Taiwan Statebuilding Party elects new chair, Wang Hsing-huan

Taiwan Statebuilding Party elects new chair, Wang Hsing-huan

2023-01-17

The Taiwan Statebuilding Party on Tuesday held a ceremony to inaugurate its new chair, Wang Hsing-huan. It is the first change in leadership for the party, which is a strong advocate for Taiwanese independence from the R.O.C. and is seen as a close ally of the ruling DPP. The event was attended by former Pingtung County Commissioner Pan Men-an, who did not elaborate on reports that he could take over as minister of the interior soon.

Former chair Chen Yi-chi hands over a ceremonial brick representing the foundation of the party to Wang Hsing-huan. It’s the first change in leadership in the party since its establishment more than 10 years ago. Wang was asked whether the party would cooperate with the DPP.

Wang Hsing-huan
Taiwan Statebuilding Party chair
On some political issues, the general direction of our nation and our rejection of China to protect Taiwan, we are definitely cooperating. When it comes to elections, our relationship is one based on competition between political parties. Of course we will take part in the legislative elections, both for directly-elected lawmakers and legislators-at-large. We will make plans for the election.

The event had a high turnout. Among the people in attendance was former Pingtung County Commissioner Pan Men-an, who caught much attention from media.

Pan Men-an
Former Pingtung County commissioner
Taiwan does not belong to a single party or a single person. It belongs to everyone. And it’s not a matter of just me or just you. We should all come together to think about the future of Taiwan. Over the past few years we have had a common appeal, and we have goals that take us in the same direction.

In the 2020 general elections, the party gained more than 3% of the vote in the party list vote, making it eligible for political party subsidies. In the 2022 local election, it had its best showing to date, winning one councilor seat each in Tainan and Kaohsiung. Pan says he attended the ceremony in a personal capacity, to celebrate with friends. Reporters asked him whether he was planning to join the Executive Yuan as minister of the interior and whether he was attending the event to pave the way for a possible presidential bid by Lai Ching-te in 2024.

Pan Men-an
Former Pingtung County commissioner
I don’t have any plans right now. I don’t know. I don’t really have an opinion to give you. For now I am staying in Pingtung. Whether there is a government restructuring or not depends on President Tsai.

Pan did not elaborate on his plans for the future, leaving much room for speculation.

台灣基進首次黨主席輪替王興煥擔任新黨魁

2023-01-17

台灣基進創黨10餘年，首次進行黨主席輪替，創黨主席陳奕齊今天(17日)卸任職位，改由秘書長王興煥擔任黨主席。卸任後鮮少露面的屏東縣長潘孟安也到場祝賀，外界相當關注他是否會入閣或是協助民進黨準主席、副總統賴清德備戰2024總統大選。

從黨主席陳奕齊手中接過基進建國磚，台灣基進黨創黨十幾年，首次進行黨主席輪替，新任黨主席王興煥正式上任，記者也問起基進黨與民進黨的關係。

[[基進黨主席王興煥]]
“我們在政治議題上、國家大方向面、在抗中保台方面，一定是合作的。但在選舉方面，就是回歸政黨本位會有競爭，國會選戰當然會參加，不論是區域或不分區，我們都會積極去規劃＂

看看台下貴賓坐滿滿，其中一個竟然是前屏東縣長潘孟安，但人怎麼會出現在基進黨場子。

[[前屏東縣長潘孟安]]
＂基本上，台灣不是屬於單一政黨，台灣也不是屬於單一個人，是屬於大家全體國人，更應該不分你我，大家共同思考台灣未來，我想這是過去這幾年我們共同心聲，也是共同一個方向及目標＂

台灣基進黨在2020年跨過3%政黨票門檻，甚至在2022年地方選舉創下黨史最佳得票率，取得台南與高雄2席議會席次。潘孟安強調他是以好朋友的身分前來祝賀，不過，外界關注的其實是，他會不會入閣成為新任內政部長？還是單純協助副總統賴清德備戰2024總統大選？

[[前屏東縣長潘孟安]]
“目前我沒有任何規劃，我不知道，也沒有這個想法。目前我都還是在屏東，至於是不是改組與否，取決於蔡總統”

不管怎麼問，始終不鬆口。潘孟安未來動向，還是未知數。

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“Dawn” is based on the true story of a fire rescue operation from 2016. Houlong fire fighter Kuo Li-yuan wrote the song and lyrics based on a call-out the team received in the early hours one morning.

The alarm report said a mother and son were trapped in a fire. The woman judged that they couldn’t escape by themselves, so she shut the bedroom door to wait for fire fighters to arrive. Shutting the door was the action that kept the fire’s smoke and heat out of the room. It resulted in both mother and son getting safely rescued.

Hsiao Jen-fu
Houlong Fire Department
We started with the mother and son as the center of the song. It’s about our state of mind after we, the fire department, arrived, and there was a mother and son and we could contact them and get them out.

The true story inspired Kuo, fire fighter and amateur musician. He asked his colleague Hsiao Jen-fu to direct a music video and found actors to take part.

Kuo had been a keen guitar player as a student, and whenever he had a moment to spare, he’d be found in the dormitory strumming and singing to himself. During the making of the MV, Kuo and Hsiao thought hard about how to make a promo video that would avoid the cliches of the normal instruction clips.

Kuo Li-yuan
Houlong Fire Department
Once we had fixed the tune, we kept on improving it. We had already started filming by that point. When we had worked out the basic length of time, we kept on improving it. After editing the lyrics and the tune I would ask him to check it. All in all, we must have gone through 50 different versions.

The lyrics smuggle in some important concepts about how to deal with a fire, which Kuo hopes will serve listeners who get into trouble. They include key points like, “Shut the door and wait for rescue,” “Don’t hide in the bathroom”, “Don’t cover your mouth with a wet cloth,” and “Don’t run upstairs if there’s smoke.”

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Cold weather can cause bulging or cracks in poorly laid ceramic tiles

Cold weather is battering Taiwan, and for some people, that means problems in their homes. Shoddy building can make ceramic tiles vulnerable to changes in temperature. A tile that wasn’t laid properly can end up bulging from the floor or wall, after temperature changes pull it out of place. But there’s a way to check the solidity of your tiles at home – before they crack.

Take out a metal stick and give the floor tiles a tap. The solid tiles sound one way, but at a certain tile, there’s a different sound. That hollow noise indicates there’s probably a problem.

Yen Yu-hung
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It’s already hollow inside. Generally people don’t know about the problem. If it’s hollow, when the cold comes and temperature drops suddenly, the tile expands and contracts and starts to bulge out.

When the weather’s cold, some people find bulges or cracks like this in their floor tiles. Once perfectly even tiling starts to bulge and crack, and the concrete underneath can start to show. Sometimes cracks appear in bathroom walls, which can be a risk to residents. So then it’s time to call a tile setter urgently. One repair specialist says profits have soared more than 50% recently.

Mr. Tseng
Affected homeowner
I went past it and wondered “Why is that sticking out there?” Or sometimes I would stub my toe on something, and realize it seemed to be poking out. So I asked the tile installer to fix it as soon as possible.

Yen Yu-hung
Building repair industry
It’s a construction problem, because the concrete wasn’t set properly. Lots of people just want a quick job. The tiles should be glued down on the back, but they don’t do that. Another thing is they didn’t wipe the dust off the backs of the tiles like they should have.

This expert says that cold snaps always lead to an increase in profits for him, and sometimes more work than he can accept. You can also check your own tiles at home before they crack. Use a NT$10 coin or a stick to tap the tiles, and if you hear a noise that’s more brittle or hollow sounding, you know it will need fixing soon.

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Taoyuan banh mi restaurant serves up an authentic Vietnamese taste

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Baguettes go into the oven, to be re-baked until crispy outside and soft inside. They’re cut open and filled with pork pate, authentic Vietnamese ham, cucumber, and coriander.

Even the eggs are fried in a special way. They go into the pan with cold oil, which is heated up slowly to fry the egg. These banh mi are a solid 7 centimeters thick! Lots of Vietnamese people come here to enjoy an authentic flavor from their homeland.

Customer
It’s quite authentic. The ingredients are good quality. You can leave them for hours and the baguette is still crispy.

Customer
They’re very similar to the ones in Vietnam.

And inside the restaurant, we spot these photos of Vietnam’s beautiful scenery on the walls. They were taken by the restaurant owner on his travels. Gandan, born in 1974, often travels with his family in Vietnam, and writes an independent travel blog.

Gandan
Vietnamese roll restaurant owner
I think Vietnam feels a bit like Taiwan did when I was born. When I go to the Vietnamese countryside, I see lots of things that give me deja vu. I also see the ways in which it is developing really fast. It’s an enormous contrast. It has a very good side. The people are also very good-hearted.

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Gandan
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Chen-chen’s mom
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Chen chen’s mom
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Chen I-ling
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