|
(October 19,
2007/ Taipei) Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats program
officers Paolo A. Zamora and Carlo F. Religioso concluded today
their four-day trip to the Taiwanese capital in preparation for the
upcoming Liberal International (LI) Conference on Human Rights and CALD General Assembly.
The joint
CALD and LI event, scheduled for December 7-11, 2007 in Taipei
with the theme “Strengthening Networks and Combating Human
Trafficking”, is hosted by the Democratic Progressive Party of
Taiwan (DPP) and supported by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (FNF).
Also included in the program is the CALD turnover ceremony which
will highlight the transfer of the CALD chairmanship from the
Liberal Party of the Philippines to the Singapore Democratic
Party.
The program
officers’ visit to Taiwan is in conjunction with the mission of
Mr. Nyo Ohn Myint, head of Foreign Affairs Committee and the
Executive Committee of both the National League for Democracy -
Liberated Area (NLD-LA) and the National Council of the Union of
Burma (NCUB). Mr. Nyo Myint’s mission was to seek assistance
from Taiwan in behalf of the Burmese exile and to update the
Taiwanese community regarding the recent crackdown on the
peaceful protests in Burma. Mr. Zamora and Mr. Religioso took
the opportunity to join Mr. Nyo Myint in his meetings to show
support to the NLD-LA and to the CALD member party, NCUB.
The Taiwan Thinktank, an independent, nonprofit public policy
research organization hosted a dinner for the group.
Dr. Lin
Chia-lung, deputy secretary-general to the president of Taiwan,
Ms. Andrea Yang, former CALD program officer, and staff from the
joint China Affairs and International Affairs department of DPP
were in attendance to welcome the group.
A press conference with H.E. Annette Lu, vice president of
Taiwan and the officials of the Democratic Pacific Union (DPU)
was held at the Taiwan Presidential Office regarding the
initiatives of DPU to launch the Pacific Network of Democracy in
Burma supporting the democracy movement in Burma and denouncing
the use of deadly force and extreme violence by the ruling
military junta against the peaceful demonstrators and
journalists.
The group then proceeded to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to
meet with Dr. Yang Tzu-Pao, Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister of
Taiwan. Dr. Yang reassured Taiwan’s support to Burma’s
continuing struggle for freedom.
Mr. Zamora and Mr. Religioso also had a meeting at the
Legislative Assembly with Hon. Bi-Khim Hsiao, member of
parliament and director of the DPP International Affairs
Department. They discussed about the program, arrangements and
logistics concerns of the LI-CALD event on December. Ms. Hsiao,
a former CALD Secretary General is also the LI Vice President.
DPP’s
newly appointed deputy secretary general Liu Chien Sin also
welcomed the group at the DPP headquarters. |
