‘SECOND HOME’: The president told outgoing AIT Director Kin Moy there are many places in the nation that look forward to him visiting again

Taipei Times
Date: Jul 04, 2018
By: Stacy Hsu  /  Staff reporter

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday conferred the Order of Brilliant Star on outgoing

American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Kin Moy as recognition of his contribution to Taiwan-US ties.

At a ceremony at the Presidential Office Building in Taipei, Tsai awarded Moy the second-highest level of the Order of Brilliant Star, which is given to civil servants, non-civil servants and foreign nationals for remarkable dedication.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) last month conferred on Moy the Grand Medal of Diplomacy, the highest honor Taiwan gives to an individual for diplomatic contributions.

Tsai said that when Moy took office three years ago, he set three goals: building trust with the Taiwanese government, showing Taiwanese that the US is Taiwan’s best friend and completing the construction of the AIT’s new compound in Taipei’s Neihu District (內湖).    [FULL  STORY]

3 injured, 14 homes damaged after garbage truck explodes in Yilan County’s Su-ao Township

Taiwan News
Date: 2018/07/02
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Three persons were injured and 14 homes damaged after a garbage truck exploded in northeastern Taiwan on Friday night (June 29), reported TVBS.

At 7:25 p.m. on Friday evening, a garbage truck was making its rounds on Kunming Road

in Yilan County’s Su’ao Township, and as it started to compress the latest load, witnesses suddenly heard a large “bang.” The rear of the vehicle then exploded, injuring three people and damaging 14 homes, many of which suffered shattered windows.

Among the inured was a 34-year-old sanitation worker surnamed Chan (詹), who was standing next to the truck when the blast occurred and suffered damage to his eardrums. A 59-year-old man surnamed Chang (張) suffered the most severe injuries after his body was peppered with shards of glass from the blast, while a 66-year-old woman surnamed Liao (廖) suffered less severe injuries, also from flying glass.    [FULL  STORY]

Global News
Date: July 2, 2018
By Alley Wilson

According to Reuters, the four-year-old’s body was able to slip through the grilles except for his head, which got stuck.

It’s reported the bars were four to 10 inches apart.

With his head stuck between the grilles, the boy was able to hang on to the metal bars for 30 minutes while firefighters rescued him.    [FULL STORY & VIDEO]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2018-07-02

A Taiwanese fleet of Apache helicopters is set to enter service next week after more than

three years of testing and evaluation. Defense Ministry spokesperson Chen Chung-chi said Monday that a ceremony will be held next Wednesday to mark the event.

Taiwan acquired its first batch of AH-64E helicopters in 2013. Chen says the helicopters are the army’s most advanced weaponry.

“The [helicopters] have exercised [great] power during war games and asymmetric operations, including those conducted on land and in the air. Evaluation of the [helicopters’] combat power lasted for three years and eight months. During large-scale war games or military drills for each service and each division, you have all seen the performance of Apache attack helicopters and their defensive capabilities,” said Chen.

Taiwan is only the second country in the world to use the AH-64E helicopters. They are also used by the United States, where they are manufactured.    [SOURCE]

After writing to The Wall Street Journal to make quite clear that ‘Taiwan Is Not a Part of the People’s Republic’, Brian Su talks about the importance and strategy of raising Taiwan’s international profile.

The News Lens
Date: 2018/07/02
By: David Green

In the midst of a multi-pronged intensification of China’s efforts to constrict Taiwan’s ability to operate in the international space, Brian Su, Deputy Director General of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) New York, wrote to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) (paywall) to urge corporations and their CEOs not to give in to China’s attempt to bully them.

He wrote: “It must be stressed that Taiwan is not, nor has it ever been, part of the People’s Republic of China. This is the reality that China refuses to face up to while pressuring the world to accept its false claim.”

In the June 12 letter, he presaged a statement last week from Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen that urged democratic nations to stand together in the face of Chinese aggression, saying “Kowtowing to China puts democratic values at risk and will have a grave effect on the liberal international order. The global community should reject China’s intimidation tactics and its false narrative. International companies will do well to note that caving in to China’s coercion now will only invite more.”

Last Friday, The News Lens spoke with Deputy Director Su to learn more about TECO’s New York office and the role it plays in raising awareness of Taiwan in the United States.    [FULL  STORY]

Scalloped hammerhead sharks, moray eels discovered near Taoyuan’s Guanxin Algae Reef 

Taiwan News 
Date: 2018/07/02
By: Renée Salmonsen, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A researcher from the Academia Sineca Biodiversity

Research Center, Chen Chao-lun (陳昭倫), announced today the discovery of a scalloped hammerhead shark breeding ground at the Guanxin Algae Reef (大潭藻礁) near Taoyuan.

The scalloped hammerhead shark is on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The breeding ground and seven adult hammerhead sharks were originally discovered June 8. The research team explained their finds at a press conference this afternoon.

Researchers focused on the G1 and G2 sectors of the reef and also found two adult laced moray eels, according to CNA.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/07/02
By: Chen Wei-ting and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, July 2 (CNA) A Kaohsiung man in his 30s has become the first reported indigenous dengue fever case in Taiwan this year, the Centers for Disease Control announced Monday.

The patient sought treatment June 28 after coming down with a fever, a headache, and a loss of appetite, and he was hospitalized two days later after the symptoms persisted and muscle pain set in, the CDC said.

He was confirmed to have a dengue virus type 3 (DENV-3) infection on Sunday and has been kept in isolation since, according to the CDC.

The CDC determined that the patient was this year’s first indigenous dengue fever case in Taiwan because he did not travel overseas during the incubation period prior to the onset of his disease, CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said.
[FULL  STORY]

COOLING-OFF PERIOD: A China Southeast TV reporter denied a re-entry permit could apply again when he is less emotional, council minister Chen Ming-tong said

Taipei Times
Date: Jul 03, 2018
By: Staff writer, with CNA

The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) will continue to push for a meeting between

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) “without preconditions,” council Minister Chen Ming-tong (陳明通) said yesterday.

“The two should sit down and have a face-to-face talk,” Chen said.

“It is better not to spin the wheels, as it could lead to some misjudgement if the two are far apart,” Chen said prior to a legislative hearing. “The MAC will continue to work toward that goal with no conditions attached.”

In response to media queries on whether Beijing had responded to the council’s call, Chen said “they are probably aware of our wish,” but “they also have their own way of thinking.”    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Jul 02, 2018
By: Ann Maxon  /  Staff reporter

Members of several political parties yesterday expressed support for Hong Kong

democracy activists facing repression as the International Monitor of Hong Kong Civil and Political Rights Action Group released its first report on civil and political rights in Hong Kong on the 21st anniversary of the territory’s handover to China.

Beijing promised to maintain the “one country, two systems” framework prior to the territory’s handover from Britain in 1997, but continued attempts by the authorities to restrict Hong Kongers’ freedom of speech, as well as civil and political rights, suggest otherwise, Leung Man-to (梁文韜), a member of the group and a political science professor at National Cheng Kung University, told a joint news conference.

The report details the way in which the Chinese government has contravened the framework, preventing pro-independence Hong Kongers from running in elections and ousting two legally elected lawmakers, Sixtus “Baggio” Leung (梁頌恆) and Yau Wai-ching (游蕙禎).    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan News  
Date: 2018/07/01
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News)–Daxi District, Taoyuan City is the only town in Taiwan where you can see a grand traditional Chinese courtyard house, an old street lined with houses with magnificent Baroque-style façades, a century-old park, traditional Japanese architecture, and the late President Chiang Kai-shek’s villa all in the old district of the town.

To visit this corner of Daxi is to feast your eyes on the indescribable beauty of the architecture that spans more than 150 years.

I came to Daxi on Friday (June 22) by driving southbound on National Highway No. 3, and it took only about 35 minutes to get to Daxi from Taipei.

My first stop at Daxi was the Li Teng-Fang Mansion (李騰芳古宅), which is designated as a national historic monument. The mansion is the house of the Li family, who came to Daxi to farm in the Yuemei (月眉) area during the Qing Dynasty and later prospered in rice trading by taking advantage of river navigation. Now it’s almost unimaginable that during the old time, people transported goods over rivers between Daxi, Taoyuan and Tamsui Port on the north coast.   [FULL  STORY]