Word: ma
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...leader has come to Taiwan to pray and console. Unlike his first two visits in 1997 and 2001, when he met with incumbent presidents Lee Teng-hui and Chen Shui-bian, both advocates of independence for the island, he won't be meeting or even crossing paths with President Ma Ying-jeou, who has been drawing Taiwan closer to China. (See pictures from the Dalai Lama's 60 years of leading Tibet...
...come and visit the victims. Morakot hit Taiwan on August 8th and left at least 568 dead or missing and over 7000 homeless. The island has been angry at the government's slow relief efforts and is in pain from the loss of their loved ones and homes. For Ma, whose approval ratings have hit an all time low in Morakot's aftermath, rejecting the Tibetan leader's visit - as he did last December - would have been political suicide. A recent poll shows that sixty percent of Taiwan's public though the visit of Tibet's spiritual leader...
...instead of criticizing Ma for his visit, the spokesman for China's State Council Taiwan Affairs Office blasted Taiwan's opposition Democratic Progressive Party for its "ulterior motives to instigate the Dalai Lama, who has long been engaged in separatist activities, to visit Taiwan...
...invitation came as Taiwan and China have dramatically improved their relations after decades of enmity. Ma has made closer business ties and cultural exchanges a signature issue of his 15-month-old administration...
...said he was not disappointed by President Ma Ying-jeou's refusal to meet him. "This is a humanitarian visit," he told reporters. "On my side, there is no political agenda...