Vice President Wu Den-yih on August 17 spent a third day in the Dominican Republic on a trip dubbed Project Sustained Friendship. The vice president and others in his delegation at 11 a.m. local time (11 p.m. on August 17 Taipei time) visited the Cyber Park of Santo Domingo to see firsthand the achievements of cooperation between the two countries, along with the state of the technology park's operations.
After receiving a briefing on the park by the park's administration, the vice president was escorted on a tour of the area by Cyber Park Executive President Eddy Martinez . Also joining the tour from Taiwan were ROC Ambassador to the Dominican Republic Thomas Hou (侯平福), Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Simon Shen-Yeaw Ko (柯森耀) , Minister of Labor Affairs Wang Ju-hsuan (王如玄) , and Vice Minister of Overseas Compatriot Affairs Hsia Shen-hua (薛盛華) . During the tour, the group visited a memorial commemorating the construction of the park, along with automatic machinery and circuit board control classrooms at the Instituto Tecnológico de Las Américas (ITLA) , a science and technology institute located there.
In the afternoon, Vice President Wu was invited by Cyber Park Executive President Martinez to a luncheon. In remarks at the gathering, Vice President Wu stated that he was quite impressed with the developmental achievements of the Cyber Park of Santo Domingo, pointing out the convenient transportation, concentration of talented individuals, and the support provided by the ITLA and the Dominican Republic government.
Vice President Wu remarked that the people of the Dominican Republic are warm and friendly, and that former President Leonel Fernandez is a wise and visionary leader. The vice president commented that new President Danilo Medina Sanchez is full of determination and courage. He said that the hard work and unity of them and their administrations have left a deep impression on him.
The vice president mentioned that Taiwan has faced quite a tough road in its gradual development over the past six decades. Based on the longstanding friendship between the ROC and the Dominican Republic, Taiwan is extremely pleased to share its related developmental experiences with its ally. Lastly, Vice President Wu raised his glass and wished a bright and prosperous future for the Dominican Republic, while also expressing his hopes for lasting alliance between the two countries.
In the afternoon, the delegation from the ROC visited a vocational training center operated by the Dominican Republic's National Institute of Technical and Vocational Training . Vice President Wu, Dominican Republic Vice President Margarita Cedeno de Fernandez , and National Institute of Technical and Vocational Training Director Idionis Perez jointly cut the ribbon in a ceremony inaugurating new vocational training equipment that has been provided under a bilateral cooperation project. This also exhibited the concrete success of cooperation between the two countries.
In remarks at the ceremony, Vice President Wu stated that Taiwan lacks in natural resources. However, joint efforts by the government and the private sector, the gradual institution of universal education, and the development of technical and vocational education and vocational training have helped build Taiwan into a progressive nation with an enormous pool of talent, he said. The vice president pointed out that Taiwan not only ranks among the world's top nations in competitiveness, but also has been ranked by the Business Environment Risk Intelligence of the United States as having the third lowest investment risk environment in the world.
The vice president said he feels that if the ROC can be dubbed the Pearl of the Western Pacific , the Dominican Republic could be referred to as the Diamond of the Caribbean. He specially pointed out that the upgrading of five types of equipment under the ROC-Dominican Republic Project to Strengthen Vocational Training Equipment and Education Training and the inauguration of five training trucks under the Underprivileged Groups Vocational Training and Education Action Plan show that the Dominican Republic is headed in a very good direction.
Vice President Wu also mentioned that his Dominican Republic counterpart not only places considerable importance on modernization-related issues like telecommunications, networks, audio-visual technologies, and electronics under various plans, but also emphasizes vocational training for micro-sized enterprises and youth and other underprivileged persons in remote areas. The vice president said that he deeply admires the wisdom exhibited by Vice President Cedeno, and also extended cordial invitations to President Medina, Vice President Cedeno, and former President Fernandez to visit Taiwan's vocational training institutes. The vice president said, "Dominicans will have what we have had," in expressing his hopes that interaction and cooperation between the two countries will help to foster progress and development in the Dominican Republic.
After concluding his remarks, Vice President Wu was escorted by National Institute of Technical and Vocational Training Director Perez on a tour of the center's industrial electronics, micro-computer maintenance, communications and audio-visual electronics, and automobile repair and maintenance practice workshops. The tour afforded the vice president a deeper understanding of the content of cooperation projects between the two nations.
In the evening, Vice President Wu hosted a dinner for representatives of the overseas compatriot community. In remarks delivered to the crowd, the vice president explained that the ROC government over the past four years has worked tirelessly to improve cross-strait relations. The efforts, he said, have helped to transform relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait from one that featured confrontation to one emphasizing the development of peace and stability. This has paved the way for the signing of 18 agreements between the two sides, he added. Meanwhile, the number of jurisdictions that provide visa-free courtesies or landing visas to ROC nationals has risen from 54 to 128, the vice president said. If the ROC is able to be included in the United States Visa Waiver Program before the end of the year, it will become the 36th country to be included in the program among the over 190 countries worldwide, he stated.
Vice President Wu also praised overseas compatriots as an important asset and the pride of the ROC. He expressed his deepest gratitude for the longstanding support provided by overseas compatriots dating back to the Revive China Society (興中會) founded in 1894 by the nation's founding father Dr. Sun Yat-sen, and noted that compatriots today continue to resolutely support the government's policies. At the same time, he said he hopes that the concepts of freedom, human rights, democracy, and rule of law will be fully realized in all areas where ethnic Chinese congregate.