Deciphering Modi’s speech at G7By Rup Narayan DasIndia’s nuanced yet clear and consistent stance on the Taiwan Strait can be deciphered and inferred from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address at the recent G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan. India’s response to the tension in the Taiwan Strait has been muted. Discernable observers could see the elephant in the room and India’s commitment to a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific, which is seamlessly connected with the Taiwan Strait. While Beijing frowned upon the pact as a “geopolitical game,” Russia criticized the G7 as an incubator for anti-Russian and anti-Chinese hysteria. Be that as it may, the G7 summit has reiterated once again its firm commitment to Taiwan and to a rules-based world order.

Manufacturing output in Q1 declines 13.59 percentGLOOMY FORECAST: The outlook would be weighed by global inflation and monetary tightening, as well as the conflict in Ukraine and US-China technology disputesBy Chen Cheng-hui / Staff reporterThe nation’s manufacturing output in the first quarter fell 13.59 percent year-on-year to NT$4.22 trillion (US$137.7 billion), as slowing global trade, weakening demand and ongoing inventory adjustments dragged down manufacturers’ capacity utilization, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a statement yesterday. In the electronic components industry — the manufacturing sector’s most important segment — output decreased 16.85 percent to NT$1.25 trillion last quarter, ending 13 consecutive quarters of annual increases since the fourth quarter of 2019, ministry data showed. In addition, LCD panel makers reported declining output due to weakening demand for new applications and falling prices compared with a year earlier. As a result, production value last quarter decreased 46.52 percent to NT$108.8 billion, it said. The automobile and vehicle parts industry’s output grew 3.39 percent year-on-year last quarter, as some new car models sold well and a shortage of components eased, it said.

Ko Wen-je to visit Japan next week, meet with officialsStaff Writer, with CNATaiwan People’s Party (TPP) founder, chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) is scheduled to visit Japan from Sunday to Thursday next week, and would meet high-ranking officials to discuss international and cross-strait affairs, the TPP said. Ko, 63, spent three weeks in the US last month and was formally nominated as his party’s presidential candidate on May 17. Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Ko Wen-je, right, speaks at an event in Taipei on Sunday. He referred to former president Lee Teng-hui’s (李登輝) advice to him, saying that Taiwan should look to Japan if it faces challenges relating to the two superpowers. Ko officially launched his presidential campaign in Taipei on May 20.

Girls are beating out boys in schoolBy Chiueh Tzi-cker 闕志克The US Congress in 1972 enacted Title IX, which prohibits sex-based discrimination at schools or in education programs that receive federal funding. While the gender education gap in the UK is similar to the US’, it is more dramatic in Nordic countries. While the difference in grade-point averages (GPA) between high-school boys and girls is stark, their standardized test scores do not show any statistically meaningful differences. In these areas, girls are generally more engaged and perform better than boys, and are often rewarded with better grades. The percentage of female university students in Taiwan last year was 49.5 percent, which is perfect, and has remained stubbornly constant since 2000.

MJIB raids eight alleged Chinese firms over hiringsStaff writer, with CNAThe Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau (MJIB) last week launched a multicity raid of eight technology companies with alleged links to China that are believed to have hired staff illegally in Taiwan. The companies allegedly faked business registrations, posing as branch offices of overseas firms with foreign or Taiwanese investment capital, and allegedly hired personnel without authorization, it said. Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau agents at an undisclosed location raid a firm accused of hiring staff illegally in Taiwan. Local media reports said that two of the companies are Fuzhou Sinoregal and Quectel Wireless Solutions, which is headquartered in Shanghai. Since 2016, the company has reportedly contracted a Taiwanese firm to hire R&D employees on its behalf, it said.

Ryan Hass On Taiwan: Now is the time to build zones of political consensusElection seasons expose societal divisions and contrasting visions about the future of Taiwan. This presents an opportunity for Taiwan’s political candidates to demonstrate leadership in carving out zones of political consensus. Another area of potential political consensus could be an agreement that the next administration should prioritize building stockpiles of critical materials. America’s political system is providing a powerful advertisement of the risks of allowing zones of political consensus to crumble. There are both lessons from America’s travails and opportunities through the upcoming campaign season for Taiwan’s leaders to build zones of political consensus.

Modi opens new parliament building in part of makeoverReuters, NEW DELHIIndian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated India’s new parliament building yesterday, a modern complex which is part of his Hindu nationalist government’s grand plan to give a makeover to the British colonial-era architecture in the nation’s capital. Vehicles drive past the new parliament building in New Delhi on Friday. “To open a new parliament building without the opposition, it does not mean there is a democracy in the country. The triangular-shaped parliament complex is just across from the old, circular heritage building built by British architects Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker in 1927, two decades before India’s independence. The old parliament is to be converted into a museum.

First China-made passenger jet makes maiden flight‘COMING OF AGE’: The C919 commercial jetliner would operate on China Eastern Airlines’ route between Shanghai and the southwestern city of Chengdu, CCTV saidAFP, BEIJINGChina’s first domestically produced passenger jet made its maiden commercial flight yesterday, a milestone event in the nation’s decades-long effort to compete with Western rivals in the air. Beijing hopes that the C919 commercial jetliner would challenge foreign models such as the Boeing Co 737 MAX and the Airbus SE A320, but many of its parts are sourced from abroad. A passenger takes photos as he boards China’s first domestically produced passenger jet C919 before its first commercial flight from Shanghai to Beijing, at Shanghai Hongqiao Airport yesterday. China has invested heavily in production of the homegrown jet as it seeks to become self-sufficient in key technologies. The aircraft is manufactured by state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC, 中國商用飛機), but many of its parts — including its engines — are sourced from overseas.

A worker washes his face at a coal mine operated by South Eastern Coalfields Ltd in Gevra, India, on May 10. A worker stands under an umbrella as a dump truck passes at a coal mine in Gevra, India, on May 10. Trucks drive in a coal mine in Gevra, India, on May 10. He helps dig coal for state-owned Coal India Ltd, one of the largest producers globally. Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd, the unit of Coal India, said the order does allow coal mining to continue as it is linked to essential services, specifically power supply.

Chennai stand between Gujarat and IPL titleReuters, NEW DELHIRevenge will fuel Gujarat Titans’ title defense when they clash with four-time winners the Chennai Super Kings today in the Indian Premier League (IPL) final in Ahmedabad. Gujarat, who won the title in their debut season last year, topped the group stage this season, but went down to the M.S. Gujarat Titans batsman Shubman Gill raises his bat to celebrate passing 100 during their Indian Premier League qualifier against the Mumbai Indians at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Friday. “I think this was probably my best innings so far in the IPL,” Gill said. Chennai have an opportunity to match Mumbai’s five IPL titles in what could be their talismanic leader Dhoni’s final season.

China bars US chips made by MicronSECURITY RISK: Chinese companies could respond to the announcement by moving away from all products made by the US firm, diverting business toward Korean rivals China delivered the latest salvo in an escalating semiconductor war with the US, announcing that Micron Technology Inc products have failed to pass a cybersecurity review in the country. Operators of key infrastructure in China should not buy the company’s goods, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) said in a statement on Sunday, adding that it found “relatively serious” cybersecurity risks in Micron products sold in China. The components caused “significant security risks to our critical information infrastructure supply chain,” which would affect national security, it said. The results come more than a month after China announced an investigation on imports from

US official raises concern on China’s treatment of firmsBloombergUS Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo on Thursday expressed concern about recent actions Beijing has taken against US companies in a meeting with Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao (王文濤). The encounter marked the highest-level visit to the US by a Chinese official in more than two years. US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo testifies during a US Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on Tuesday last week. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce in its own statement said that the meeting was candid and constructive, and that Wang expressed concerns about US chip policy and export controls with Raimondo. The trip fits a broader trend of Chinese officials traveling more often in the months since the country ended its COVID-19 restrictions.

Rather than framing Tsai’s visit as being that of a story of Taiwan “provoking” China — Beijing’s preferred narrative — the post reversed that framing. The caption was not the only example of international media centering Taiwan in its reporting of Tsai’s trip. Beijing’s international strategy on Taiwan is to convince the world that Taiwan does not exist. All too often international media allow Beijing’s narrative — otherwise known as discourse operations — to shape their reporting on Taiwan. When reporting on Taiwan, international media should be careful to center Taiwan’s perspective, not Beijing’s pronouncements or framing of Taiwan.

EDITORIAL: Getting through to ChineseA report published in the Journal of Contemporary China on May 14 indicated that about half of Chinese would be in favor of using military force to achieve unification with Taiwan. All of this means that Chinese military aggression against Taiwan is exceedingly likely to result in failure and be highly detrimental to China. The Chinese public, for all its nationalistic posturing, is aware of this. Moreover, the Chinese public has been allowed to discuss the issue online. Those messages seem to be getting through to the Chinese public.

EDITORIAL: No place for bigotsNational Taiwan University (NTU) has come under fire after an offensive set of proposals by two students running for president and vice president of the student council caused an uproar over the weekend. This and similar incidents in the past reveal underlying issues in Taiwan’s education system, social environment and right to free speech. As Taiwan has a test-oriented education system, pre-college students spend most of their time studying, taking exams and going to cram schools. As a result, students who get into top-ranking universities, such as NTU, usually share a similar privileged background and educational experience. In a similar manner, NTU should expel or mete out equivalent punishments to the two students.