Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/03/28
By: Lee Hsin-Yin

Taipei, March 28 (CNA) Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport ranks 13th among the world’s 100 best airports, based partly on its cleanliness and immigration and security services, according to the Skytrax 2019 World Airport Awards that were released Thursday.

The 13th place ranking was the best ever for the Taoyuan airport in the Skytrax awards, was three places higher than last year, and put the airport in 8th place among other top Asian gateways.

In the various categories of the awards, the Taoyuan airport’s immigration service was listed as the 4th best in the world, and its staff and baggage delivery services were ranked 7th.    [FULL  STORY]

REVIEW MECHANISM: The bill is a response to Chinese President Xi Jinping’s ‘five points,’ which included a proposal to impose ‘one country, two systems’ on Taiwan

Taipei Times
Date: Mar 29, 2019
By: Sean Lin  /  Staff reporter

The Executive Yuan yesterday unveiled a draft amendment to the Act Governing

Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (台灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), which would to introduce a “high threshold” review mechanism for any political agreement signed by the two sides of the Taiwan Strait.

The planned amendment seeks to put in place safeguards before, during and after a cross-strait political agreement is signed.

The Cabinet would have to submit a plan to enter into any political agreement with China to the legislature, as well as assessments of the effects the agreement would have on the nation’s Constitution and political system at least 90 days before a negotiation is scheduled to take place.

Negotiations could only be initiated after the plan has garnered the approval of at least 75 percent of lawmakers during a plenary session with an attendance of at least 75 percent.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times 
Date: 27 March, 2019
By: Shirley Lin

President Tsai Ing-wen says that since taking office, she has not wasted any time in

making Taiwan a better place. Tsai was speaking Wednesday at a banquet hosted by Hawaii’s overseas Taiwanese community. Tsai has stopped in the US state on her way back to Taiwan from a visit to three Pacific allies.

Tsai said that she has brought her promises to fruition, making changes to the pension and social security systems, and working for economic transformation and renewable energy initiatives.

Tsai also said that Taiwanese people have assumed that relying on China is the only way for improving the economy. She said people have complained that tourism has gone down because the number of Chinese tourists to Taiwan has diminished during her presidency. However Tsai also said the number of foreign tourists has gone up in recent years, reaching a new high. The president also said that 18 Taiwanese companies have moved operations back to Taiwan, creating 7,700 additional jobs.

Tsai said Taiwan can never accept Chinese President Xi Jinping’s “one country, two systems” model.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan’s major political parties are coping with deep cultures of factionalism.

The News Lens
Date: 2019/03/27
By: Brian Hioe

Controversies in the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Kuomintang (KMT)

regarding their choice of presidential candidate prove that factionalism is alive and well in both major political parties in Taiwan. No clear frontrunner has yet emerged in both parties, though both the KMT and DPP are attempting to plan ahead of time for who the other party runs.

Although it has long been speculated that former premier and mayor of Tainan William Lai (賴清德) might seek to challenge current president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) for the DPP’s 2020 presidential nomination, it still came as a surprise when Lai announced that he would be seeking the DPP’s presidential nomination earlier this month.

Namely, Lai did not give his seniors within the party any advance notice about his plans to run. But despite a high-profile open letter by DPP elders associated with the Formosa Alliance calling on Tsai not to run for a second term, Tsai experienced a wave of popularity after her strong response to a Jan. 2 speech by Chinese president Xi Jinping in which Xi vowed the use of force against Taiwan if Taiwan continued to resist political unification. It is somewhat surprising that Lai decided to challenge Tsai anyway.

Indications are that Lai did coordinate with these pan-Green traditionalists in announcing his run,but not all members of the influential New Tide faction within the DPP. Lai belongs to the New Tide but is no longer as close with it as he once was, after having served as mayor of Tainan from 2010 to 2017. Some members of the New Tide faction back Tsai, such as party heavyweight Chen Chu (陳菊), who most recently served as secretary-general of the Presidential Office. On the other hand, well-known DPP politicians affiliated with the New Tide such as Taoyuan mayor Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦), legislator Tuan Yi-kang (段宜康), and Tainan mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲), have at least publicly expressed surprise at Lai’s run. Others are likely to back Lai, even if organized support from DPP members for Tsai has been stronger to date with 34 DPP politicians, mostly legislators, announcing support for Tsai.    [FULL  STORY]

Vietnamese mother being questioned by police after Pokemon player found her newborn baby stuffed in a box

Taiwan News   
Date: 2019/03/27 
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Police tracked down a Vietnamese woman, who had abandoned her newborn baby girl found by a Pokemon player, to the dormitory of the electronics company where she works in New Taipei City, and she now faces charges with Offenses of Abandonment (遺棄罪), reported CNA.

At 12:00 a.m. this morning, a 56-year-old man surnamed Chen (陳) was riding his bicycle and hunting Pokemon in New Taipei City’s Zhonghe District, when he suddenly stumbled upon a cardboard box that was shaking on a sidewalk next to a construction site. Chen initially thought that someone had abandoned a pet, but when he opened it, he discovered that there was a baby inside and called the police immediately.

When police arrived on the scene, they found that the box contained a newborn baby girl and her body temperature was slightly low, as she was only wrapped in a thin layer of clothing inside the cardboard container. Police said that she was only wrapped in a towel and a light jacket, and her umbilical cord had not been removed.

Fortunately, the girl’s vital signs were normal, but due to her low temperature, she was rushed to Shuangho Hospital for treatment. Doctors now say that the baby girl is in good condition.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/03/27
By: Chen Chun-chung, Yu Kai-hsiang and Flor Wang

Taipei, March 27 (CNA) Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chen Ming-tong (陳明通)

said Wednesday that Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu’s (韓國瑜) recent visits to Beijing’s liaison offices in Hong Kong and Macau were “politically sensitive” and a first for a Taiwan politician.

“It was an extremely politically sensitive act,” Chen said prior to a legislative hearing.

“Neither former Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊), who is now secretary-general at the Presidential Office, nor former Taipei Mayor and former President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) took such a step when they visited Hong Kong or Macau in their capacity as local government heads,” he said.

Chen said Taiwan has been facing a very difficult situation since Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in January unveiled a set of guidelines for Taiwan’s unification with China based on a “one country, two systems” model.    [FULL  STORY]

A CRITICAL MESSAGE: The proposed Taiwan Assurance Act ‘would deepen bilateral security, economic and cultural relations,’ cosponsor US Senator Tom Cotton said

Taipei Times
Date: Mar 28, 2019
By: Staff writer, with CNA

A group of US senators across party lines on Tuesday introduced a bill that would cement

two-way ties with Taiwan and support its international presence, as the Taiwan Relations Act is next month to mark its 40th anniversary.

US Senator Tom Cotton said in a statement that he has introduced legislation with five other senators that “would enhance the US-Taiwan relationship and bolster Taiwan’s participation in the international community.”

“Taiwan is a vital democratic partner of the US. Forty years after the Taiwan Relations Act was signed into law, our bilateral ties should reflect this reality,” Cotton said.

Called the Taiwan Assurance Act, the legislation “would deepen bilateral security, economic and cultural relations, while also sending a message that China’s aggressive cross-strait behavior will not be tolerated,” he said.
[FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International 
Date: 26 March, 2019
By: Paula Chao

President Tsai Ing-wen has arrived in the Marshall Islands for a state visit. The island nation is the last stop on Tsai’s trip to the Pacific islands.

During her visit, Tsai and Marshall Islands President Hilda C. Heine signed a memorandum of understanding on a small loan fund that aims to help women start their own businesses. Taiwan will provide US$1 million for the fund, and the other half will be provided by the Marshall Islands.

Tsai also attended a new women leaders’ forum organized by the Marshall Islands. At the event, female leaders from around the Pacific region discussed issues such as gender equality and women’s rights.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan is ranked as the happiest country in East Asia, but the jury is out on what that actually means.

The News Lens
Date: 2019/03/26
By: Daphne K. Lee

Taiwan is the happiest country in East Asia, according to the 2019 World Happiness Report (WHR) produced by the United Nations. Among 156 countries, the survey panel ranked Taiwan 25th on the list, with Japan ranking 58th and China 93rd.

Finland topped the chart for the second year, while Denmark came in second. Hygge, a Danish word describing a lifestyle that celebrates coziness and comfort, became a buzzword in 2016 since Denmark had consistently been named the happiest country on earth. The Swedish lagom, which praises a moderate lifestyle, also became a trend as more people wanted to understand how Scandinavians were so happy.

But how reliable is the World Happiness Report? What purpose does it serve?

According to the report, a country’s average happiness is calculated using the following six variables provided by the Gallup World Poll: GDP per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom, generosity, and absence of corruption.    [FULL  STORY]

HK proposes legal amendment that will put foreigners in Hong Kong at risk of extradition to China

Taiwan News   
Date: 2019/03/26 
By: Duncan Deaeth, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The Deputy Minister of Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC),

Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正), on Monday, March 25 expressed concern at the possibility of Hong Kong adopting a controversial new law regarding extraditions.

Chiu said that the new proposed amendment to the law concerning extraditions represents a potential threat to Taiwanese citizens, and that if passed, Taiwan would be forced to consider issuing a travel alert citizens traveling to the Chinese Special Administrative Region (SAR).

The new proposed law on extraditing criminals was proposed by the Hong Kong Security Bureau to the city’s Legislative Council in February 2019. It was presented as a remedy to solving to the legal gridlock related to the murder of 21 year old Poon Hui Wing (潘曉穎), which occurred in Taiwan in March, 2018.
https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3383032

Currently, Hong Kong is unable to legally form legal agreements with Taiwan because of authoritarian legal measures imposed by Beijing. This means that the suspect in the Poon Hui Wing murder case, Chan Tung-kai (陳同佳), cannot be sent to Taiwan to face trial under current Hong Kong law.    [FULL  STORY]