Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Taiwan's flag in Regent Street, and another rare sighting

Almost as newsworthy as the appearance and sudden disappearance of the Taiwanese (actually ROC) flag in Regent Street, is an article about it, supportive of democracy in Taiwan, by a British parliamentarian. I literally don't recall the last time a British parliamentarian wrote something supportive of modern Taiwan. So kudos to Richard Faulkner ('Baron Faulkner of Worcester' in our ludicrous system) for this:

The treatment of Taiwan and its 23 million people by the international community is a disgrace. It is a democratic country where governments change through the ballot box and where human rights are respected. It is also an immensely important trading partner for the UK: they send 83,000 tourists and 16,000 students here.

Hardly anyone comes out of the Regent Street flag debacle with credit. Certainly not the Chinese embassy, whose hostility to Taiwan’s identity is implacable, nor the Foreign Office, which should not have intervened, nor the Regent Street Association which should not have given in.

(I thought I might have found a bit of a political hero, until I saw his New Labourish voting record (pro-ID cards, against independent inquests etc) on They Work for You. Oh well. Taiwan has to take what friends it can get, and he's a lot better than, say, Ishihara Shintaro, or some of Taiwan's supporters in the US.)

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

It's Time

Chinese dissident on trial after using Skype to send poem.
It's time, Chinese people!
The square belongs to everyone
The feet are yours
It's time to use your feet and take to the square to make a choice.

Zhu Yufu
Those in power everywhere hate democracy and popular protest.