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One of the top stories from this past week was that a coalition of public sector employees took to the streets in Taipei on Saturday to protest against the defamation they say they have faced as the government works to reform Taiwan’s pension system.
Organizers say that military personnel, public servants, and public school teachers have all been unfairly blamed for the pension system’s financial problems. The organizers said they hoped that 100,000 public sector employees would join the protest.
Protestors say that they support efforts to fix the pension system. But they are opposed to methods that they say resemble those used during China’s Cultural Revolution.
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Also this past week, Vice President Chen Chien-jen left for the Vatican on Friday. He was set to attend the canonization of Mother Theresa.
Before departing late on Friday, Chen, who is himself Catholic, praised Mother Theresa’s work. The vice president also recalled a visit she made to Taiwan during the presidency of Chiang Ching-kuo.
Chen said he would pray for world peace, cross-strait peace, and the continuation of firm relations between Taiwan and the Vatican, which is its only official diplomatic ally in Europe.
During Chen’s trip to the Vatican, Pope Francis is expected to receive him and other foreign dignitaries. Chen will also meet with Vatican officials and visit Taiwanese businessmen based in Europe before returning to Taiwan this coming Thursday.
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And finally, this past week, the governor of Taiwan’s Central Bank – Perng Fai-nan – has the distinction of being the world’s only central bank chief with a total of 13 A rankings. That’s after Global Finance magazine awarded him the top grade in the Central Banker Report Cards 2016.
Joining him with the distinction of World’s Best Central Banker of 2016, are the central bank heads of Israel, Lebanon, Paraguay, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, and the United Kingdom.
The Central Banker Report Cards, published annually by Global Finance since 1994, grade the central bank governors of nearly 75 key countries (and the European Union). They are evaluated on their success in areas such as inflation control, economic growth goals, currency stability and interest rate management. The grades range from “A”, which represents an excellent performance, down to “F” for “outright failure”.
This year the US Federal Reserve’s Janet Yellen was given an A-, the same as last year. The head of the EU’s central bank, Mario Draghi, went from an A last year down to a B+ this year.
The governor of the People’s Bank of China, Zhou Xiaochuan, on the other hand, was given his second C in a row.