們的各項合作，進一步深化雙方關係，台灣會針對對方未來需求，研提相關計畫，這是外交部未來努力方向，也持續在進行中。

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