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First lady to depart for Europe with entourage

BON VOYAGE: Wu Shu-chen is heading to Berlin on the first leg of her European visit, and later she will have an audience with Pope John Paul II

CNA , TAIPEI

First lady Wu Shu-chen and her entourage is due to depart for Europe late today for a nine-day visit aimed at promoting cultural exchanges and friendship.

Wu will head for Berlin today on the first leg of her European visit that will later take her to the Holy See.

While in Berlin, Wu will preside over the opening of an unprecedented exhibition of ancient Chinese art treasures from the National Palace Museum.

Called "Treasures of the Sons of Heaven: The Imperial Collection from the National Palace Museum, Taipei," the exhibition will be displayed at the Alte Nationalgalerie in Berlin from Sunday to Oct. 12.

The collection, comprising more than 400 masterpieces, will then be put on display at the Kunst-und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland in Bonn from Nov. 21 to Feb. 15.

During her stay in the German capital, Wu will receive medals from several German organizations in honor of her contribution to democracy and freedom and her care for the physically and mentally challenged.

The first lady is scheduled to leave Berlin for the Holy See next Monday where she will attend a celebration of the 25th anniversary of Pope John Paul II's assumption of the papacy and will have an audience with the pope.

She will stay in Italy for meetings with members of the Chinese community there before returning home on July 23.

National Palace Museum Curator Tu Cheng-sheng already left for Berlin Sunday in preparation for the opening of the exhibition.

This will mark the third time that the National Palace Museum has loaned its treasures to overseas exhibitions, following exhibitions in New York and Chicago in 1996 and an exhibit in Paris in 1998.

When Wu made her visit to the US last December, Wu made three speeches to top US political figures and overseas Taiwanese -- at the National Arts Club in New York, the American Enterprise Institute think tank and Capitol Hill in Washington.

Some thoughts on nuclear energy

By Tsong Tien-tzou and Wang Chiu-sen and Yang Shin-nan

We support resolving the dispute over the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant through a referen-dum. We also suggest that the government invite both the pro- and anti-nuclear camps to provide information -- presented to the people by the referendum organizer in an impartial and objective way -- so they can make a well-informed decision. The members of the Green Water Society would like to provide you with our conclusions of years of study.

First, Taiwan is a densely-populated country with insufficient natural resources, so the government should guide the people to conserve power and natural resources. For example, we can avoid possible overload during peak hours by adjusting the time periods of electricity use, or save electricity by improving the efficiency of our machines. We can also save natural resources while maintaining our living quality by replacing "one-time-use" products with refined and durable goods.

For the sake of sustainable development, environmental protection and economic development are equally important. It's necessary to maintain a balance between the two aspects.

Second, Taiwan can learn from other medium-sized countries -- such as the Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland. Economically, its industries should be trans-formed into low pollution, high-added-value "intelligent indus-tries" in an effort to raise energy productivity. We should also replace today's high-consumption lifestyle with a more frugal one in accordance with the principle of environmental protection.

Third, the government should search for alternative energy sources. Thermal power generation by coal, fuel oil or natural gas will generate a great amount of carbon dioxide, causing global warming. Although wind and solar-power generation is already providing some electricity in a few countries, it's still necessary to develop higher generating efficiency in order to reduce the costs and boost competitiveness. These two methods are therefore unlikely to become mainstream energy sources anytime soon.

The future of hydrogen power generation seems bright at pre-sent. But scientists worry that the inevitable 10 percent to 20 percent hydrogen leak may damage the ozone layer. Besides, it takes other energy sources to generate hydrogen power. As for other "green energy" sources, they are still at the research and development stage. The government should therefore boost the amount of money it spends on research in this field.

Fourth, nuclear power is relatively advantageous because it does not generate carbon dioxide or cause global warming. Nuclear fuel can also be reused after processing. Since the safety of nuclear power plants has greatly im-proved, nuclear power has become the major energy source in France, Switzerland, Japan and some other advanced countries.

Before more appropriate treatment of nuclear waste is found, Taiwan's ideal choice of becoming a nuclear-free country is correct. Nevertheless, to reduce the economic impact of discarding nuclear power, we should first draw up a blueprint and gradually lower our dependence on nuclear power.

Fifth, half of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant has been completed. In view of the nation's economy, policy continuity and international reputation, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages of scrapping the pro-ject right now. In addition, thanks to advanced technologies adopted by the construction project, the safety of the plant is better than that of the three existing plants and its nuclear waste will be highly condensed.

To reduce our dependence on nuclear power and promote the safety of its use, early replacement of the existing plants can be considered. Plus, it takes 20 to 30 years to develop new green energy sources. Nuclear power can provide the energy needed to cover the shortfall in power during the transformation process.

Sixth, working out how to treat nuclear waste is an inevitable task on the way to becoming a nuclear-free homeland. As the saying goes, "Don't do to others what you don't want to be done to you." Nuclear waste should be processed domestically using the latest technologies. The media should frequently report on the successful treatment of waste in advanced countries, rather than constantly exaggerating the dangers of nuclear power, causing panic and irrational protests.

Seventh, this country has always implemented a relatively low-price energy policy. As a result, energy generated from domestic resources has gradually dropped to 3 percent of all power generated. We must understand the nation's special status in the international community. Once it comes under a naval and air blockade, industry may easily be paralyzed because of the lack of power. Energy diversity is necessary here. We should develop domestic energy sources.

A referendum will incur considerable social costs. The outcome of a referendum has no legal force if the legal basis is absent. That's exactly why we advocate completing the legislation of a referendum law before any referendum is held. The losing side in a referendum will inevitably stage protests if the rules are not clear. In that case, the dispute over the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant will be endless.

Tsong Tien-tzou is a research fellow at the Institute of Physics at the Academia Sinica. Wang Chiu-sen is a former dean of the College of Public Health at National Taiwan University. Yang Shin-nan is a professor in the department of physics at National Taiwan University. All three are members of the Green Water Society.

Education is a right, but a costly one

Education is an important part of the nation's economic development and social reforms. Recently, disputes over educational-reform policies -- such as textbook variety, the compatibility between different versions of textbooks, admission tests, the selection of teachers and tuition policies -- have given rise to concerns that education may became a major obstacle to social mobility, as opposed to being the main driving force behind social mobility. President Chen Shui-bian, the son of a farmer, became a legend when he was elected in 2000. But many people are worried that he could be the last of his kind. Chen, however, has defended the education-reform policies on his official Web site.

From authoritarianism to freedom, the nation's educational reforms have walked a difficult path over the past decade or so. The promotion of these reforms has not been perfect. Disorder and chaos can be seen now and again. Criticism from the public is a matter of course. But we must also say that schools, curricula and students have evidently become more lively, more pluralistic and more energetic. While evaluating the pros and cons of educational reforms, an all-round, fair and progressive vision must be established in order to avoid bias or prejudice.

Due to the 921 earthquake and the nation's economic doldrums, some poor children have been deprived of the right to education. Some elementary and junior-high school students can't afford school meals. University tuition is so high that some students who gain admission can't afford to go to school. These are all facts, but would it be fair to reject the ongoing educational reforms all-out for this reason? In the past, only 30 percent of students were admitted into college, but the low-tuition policy allowed all students who gained admission to be able to receive university education. Students from poor families could get loans, scholarships or part-time jobs, enabling them to attend university.

But the low-tuition policies also forced universities to completely rely on government subsidies. School operations became ossified and staid as a result. Tuitions are higher than before, but they are not very high compared to universities in many other countries. This is only the result of making tuition fees more reasonable.

Some politicians are trying to fool the public into believing that education is now a privilege reserved for rich people and that poor kids will have no chance to receive higher education. This is not true. Universities are not part of the nation's basic-education system, but the government still subsidizes about 20 percent of the operations of private universities. This is already quite rare anywhere in the world. College tuition in this country is quite low among the non-welfare states. In welfare states, tuition fees may be extremely low, or college education may be completely free of charge, but the public pays for these amenities with high tax rates.

The key question is whether the public is willing to pay more taxes in order to keep tuition fees low. It's not a question of young people being unable to receive a higher education due to an exploitative class structure.

University education is not compulsory. In many countries it is not unusual for students to have part-time jobs and apply for scholarships or loans to pay for their college education. It is indeed deplorable, however, that some students can't afford to pay for their books or school meals during their primary and secondary-school years or that qualified high-school graduates can't afford to go on to college. Interest rates on student loans should be reduced, the number of scholarships increased and unemployment payments to poor people be raised so that poor children can also receive a good education. Tragic individual cases should not be used as tools for political wrangling.

Taiwan is no SAR

The mass demonstrations in Hong Kong, which has a population of around 6 million, clearly indicate that its residents value democracy and freedom as much as bread and butter issues ("Hong Kong sees huge night-time public protests," July 10, page 1).

The unemployment rate is at an all-time high in Hong Kong and tourism is suffering. Its economy is still suffering from the impact of the Sept. 11 attacks on the US, the Bali bombing last October and the SARS outbreak this year. Despite the severe economic gloom in Hong Kong, its residents are bent on making their voices heard, as seen in the rallies.

What does this tell us? Simply that they no longer have faith in the Hong Kong government. All the promises of freedom and autonomy for the next 50 years after the British handed over the colony in 1997 are now merely vanishing dreams.

In this aspect, Taiwan is now indeed fortunate or should I say, privileged, to have the DPP's Chen Shui-bian as president. Chen has proven, over the past three years, to be a man of principles, who would not betray the Taiwanese for any personal gain. When close to 40 percent of the electorate voted for Chen in the March 2000 election, they knew of his pro-independence stance. Despite not having secured the majority vote, Chen has stuck to the faith and trust his voters have toward him.

At the macro level, Chen has done well not to incur the wrath of the ever-unpredictable Chinese by declaring independence. On the micro level, he has not disappointed his voters by succumbing to pressure and threats from the Chinese government. Fulfilling the promises of the election platform is the most basic principle any trustworthy and sincere presidential candidate should possess.

I have been to both Taiwan and Hong Kong. While I am much more familiar with the latter, I would have to say that in present times, I am much happier for the Taiwanese than the people of Hong Kong.

Under former president Lee Teng-hui, Taiwan embarked on a program of democraticization, accompanied by economic growth. Lee is probably the leader who "saved" Taiwan from becoming another Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China.

Lee believed in freedom and democracy and was worried that if Taiwan were to come under the control of the Chinese government, all the benefits the Taiwanese have been enjoying would be lost. To a large extent, Lee was spot on.

His personal achievements as the president were only marred by the occasional fears instilled in the Taiwanese as a result of the threats from China.

The Hong Kong protests have clearly indicated that the expectation of its residents was very different from the government's expectation. It should have been expected, given the fact that the Hong Kong residents had enjoyed a different climate pre-1997. Instead of having better lives, Hong Kong residents have now experienced the opposite.

While any government has the authority and right to enact any law for the greater interest of the society, Hong Kong's government seems to have neglected to consider that its residents were used to a different era. The people of Hong Kong have yet to be convinced that they are better off after six years under their present administration.

My worry is that should Taiwan become a SAR anytime in the near future, it could witness the scenes that occurred in Hong Kong. In many aspects, pre-1997 Hong Kong was similar to Taiwan today, enjoying a high degree of autonomy, freedom, democracy and good economic growth. It is understandable that its residents had come to expect more of the same.

The positive aspect of Taiwanese politics is that parties such as the DPP and the TSU have indicated that Taiwan could not become another SAR, such as Hong Kong or Macau. They have anticipated the problems should there ever be a day Taiwan is renamed "Taiwan SAR."

At least for the next decade or two, the status quo should remain. The time lag is to allow the Chinese to gradually embark on a more open style of government -- one that encompasses democracy, freedom, consensus, accountability and transparency. Only once it practices these things could the Chinese government promise better lives for Taiwanese should the two countries be united. Until then, the promise of a "one country, two systems" could not work in Taiwan, a country with four times the population of Hong Kong.

In the meantime, Taiwanese voters have the opportunity to determine their own style of living as the next presidential election is merely eight months away. A hasty vote might just result in a hasty change of life- styles, which could just result in problems similar to what the people of Hong Kong are experiencing at this moment.

There is only so much any government can do to a economy facing recession, but there is a lot a president can do in changing the lives of its citi-zens, even drastically.

Jason Lee Boon Hong

Singapore

Seminar brings students up to speed on UN structure

By Monique Chu

STAFF REPORTER

Some 40 students yesterday attended a four-day seminar on the UN in what organizers billed as an attempt to enhance young people's understanding of the global body from which Taiwan has been excluded since the early 1970s.

"It's our intention to allow students to further understand the purpose, principles, limitations and achievements of the UN system through this seminar," said Chen Lung-chu, president of the New Century Institute, a non-governmental organization (NGO).

Chen, who is also an advisor to the president, said his organization aspires to enhance the youth's understanding of the UN system through lectures by government officials, scholars and NGO practitioners in the conference.

Chen said the "knowledge gap has been enormous" in terms of the understanding of the UN since the country's isolation from the system over 30 years ago.

A longstanding advocate for Taiwan's attempts to re-enter the UN since its withdrawal in the early 1970s, Chen said the nation's bid "is not a 100m nor a 200m race. It's a marathon."

"It's a tough, uphill battle. It requires a year-round effort, and we are more than willing to start with education," Chen said in the opening ceremony of the inaugural seminar that took place in Tienmu yesterday afternoon.

The seminar drew more than 40 undergraduate and postgraduate university students.

National Youth Commission chairperson Lin Fang-mei, speaking at the opening ceremony, encouraged participants from all areas of studies to enhance their understanding of the UN system in order to equip themselves with a basic knowledge to pave the way for their future participation in international organizations.

Kao's attendance at the SARS conference, based on China's recommendation, sparked a political storm with government officials and various parties accusing each other triggering an international debacle.