Virus Outbreak: Professor calls for Taiwan to start antibody testing
Virus Outbreak: Professor calls for Taiwan to start antibody testingBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterTony Chen (陳秀熙), a professor and vice dean of National Taiwan University’s (NTU) College of Public Health, yesterday said that Taiwan should start conducting antibody testing to discover the prevalence of COVID-19 in the nation. A scientist conducts antibody testing at a laboratory in Taiwan in an undated photograph. Photo: Chang Tsung-chiu, Taipei TimesCountries with the lowest index scores include Iceland at 0.01, New Zealand at 0.03 and Taiwan at 0.06, Chen said. Changhua County Public Health Bureau Director Yeh Yen-po (葉彥伯) said that the county plans to cooperate with the NTU College of Public Health and conduct antibody testing on confirmed cases, their close contacts, healthcare practitioners and people who are at higher risk of contracting the virus. The NHRI said that it has transferred the test technology to five domestic manufacturers, which would develop the test so that they can mass produce it.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Ex-teacher hopes to save language with new book
Ex-teacher hopes to save language with new bookBy Lo Hsin-chen / Staff reporterA retired teacher in Pingtung County has published teaching material for the Rukai Aboriginal language, hoping to save her community’s language, which is spoken by only about 500 people. Tu Fu-chu (杜富菊), a former elementary-school teacher based in Wutai Township’s (霧台) Dawu Community (大武部落), said the book is aimed at preschoolers, regular students and adult beginners. Seeing the language spoken by ever fewer people as many community elders pass away, Tu on Saturday said that she hoped to preserve the language by turning her decade-long research on the language into teaching material. The book is a rich compilation of language and cultural knowledge, Aboriginal Language Research and Development Foundation executive director Lowking Nowbucyang said. Tu Fu-chu also expressed the hope that her book would encourage more community members to create similar language teaching materials.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Special meeting reinstates former D-Link chairman
Special meeting reinstates former D-Link chairmanBy Natasha Li / Staff reporterFormer D-Link Corp (友訊科技) chairman John Lee (李中旺) is to resume his post at the company, replacing Lori Hu (胡雪), after a special shareholders’ meeting in Taipei yesterday voted to reinstate him. New D-Link chairman John Lee, second left, and independent directors Chung Shyang-fong and Fong Chung-peng, fourth and fifth left, talk with former chairman Lori Hu’s son, Howard Kao, third left, at the company’s headquarters in Taipei yesterday. The developments followed reports of a management crisis at D-Link, with company executives and board members forming two opposing camps. Lee was last month dismissed from his chairman position at Alpha Networks and his vice chairman position at D-Link. Taiwan Steel has obtained a power of attorney by shareholders in its bid for control of D-Link with the support of Lee and other company executives.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
KMT makes last push for cash handouts
KMT makes last push for cash handoutsBy Dennis Xie / Staff writer, with CNAThe Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday made a last-ditch effort to persuade the Executive Yuan to distribute NT$6,000 in cash per person instead of stimulus coupons as part of a government plan to revive the virus-hit economy. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus whip Lin Wei-chou, second left, holds a news conference with other KMT lawmakers at the legislature in Taipei yesterday. If the Executive Yuan accepts the proposal, the KMT would fully support relevant budget plans in the legislature, he added. President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who was then the DPP chairperson, opposed the policy, saying that cash was better, Lin Yi-hua said. The government should be open-minded and listen more to the public, who want cash, Yang added.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Yellow Line saves a gloomy day
Opened on Jan. 31, the Taipei MRT’s Circular Line, or Yellow Line, made life in the nation’s capital even more convenient. The Jingmei White Terror Memorial Park was once a detention center for political prisoners during the Martial Law era. The area leading up to Jing-Mei White Terror Memorial Park, with its MRT depot, car repair shops and recycling centers, is quite desolate. However, while these places are among the top attractions of their cities, the Jing-Mei White Terror Memorial Park doesn’t see many visitors even when there isn’t a pandemic. >> Jing-Mei White Terror Memorial Park is located at 131 Fusing Rd, Sindian District, New Taipei City (新北市新店區復興路131號).
Source:Taipei Times
May 31, 2020 16:07 UTC
Anger, rage over police killings shatters the US
Anger, rage over police killings shatters the USAP, MINNEAPOLIS, MinnesotaAmericans awoke yesterday to charred and glass-strewn streets in dozens of cities after another night of unrest fueled by rage over the mistreatment of African Americans at the hands of police, who responded to the violence with tear gas and rubber bullets. Police knock back protesters as they detain one at a rally on Saturday in Las Vegas, Nevada, over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Monday last week. Los Angeles Police Department Commander Cory Palka stands among several destroyed police cars during a protest on Saturday over the death of George Floyd. People take part in a protest in London’s Trafalgar Square yesterday over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Monday last week. Photo: ReutersFormer US vice president Joe Biden condemned the violence as he continued to express common cause with those demonstrating.
Source:Taipei Times
May 31, 2020 16:00 UTC
Tsai’s, Su’s ratings fall, poll shows
The poll showed that 68 percent of respondents said they were satisfied with Tsai’s performance, down 8.9 percentage points from last month, while 21 percent said they disapproved of her performance. Her approval among respondents aged 20 to 29 fell 14.7 percentage points, the largest decrease when compared with other age groups. Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei TimesSu’s approval rating slid 7.9 percentage points to 65 percent, and 25 percent said they were dissatisfied with his performance. Similarly, his approval rate fell the most among respondents aged 20 to 29, dropping 22 percentage points, the poll showed. It collected 811 valid samples, and has a margin of error of 3.44 percentage points.
Source:Taipei Times
May 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
Leaks, zero parking for tour buses haunt teddy bear museum
Leaks, zero parking for tour buses haunt teddy bear museumBy Huang Mei-chu / Staff reporterThe One Bear Museum in Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township (關西), a teddy bear museum once touted by the county government as a “luminous pearl” along Provincial Highway No. The museum’s building, which was provided by the county government, has a serious water leakage problem and lacks a parking lot for buses to bring in tour groups, Hsinchu County Councilor Lo Shih-shi (羅仕琦) said on Saturday. The entrance to One Bear Museum in Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township is pictured on Saturday. It is said to be the largest teddy bear museum in Asia, he added. The reasons for low visitor numbers include water leakage, facility malfunction and nearby parking lots always being occupied, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
May 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
Ex-NIA director leaves KMT for position at TPP
Ex-NIA director leaves KMT for position at TPPBy Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporterFormer National Immigration Agency (NIA) director-general Hsieh Li-kung (謝立功) yesterday announced that he is to leave the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to join the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) as secretary-general. In a statement on Facebook, Hsieh said he has accepted an invitation from TPP Chairman and Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) to serve in the position. In the statement, Hsieh, who represented the KMT in the 2014 and 2018 Keelung mayoral elections, thanked the KMT for nurturing him. He said that he had hesitated to join the TPP, “but for the normal development of Taiwan’s democracy, I have no choice. Tsai Chih-ying (蔡智潁), head of the KMT’s Keelung chapter, said that although he regrets Hsieh’s departure to join the TPP, he respects the decision.
Source:Taipei Times
May 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
Some chains to begin selling masks
Convenience store chain operator Hi-Life International Co Ltd (萊爾富) said that it would also start selling masks from tomorrow. Hypermarket chain operator Carrefour Taiwan (家樂福) said that it would start selling packs of five and seven masks from today, with customers limited to one pack each. Since then, daily production capacity has been increased from 1.88 million masks to about 20 million. From today, the government is to requisition 8 million masks per day, while lifting sale and export restrictions on the remaining 60 percent of capacity. If people struggle to buy masks on the open market, they would still be able to purchase nine adult masks or 10 children’s masks every two weeks using their NHI cards.
Source:Taipei Times
May 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
Quick recovery forecast for THSRC
Quick recovery forecast for THSRCBy Chen Cheng-hui / Staff reporterTaiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC, 台灣高鐵) is expected to recover quickly from the effects of COVID-19, as life returns to normal and thanks to the government’s domestic travel incentives, Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co (元大投顧) said in a note on Friday. “The ‘disease prevention tourism’ policy to be launched by the government by providing subsidies for tourism accommodation on July 1 should stimulate the domestic tourism industry and also increase demand for THSRC,” Yang said. Yang said that the company’s ridership and load factor recovered gradually last month. Its sales are expected to decline year-on-year this month and the next, narrowing notably in July after promotion plans are offered, she said. While border restrictions might continue, they would have little effect on operations, as foreign tourists constitute less than 10 percent of THSRC’s ridership, she added.
Source:Taipei Times
May 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
Association unveils first domestic Liu Dui lexicon
Association unveils first domestic Liu Dui lexiconA DECADE’S WORK: The two-volume, 1,400-page lexicon has collected more than 20,000 words and phrases, and is expected to help people learning the Liu Dui dialectBy Lo Hsin-chen and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe Liu Dui Culture Research Association on Saturday unveiled the nation’s first domestically compiled lexicon of Hakka-language words in the Liu Dui dialect, an effort that took a decade of work and cost about NT$7 million (US$233,085 at the current exchange rate). The two-volume, 1,400-page lexicon collected more than 20,000 phrases and words, and is estimated to be of great value in helping people learn the Liu Dui dialect and culture, the association said. Five sets of Taiwan’s first domestically compiled lexicon on Hakka-language words in the Liu Dui dialect are displayed in Pingtung County on Saturday. This is evidence of the richness of the Liu Dui subdialect and one of the unique characteristics of the Sisian dialect, Tseng said. The sets are priced at NT$2,000 each and come with a CD to help the learning process, the association said.
Source:Taipei Times
May 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
Caucuses mull extraordinary session
A provisional legislative session should be held late next month before or after the Dragon Boat Festival holiday, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus secretary-general Chung Chia-pin (鍾佳濱) said yesterday. Premier Su Tseng-chang, eighth right, Legislative Speaker You Si-kun, seventh right, and others gather on the floor of the Legislative Yuan in Taipei on Friday, the last day of the legislative session. Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei TimesIf lawmakers decide to hold an extraordinary session, the DPP caucus would respect the opinions of opposition caucuses regarding what items to deal with, he added. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus neither favors nor opposes an extraordinary session, but believes that some bills could wait until the next regular session, KMT caucus whip Lin Wei-chou (林為洲) said, adding that, as a minority, the KMT caucus can only passively respond to the DPP’s proposals. Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) caucus whip Lai Hsiang-ling (賴香伶) said that it would be appropriate if an extraordinary session is held in two weeks.
Source:Taipei Times
May 30, 2020 15:56 UTC
Han ditches presentation to inspect vegetable farms
Han ditches presentation to inspect vegetable farmsStaff writer, with CNAKaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) yesterday chose not to attend a televised presentation ahead of a recall vote against him, and instead visited vegetable farms devastated by torrential rain. The recall vote is to be held on Saturday next week. Photo: Hsu Lee-chuan, Taipei TimesThe presentation was held at 9am by the Kaohsiung City Election Commission, and broadcast live on local television and the commission’s YouTube channel. During yesterday’s TV presentation, Chen Kuan-jung (陳冠榮), the lead organizer of the recall vote, said that Han should have attended the presentation to explain to voters why he should not be recalled, and that his absence merely proved his “anti-democratic” way of approaching things. Chen urged people to vote to remove Han from office.
Source:Taipei Times
May 30, 2020 15:56 UTC
More than 500 complaints filed against Foodpanda
More than 500 complaints filed against FoodpandaBy Yang Mien-chieh and Dennis Xie / Staff reporter, with staff writerFood delivery provider Foodpanda had 564 consumer disputes from January to last month and failed to attend many mediation sessions with local governments nationwide, the Executive Yuan’s Consumer Protection Committee said. In a news release earlier this month, the committee said that it investigated consumer complaints and mediations for Foodpanda and rival Uber Eats during the period, when the number of delivery orders jumped due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Uber Eats had 80 consumer disputes, the committee said. Another 14 were due to order cancelations, nine were related to the quality or quantity of food, eight concerned the service of delivery workers and 11 were related to other issues, it said. Before placing an order, consumers can consult lists local governments publish online of corporations that have failed to attend mediation sessions without proper reasons, it said.
Source:Taipei Times
May 30, 2020 15:56 UTC