Level crossing malfunction triggers accident, TRA apologizes for accusing woman of breaking law

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/11/25
By: Ching-Tse Cheng, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) train collided with a small silver sedan in Taichung City Friday evening (Nov. 22), and while the TRA claimed that the driver had caused the accident by ignoring traffic regulations, dash cam footage suggests otherwise.

The accident occurred at a level crossing between Xinwuri and Chenggong TRA stations in Taichung. Moments after the collision, the TRA published a post on its official Facebook page and accused the woman, surnamed Lin (林), of running a traffic light, leading thousands of web users to bash Lin for her misbehavior.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/11/25
By: Yeh Su-ping, Liang Pei-chi, Fan Cheng-hsiang and Emerson Lim

Taipei, Nov. 25 (CNA) Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and several political leaders on Monday welcomed the landslide victory of pro-democracy candidates in the recently concluded Hong Kong district council elections, in which the result is being seen by many as a rejection of the Beijing-backed Hong Kong government.

On the sideline of a completion ceremony for a government research building, Tsai said she was happy to see how many Hong Kong people participated in the democratic process on Sunday and expressed their voice through voting.

"We hope that the results of the elections will be respected," Tsai said while encouraging Hong Kong to continue its march towards democracy.

Hong Kong held district council elections on Sunday, amid months-long social unrest triggered by a proposed bill that would have allowed the deportation of Hong Kong criminals to China, but has since evolved into a pro-democracy movement.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 26, 2019
By: Lee I-chia  /  Staff reporter

People who drink alcoholic drinks at least once per week are 19 times more likely to develop

hypopharyngeal cancer than those who do not drink, researchers with the National Health Research Institute (NHRI) said yesterday.

Head and neck cancers — including oral, oropharyngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers — rank fourth in the 10 most common cancers among men in Taiwan, the NHRI said, adding that the main risk factors are drinking alcohol, chewing betel nuts and smoking cigarettes.

Since the implementation of the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (菸害防制法) in 2008, the prevalence of men who smoke cigarettes has dropped from 55.1 percent in 2008 to 26.4 percent in 2017, the NHRI said.

The cigarette-smoking and betel-nut-chewing population has significantly decreased, it added.
[FULL  STORY]

The driver fell over the ramp after being helped out from the wreckage of the destroyed car

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/11/24
By:  Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Tesla driver on a test-drive fell to his death from a highway ramp shortly after a crash on Sunday afternoon, leaving two passengers being treated at a hospital.

The 23-year-old driver, surnamed Hua, embarked on a test-drive in the afternoon with a 22-year-old Tesla salesman, and a South Korean female passenger, aged 24. The car crashed into a highway ramp in transition from the Sun Yat-sen Freeway (or National freeway 1) to National freeway 3, in New Taipei City's Xizhi District, before hitting the highway fence.    [FULL  STORY]

Exclusive: Australia repeatedly asks sick refugees to fly to Taiwan for treatment, even after they've refused to go, in order to uphold its harsh immigration policies.

BuzzFeed News
Date: November 24, 2019
By: Hannah Ryan, BuzzFeed News Reporter, Australia

Australia’s determined efforts to keep sick refugees away from its shores have been stymied by patients who repeatedly refuse to fly to Taiwan for medical treatment, documents obtained by BuzzFeed News reveal.

Under a deal struck in 2017, Taiwan agreed to temporarily take in sick refugees and asylum seekers detained by Australia on the tiny Pacific Island nation of Nauru when they required complex medical care.

The secretive deal was an expensive but apparently neat solution to the dilemma created by Australia’s hardline immigration policies. Asylum seekers who arrived by boat following 2013 were sent to island detention on Nauru and in Papua New Guinea, and were unable to settle in Australia.

But as detainee health deteriorated and public outcry rose, a second policy mandated these people also could not travel to Australia for medical treatment unless their condition signalled death or significant, permanent disability, and they could not be treated elsewhere.    [FULL  STORY]

Meet the T91.

The National Interest
Date: November 24, 2019
By: Charlie Gao

Key point: The T91 will remain an interesting footnote in the history of the M16 platform as one of the first truly viable external short-stroke piston ARs to reach widespread production.

Despite early problems in Vietnam, the American M16 made a major impression on many Western-aligned nations in Asia. The Republic of Korea, the Philippines, and Singapore began license producing the M16A1, and many other nations bought M16s straight from the United States. However, Taiwan bucked this trend, developing the T65 rifle in the 1960s. However, the T65 is hardly a clean-slate design, practically copying the M16 design in the lower receiver and heavily emulating other elements in the upper receiver.

The primary difference between the T65 and the M16 is the incorporation of a short-stroke external piston gas system instead of the internal piston gas system used in the M16.  But unlike Armalite’s AR-18 the rest of the design is practically unchanged from the M16, retaining the recoil spring in the buffer tube and the cylindrical bolt carrier group of the M16, as opposed to the dual recoil springs in the receiver and “boxy” bolt carrier group of the AR-18.

There are also differences in the sighting and handguard setup of the T65, with a different triangular handguard being used on the T65 and a simple non-carryhandle rear sight used instead of the M16’s carry handle rear sight on the original T65. In theory, this could make integration of optics easier, but the receiver was not tapped for the addition of an optic and a M16 carry-handle style rear sight was added on the T65K2 variant.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/11/24
By: Sabine Cheng and Chiang Yi-ching

Taipei, Nov. 24 (CNA) Oscar-winning Taiwanese filmmaker Ang Lee (李安) told reporters after the Golden Horse Awards ceremony Saturday that although China's boycott this year was regrettable, the awards will continue to welcome all Chinese-language films.

"Our arms will always be open," Lee said.

Lee, who was chairman of the awards' executive committee this year, was referring to China's decision in August to ban Chinese films and filmmakers from participating in Saturday's event, in response to political fallout from last year's awards.

During last year's ceremony, Taiwanese documentary director Fu Yu (傅榆) said in her acceptance speech that she hoped for Taiwan to be treated as an "independent entity," infuriating Beijing and the Chinese filmmakers in the audience.    [FULL  STORY]

CHINESE MEDDLING: The bill seeks to increase penalties for working on behalf of foreign states, and the KMT said it would determine its stance after reading the draft

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 25, 2019
By: Chung Li-hua  /  Staff reporter

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus is ready to unveil a draft anti-infiltration law today,

caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said yesterday, adding that the goal is to have the bill clear a second reading on Friday.

Concerns about Beijing’s attempts to annex Taiwan and reports about a self-confessed Chinese spy saying that he had been tasked with influencing elections in Taiwan show that an anti-infiltration law is needed, Ker said.

Following discussions with the Ministry of Justice, Mainland Affairs Council and Executive Yuan, the DPP on Friday devised the core of the bill and would reveal its details at a news conference today, he said.

The bill would be submitted to the legislature’s Procedure Committee for review tomorrow, he added.    [FULL  STORY]

Reuters
Date: November 23, 2019
By: Lidia Kelly

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – A senior Australian politician on Saturday said he was disturbed by the

reported efforts of China to infiltrate politics in Australia, Hong Kong and Taiwan detailed by an asylum seeker who said he was a Chinese spy.

FILE PHOTO: The new Treasurer Josh Frydenberg attends the swearing-in ceremony in Canberra, Australia August 24, 2018. REUTERS/David Gray

Resource-rich Australia’s ties with its most important trading partner China have deteriorated in recent years, amid accusations that Beijing is meddling in domestic affairs.

“These are very disturbing reports,” said Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, adding that government law agencies were dealing with the matter.

The defector, named as Wang “William” Liqiang by the Age newspaper, gave a sworn statement to the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), identifying China’s senior military intelligence officers in Hong Kong, the newspaper said.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan English News
Date: November 23, 2019 
By: Phillip CharlierElections, Wang Liqiang

Opposition presidential candidate Han Kuo-yu appeared to be on the back foot today, when he struck out at allegations that Chinese Communist Party-backed operatives had invested RMB1.5 billion (NT$6 billion) to push Taiwanese media to promote his campaign to unseat the Democratic Progressive party in last year’s nationwide local elections.

“If I took one cent from the Chinese Communist Party, I will resign from the Presidential race,” Han Guo-yu said, gesticulating in an angry manner.

“If I have received even one cent, I will resign.”

Han was responding to allegations raised by alleged Chinese operative Wang Liqiang, after Wang spoke to Australian media, and made a 17-page statement to the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO).

The Financial Times reported more details today about the statement Wang made to ASIO. According to the Financial Times report, more than 200,000 fake social media accounts were made to attack the Democratic Progressive Party and influence the elections from August 2018.
[FULL  STORY]