President Ma Ying-jeou met on the morning of November 25 with a delegation led by the Republic of Paraguay's First Vice President of the Supreme Court of Justice Luis Maria Benitez Riera and Mrs. Benitez Riera. In addition to welcoming the visitors to Taiwan, the president also called for continued strengthening of cooperation and interaction between the two nations.
In remarks, President Ma noted that Vice President Benitez Riera has worked in Paraguay's justice system for over 30 years and is an authority in his nation's judicial community. Three years ago he was appointed as a justice of the Supreme Court and two years ago he served as president of the Supreme Court of Justice, he said. President Ma stated that Justice Gladys Ester Bareiro de Modica, who was also a member of the delegation, is an expert in civil law and commercial law, and is an authority in the field of intellectual property rights in Paraguay. In 1997, Justice Bareiro was appointed by the United Nations (UN) as a national consultant for the reform of the Paraguayan regulatory framework in the area of trademark law. In addition, she was also appointed by the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization in 2005 as a national consultant for a Paraguayan project on intellectual property and biotechnology. The president commented that this past August when he received an honorary doctorate degree from Universidad Nacional de Asuncion on a state visit to Paraguay, Justice Bareiro was on hand.
President Ma stated that Paraguay is the largest of the ROC's diplomatic allies in terms of landmass, and the furthest away from Taiwan, but bilateral relations are extremely close. The president cited an example, saying that both countries have a civil law system that in the post-war period has been affected by common law systems, especially that of the United States, and that both countries have faced many common challenges and addressed them in similar ways. In addition, he pointed out, Paraguay has abundant hydro resources, so in August of this year when he led a delegation to attend the inauguration of Paraguayan President Horacio Manuel Cartes, he exchanged opinions with President Cartes on cooperation in the area of energy. President Ma called for continued strengthening of interaction and cooperation in the fields of energy, economic and trade ties, education, agriculture, health care, and law, so as to add further depth to the alliance.