Morris Chang Calls on Government to Cherish Local Industries

Morris Chang Calls on Government to Cherish Local Industries

Source: All Taipei Newspapers

Oct. 27, 2011

In a Centennial Decoration Ceremony of the R.O.C. on October 25^th, Taiwan Retrocession Day, President Ma Ying-jeou awarded the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon to 12 figures who had made long-term contributions to the country and society, including Morris Chang (張忠謀), founding chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), and Stan Shih (施振榮), founder of the Acer Group.

In his remarks at the ceremony, Morris Chang stated that TSMC, which was founded 20 years ago, was a lucky combination of time, place and people, and it was now one of the Big Three among the world’s semiconductor manufacturers. Taiwan had also transformed from just a cog in the machine into an indispensable country in the IT world, he stated, adding that TSMC would constantly endeavor to become even better in the future.

However, Morris Chang lamented that Intel and Samsung, TSMC’s two major competitors, could both count on the support of the U.S. government and Korean government, respectively, while TSMC still maintained its roots in Taiwan with 90 percent of its investment and 80 percent of its employees on the island. Therefore, he called on the government to cherish local industries. However, Stan Shih said he believed that, in comparison with Korea, where the government fostered only a few conglomerates, and lacked a fair and just development model, Taiwan was seeking a more objective social environment with diversity as its greatest characteristic.

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