President Ma Ying-jeou met with Junior Chamber International President Jun Sup Shin on the morning of March 16 at the Presidential Office, and expressed a warm welcome on behalf of the government of the ROC (Taiwan) to Mr. Shin on his visit to Taiwan.
President Ma commented that Junior Chamber International was founded early in the 20th century. At the time, a number of chambers of commerce had already been established throughout the United States. The Junior Chamber, however, was organized for entrepreneurs under the age of 40. The organization expanded rapidly after its establishment and today the Junior Chamber has 350,000 members throughout the world. The Junior Chamber is an extremely popular organization here and has been successful in expanding its reach.
The president also said that he has a long history of contact and interaction with the Junior Chamber. He said that back when he was Taipei City Mayor, he presented letters to the local chapter of the organization appointing a number of its leading officers as goodwill ambassadors, hoping that it would effectively harness the power of the private sector and increase the international visibility of Taipei City. The organization subsequently made a visit to Seoul, Korea and its representatives met with the mayor of Seoul. President Ma said that this is a perfect example of how private interaction can foster better relations between cities. The president added that the Junior Chamber asks its members to constantly work to better themselves. In addition to their devotion to social welfare and charitable activities, the organization has introduced a series of courses that focus on social service. In order to enable its members to understand procedures, the Junior Chamber specially produced informational videos for its members. This demonstrates the commitment the organization has to laying a strong foundation, he said.
Lastly, President Ma expressed his desire to see the Taiwan Junior Chamber take advantage of its ties with Junior Chamber International to build up more experience in working with international organizations. He also expressed his appreciation to Mr. Shin for Junior Chamber International's long-term assistance to and concern for Taiwan.
Mr. Shin was accompanied to the Presidential Office in the morning by Junior Chamber International Executive Vice President Rafael Dizon III, JCI Vice President James Tsui, and Taiwan Junior Chamber President Dennis Shen to meet with President Ma. Also in attendance was National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Ho Szu-yin.