Deregulation, liberalization policy remains unchanged: president

Written by changthai11 on Sunday, October 12th, 2008

President Ma Ying-jeou said Friday that in response to global changes, the administration has adopted a policy of liberalization and deregulation, while the government will be given stronger teeth to bolster safety control and crisis management.

“While our policies of deregulation and liberalization will remain unchanged, this government will make every effort to minimize social risks by strengthening safety controls and crisis-management mechanisms, ” Ma said in his speech delivered to the Double Tenth Day rally in front of the Presidential Office.

Ma said that in this age of globalization, it is impossible for Taiwan to avoid coming under its influence.

“Given the growing interdependence among nations in this era of globalization, however, crises related to epidemics, pollution, or finance can spread around the world overnight. The recent global financial troubles and the danger posed by tainted milk from mainland China are two striking examples of such crises, which have heightened our vigilance against potential hazards of integrating ourselves with the rest of the world, including mainland China.

“This is not to say that we must give up eating simply for fear of choking. Rather, we should turn crises into opportunities, ” he said.

Invigorating the domestic economy is the administration’s top priority, Ma went on, adding that challenges to the country’s economy present golden opportunities for reform.

“Currently, we are pressing forward with deregulation in order to expedite economic growth and we are renovating infrastructure to fortify the constitution of our economy,” he continued.

“With deregulation, our businesses can bring their competitive advantages into full play, enabling them to become more firmly rooted in Taiwan, while integrating with the Asia-Pacific region and deploying worldwide.

“With comprehensive retooling of infrastructure hardware and software, our businesses will have enhanced power to attract investment and talent from all over the world. Moreover, with our implementation of diverse programs to promote social security and ensure the welfare of disadvantaged groups, Taiwan’s society will become fairer, more compassionate and more harmonious,” he said.

“To safeguard social justice and take care of disadvantaged families, the government has implemented the labor pension system and a number of other programs to take care of all socially disadvantaged groups and make Taiwan a beautiful home in which everybody can enjoy security, stability and peace of mind, ” the president continued.