Legislative hearing looks at unlicensed camp sites
Legislative hearing looks at unlicensed camp sitesUNTANGLED: Camp sites, which fall under the jurisdiction of several government agencies, should be governed by the education and transport ministries, attendants agreedBy Jason Pan / Staff reporterEnforcement of new camping measures and a need to clarify overlapping governmental jurisdictions were among the recommendations made by tour operators and lawmakers on Thursday at a public hearing on domestic tourism at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei. There are 1,985 camp sites nationwide, but only 166, or less than 10 percent, have been granted operating licenses by a local government agency, officials said, citing Ministry of Transportation and Communications data. Noting the rising popularity of mountain climbing and hiking amid the COVID-19 pandemic, DPP Legislator Ho Hsin-chun (何欣純) said that the ministry has the responsibility to regulate camp sites. It was agreed at the hearing that the ministry, which oversees the Tourism Bureau, should have jurisdiction over all camp sites, except for those designated for educational uses, which fall under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education. Chen Ying-jung (陳盈蓉), head of the Executive Yuan’s Department of Transportation, the Environment and Natural Resources, said that a report on regulating the nation’s camp sites would be presented to Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) and other Cabinet members, who would convene to draft policies to address the issue of unlicensed camp sites.
Source:Taipei Times
March 05, 2021 15:56 UTC
Platform launched to aid lay judges
Platform launched to aid lay judgesBy Jason Pan / Staff reporterJudicial reform advocates yesterday launched a “National Judge Information Platform” to provide guidance and assist people who become part of a proposed lay judge system. The platform has compiled case documents gathered from district courts and would add feedback from participating lay judges to add to assessments by observers and legal practitioners, Judicial Reform Foundation chairman Lin Yung-sung (林永頌) said. Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei TimesThe legislature in July last year passed the National Judge Act (國民法官法), setting 2023 as the start of citizen participation as lay judges in criminal cases, with the bench to consist of six lay and three career judges. “We opposed the lay judge system while the changes were being discussed,” Lin said. However, as the legislature has passed the act to adopt the lay judge system, the public has to go along with it, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 05, 2021 15:56 UTC
Local vaccines could be made in July: minister
Local vaccines could be made in July: ministerSETTING AN EXAMPLE: If the public was hesitant in taking the AstraZeneca shot, the president and health minister would volunteer to demonstrate, Chen saidStaff writer, with CNATaiwan’s domestically developed COVID-19 vaccines could start mass production in July, but only if they successfully complete ongoing clinical trials, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said yesterday. Speaking to reporters before a legislative hearing in Taipei, Chen said that Taiwanese vaccines could hopefully enter production in July at the earliest. The company received NT$1.7 million (US$60,122) in government subsidies for its phase 1 trials and was to receive another NT$300 million for its phase 2 trials. United Biomedical in late January said it would recruit 3,850 volunteers for phase 2 trials of its vaccine candidate, UB-612, a multitope protein/peptide-based vaccine. The minister’s comments came after 117,000 doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, purchased directly from the company, arrived in Taiwan on Wednesday.
Source:Taipei Times
March 05, 2021 15:56 UTC
Longci Light Festival proves feasibility of for-profit public events, Tainan says
Longci Light Festival proves feasibility of for-profit public events, Tainan saysBy Wu Chun-feng and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writerTaiwan’s first-ever for-profit light festival organized by a local government last month netted a profit of NT$6.19 million (US$218,914) from the sale of 168,321 tickets, the Tainan City Government said in a news release on Monday. An installation at the Longci Light Festival in Tainan is pictured on Monday. The bureau’s statistics showed that the district benefited economically from the festival, Chen said. “The popularity of the festival shows that people are increasingly accepting that they should pay to attend art and culture events,” Chen said. The next Longci Light Festival would open in December, the bureau said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 05, 2021 15:56 UTC
Muguruza sets up clash with Azarenka
Muguruza sets up clash with AzarenkaAFP, DOHASpain’s Garbine Muguruza on Thursday defeated Greece’s Maria Sakkari 6-3, 6-1 to advance to the semi-finals of the Qatar Open where she was to face fellow former world No. “I’m happy, I felt good on court,” former Wimbledon and Roland Garros champion Muguruza said after her victory. “Every match is hard, it’s always difficult,” Muguruza said as she looked ahead to her clash with Azarenka. In the other quarter-finals, two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova outfoxed Anett Kontaveit in three arduous sets, seeing off the Estonian 6-3, 3-6, 6-2. The second set threatened to derail Kvitova’s earlier momentum, with the Czech facing several service breaks.
Source:Taipei Times
March 05, 2021 15:56 UTC
Pant’s century puts India in control
Pant’s century puts India in controlReuters, AHMEDABAD, IndiaRishabh Pant yesterday launched a spectacular late assault in his flamboyant 101 to put India in charge of the fourth and final Test against England in Ahmedabad. Sundar was batting on 60 at stumps and Axar Patel was on 11, with India 89 ahead after being 121-5 at one stage. India’s Rishabh Pant celebrates scoring a century against England on the second day of the fourth Test in Ahmedabad, India, yesterday. Photo: AFP“We were on the back foot after losing those wickets, but the partnership between Pant and Washington was very important,” India opener Rohit Sharma said. The England duo combined to end his swashbuckling innings as he swatted an Anderson delivery to Root at short-midwicket.
Source:Taipei Times
March 05, 2021 15:56 UTC
Identity and society
KMT’s signature drives near recordDISSATISFACTION? If the referendums collect more than 700,000 signatures each, they would have gotten the most signatures in the shortest time, the party said The Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) two referendum petitions — one on banning the importation of pork with traces of ractopamine and the other on holding referendums on the same day as national elections — had as of Thursday gathered 691,398 and 674,497 signatures respectively, the party said yesterday. If the petitions collect more than 700,000 signatures apiece, they would have garnered the most signatures in the shortest time since the Referendum Act (公民投票法) was amended in 2017, party officials said. The KMT proposed the “anti-ractopamine pork” or “food safety” referendum just days after President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) announcement on Aug. 28 lastBy Shih Hsiao-kuang and Jake Chung
Source:Taipei Times
March 02, 2021 15:56 UTC
China pineapple ban offset in four days
China on Friday announced that it would suspend imports of Taiwanese pineapples starting on Monday, citing biosafety concerns. Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times“Domestic orders have already surpassed the total sold to China last year,” COA Minister Chen Chi-chung (陳吉仲) said, after announcing a total of 41,687 tonnes in domestic orders over the past four days. Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times“We are also looking at boosting exports to countries other than China. Last year, we sold US$131 million of fruit to China and US$52 million to all other countries combined,” Chen said. At 71 percent of total fruit exports, sales to China last year dropped slightly from 2016, when 77 percent of Taiwan’s fruit exports went to China, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 02, 2021 15:56 UTC
Student union urges safe entry for HK refugees
Student union urges safe entry for HK refugeesBy Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporterThe National Students’ Union of Taiwan yesterday urged the government to provide safe entry for Hong Kongers seeking asylum in the nation. The government should continue to provide ways for students in Hong Kong to enroll in or transfer to local schools, and to expand the list of schools accepting such requests, it said. Union members also held a news conference in front of the Legislative Yuan in Taipei in support of the Chinese University of Hong Kong student union, as well as the 47 pro-democracy figures facing charges under the territory’s national security legislation. They held placards and chanted slogans such as: “Support Hong Kong youth,” “Political participation is not a crime,” “There are no rioters, only tyranny,” and “Hong Kongers will not give up. We will not give up.”The news conference came after members of Syzygia (朔夜) — the newly elected executive committee of the Chinese University of Hong Kong student union — on Monday announced their collective resignation, citing death threats and intimidation.
Source:Taipei Times
March 02, 2021 15:56 UTC
Hand washing urged as diarrhea cases increase
Hand washing urged as diarrhea cases increaseMORE WARY: The rise in the number of cases has been slightly lower this year, which could be because people are practicing disease prevention measures due to COVID-19By Lee I-chia / Staff reporterPeople were urged to wash their hands more frequently after the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported an increase in the number of cases of diarrhea over the past two weeks. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) told a news conference that 138,462 cases of diarrhea were reported last week, adding that 87 clusters of diarrhea cases have been reported nationwide in the past four weeks, with 86 percent of the clusters containing 10 or fewer cases. Fifty-eight of the clusters tested positive for pathogens, with norovirus accounting for 97 percent of the cases, he said, adding that 71 percent of cases had occurred at restaurants and hotels. Centers for Disease Control Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei speaks at a news conference in Taipei yesterday after the number of cases of diarrhea continued to increase last week. Photo: Lin Hui-chin, Taipei TimesPeople often get together and enjoy meals with family and friends during the Lunar New Year holiday, so diarrhea cases often increase after the holiday, CDC physician Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 02, 2021 15:56 UTC
Tracing the footsteps of 228
Little did they know that it would lead to one of the bloodiest events in Taiwan’s modern history, the 228 Incident. This memorial wall to the victims of the 228 Incident can be found outside the Taipei 228 Memorial Museum. A plaque indicating the “flash point of the 228 Incident” in Chinese and English can be found slightly to the east. Taipei 228 Memorial Hall (台北228紀念館) is situated here with permanent and special exhibitions about the incident. Photo: Han Cheung, Taipei Times
Source:Taipei Times
March 02, 2021 15:56 UTC
Su urges basketball racism probe
Su urges basketball racism probeStaff writer, with CNAPremier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday said that racial discrimination is unacceptable and urged an investigation of an incident on Saturday during a college basketball game in Taipei that sparked a heated exchange between players and prompted the Sports Administration to adopt stricter regulations. The incident occurred during a University Basketball Association game between Shih Hsin University and National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) when the “N-word” was used against Mohammad Al Bachir Gadiaga (阿巴西), a Senegalese Taiwanese. National Taiwan Normal University’s Lin Shih-hsuan, right, goes to the basket against Shih Hsin University’s Mohammad Al Bachir Gadiaga, center, in their University Basketball Association quarter-final in Taipei on Saturday. “He called me a n*****,” Al Bachir told the referee, after a tussle in which he took a swipe at an NTNU player. Lin after the game apologized to Al Bachir and also to Shih Hsin University.
Source:Taipei Times
March 02, 2021 15:56 UTC
‘No terminal, no gas’: Official defends CPC project
‘No terminal, no gas’: Official defends CPC projectLIMITING GROWTH: Stopping the LNG terminal project could lead to a power shortage and worsen air quality, as the nation would need to burn more coal, an official saidBy Angelica Oung / Staff reporterA proposed referendum to stop CPC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣中油) third liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal project in Taoyuan would exacerbate a potential energy crunch in northern Taiwan, a Bureau of Energy official and an academic told the Taipei Times yesterday. The proposed terminal is critical for supplying LNG to the Datan power plant, Bureau of Energy Deputy Director-General Lee Chun-li (李君禮) said. The site of CPC Corp, Taiwan’s third liquefied natural gas terminal project is pictured in Taoyuan’s Guanyin District in an undated photograph. Photo courtesy of an unnamed environmental protection group via CNA“No terminal, no gas,” he said by telephone. “Forget about starting the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant, we cannot even find a way to let the second nuclear power plant run for its full lifespan,” Lee said, referring to the Guosheng plant.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Taiwan’s GDP forecast to grow 4.1%
Economic indicators at the beginning of this year signal improving growth momentum for its economy over the coming months, as the global economy and trade rebounds, the US-British information provider said. Taiwan’s economy is forecast to expand 4.1 percent this year, accelerating from a 3.11 percent pickup last year, research body IHS Markit said yesterday. With an improving economic landscape worldwide following the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, global demand for electronics products would remain sturdy, IHS Markit said. Demand for industrial electronics is also expected to grow substantially over the medium term, as industrial automation and the Internet of Things would fuel demand for industrial electronics, IHS Markit said. These factors lend support to the medium-term outlook for Taiwan’s electronics sector exports and capital expenditure, which would be key drivers of economic growth, IHS Markit said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
HPA planning premature baby home-care program
HPA planning premature baby home-care programAGING PARENTS: As the number of women waiting until after 35 to have children increases, so do the number of premature births in Taiwan, an expert saidBy Yang Yuan-ting and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe Health Promotion Administration (HPA) is to implement a program for the home care of prematurely born babies, after more than 10 percent of babies born in 2019 were premature or underweight. Data from 2019 showed that 10.24 percent of newborns weighed less than 2.5kg, while 10.4 percent were preterm births, the HPA said yesterday, adding that it has produced a booklet for parents of premature and underweight babies, and that it is planning to offer a home-care program. When babies are born prematurely their organs are not fully developed, which can lead to heightened risk of respiratory distress syndrome, patent ductus arteriosus, periventricular leukomalacia and other conditions, the HPA said. “The program is to be implemented at five hospitals nationwide in the coming year.”Resources for parents of premature babies are concentrated in major cities, but the new program would make more resources available in rural areas, as well as outlying islands, Wu said. The majority of babies born prematurely — defined as those born before 37 weeks of pregnancy — are healthy, but some face brain development problems, Huang said.
Source:Taipei Times
March 01, 2021 15:56 UTC