Radio Taiwan International
Date: 31 August, 2020
By: Katherine Wei

President Tsai Ing-wen announced last week that Taiwan will relax its ban on meat imports from the US.[/caption] President Tsai Ing-wen announced last week that Taiwan will relax its ban on meat imports from the US. The announcement drew immediate backlash from the KMT and some worried pig farmers. But this issue isn’t a new one in Taiwan. 

Previous administrations have tried to make changes to meat import policies, only to face similar criticism.

Debates over Taiwan’s policy on imported meat have always been rooted in politics. Many say they don’t want leanness-enhancing additives in their pork, and others say they worry about mad-cow disease. But then, there are also Taiwan’s trade ties with the US to consider.

Though food safety concerns are a priority, ruling and opposition parties have also fought endlessly about imports of US beef and pork over successive administrations. Might doing so keep Taiwan-US relations stable, or even boost Taiwan’s trade advantages?   [FULL  STORY]

Hong Kong Economic Journal
Date: September 01, 2020
By: Mark O'Neill

The war between China and the United State is intensifying. It has spread from trade and technology to finance, diplomacy and the military. In Washington, people talk of an “October surprise” – a limited conflict in the South China Sea – to help President Trump win re-election.

Neither Taiwan nor Hong Kong has a conflict with the U.S. Two years ago, Hong Kong enjoyed better relations with the U.S. than any city in China, with thousands of American citizens and companies happy to live and work here and the same for Hong Kong people going the other way. Senior officials of the SAR government were warmly received by high-ranking members of the administration in Washington.

Now the world has turned upside down. Those same officials are under U.S. sanctions. American banks and companies here are trapped between two contradictory sets of rules and wonder if they should stay.

This is the tragedy of Hong Kong that should never have happened. In Taiwan, the story is the reverse. It enjoys better trade, diplomatic and military relations with Washington than at any time since 1979. Last month, Health Secretary Alex Azar landed in Taipei, for the highest-level visit in over 40 years. More Cabinet-level officials will follow.    [FULL  STORY]

14-year-old middle school student goes missing after meeting with stranger in northern Taiwan

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/08/31
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A female middle school student surnamed Liu (劉) has been missing since Aug. 29 and it appears that she may have met with a convicted sex offender before disappearing.

A 14-year-old student left her home in Kaohsiung on Saturday (Aug. 29) and took a Taiwan High-Speed Rail (THSR) train to Hsinchu. As soon as she boarded the waiting automobile of a stranger, her family and friends lost contact with her.

Anxious, her mother called the police for help, but they found that her GPS coordinates were constantly changing and they were unable to pinpoint her location. A user of the popular online message board PTT found through data comparison and analysis that the email and phone number of the man who met with the girl matched that of a 31-year-old man surnamed Lo (羅) who was convicted of drugging and sexually assaulting two middle school girls in 2018, reported ETtoday.

Lo has been convicted on two counts of sexual assault, and according to the court verdict, he worked as a district manager in a security company in 2018 and was responsible for interviewing new candidates. He took advantage of his position to find underage girls looking for part-time work on the job-hunting website.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/31/2020
By: Chen Yun-yu and Emerson Lim

Taipei, Aug. 31 (CNA) Washington's release of two declassified cables from nearly 40 years ago on its security assurances to Taiwan reflect the United States' commitment to Taiwan at a time when it is under threat from China, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Monday.

The two cables from 1982, declassified on July 16, 2020, and posted on the American Institute in Taiwan's (AIT) website earlier Monday, focus on arms sales to Taiwan and the 'Six Assurances' made to Taiwan.

Though neither offer any specific revelations, they both represent pledges of U.S. support for Taiwan today and the desire to send a message to China amid regional tensions and questions over whether the U.S. would help Taipei if attacked by Beijing.

The cables demonstrate the U.S.' "strong commitment" to Taiwan's security "amid China's continued actions to destroy peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and in the region," MOFA said in a statement.    [FULL  STORY]

GEOLOGICAL CHALLENGE: The PLA lacks the landing vehicles and logistics required to launch an incursion into Taiwan via the Taiwan Strait, a defense ministry report said

Taipei Times
Date: Sep 01, 2020
By: Aaron Tu and Dennis Xie / Staff reporter, with staff writer

The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) does not yet have the military capability to wage an all-out war against Taiwan, given the demanding geological environment of the Taiwan Strait, a Ministry of National Defense report said.

The China Military Power Report 2020, which the ministry yesterday submitted to the Legislative Yuan for review, said the PLA still lacks the landing vehicles and logistics required to launch an incursion into Taiwan via the Taiwan Strait.

If Beijing were to wage a war now, its combat plans could take the form of military intimidation, blockades, firepower strikes and landing operations, the report said.

The PLA could intensify its military exercises, or sail warships to waters within 24 nautical miles (45km) of Taiwan by claiming “freedom of passage” and “innocent passage,” in an attempt to generate a sense of fear among Taiwanese, it said.    [FULL  STORY]

Forbes
Date: Aug 30, 2020
By: Michael Peck

The video was impressive. Fighter jets streaking across the sky, missiles soaring atop columns of fire, tanks and artillery firing salvoes of shells.

The video, recently posted on the Ministry of National Defense’s Twitter account, was supposed to showcase  Taiwan’s ability to repel a Chinese invasion. “Don’t underestimate our determination to #protectourcountry,” the defense ministry wrote. “The #ROCArmedforces will not antagonise but we will respond hostile actions.”

But is a real depiction of Taiwanese military might – or just a fantasy?    [FULL  STORY]

NTD Evening News
Date: Aug 30, 2020
By: Juliet Song 

One of Taiwan’s most famous internet celebrities was shot twice outside his own gym. Holger Chen, who is also known as an outspoken critic of the Chinese Communist Party, was shot in the arm and calf on Aug. 28. He was taken to the hospital and was in stable condition.

The suspect turned himself in to police shortly after the shooting.

Chen, a businessman and YouTube star with more than 2 million followers on social media, helped organize a mass protest against Beijing’s infiltration of Taiwan’s media in 2019, prompting the Chinese regime to attempt to silence him by pressuring his sponsors, according to the Taiwanese star.    [SOURCE]

Girl swung violently in sky, scene filled with screams

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/08/30
By: Sylvia Teng , Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A three-year-old girl was pulled violently into the sky by a large kite after a gust of strong winds hit the Nanliao Harbor of Hsinchu City on Sunday (Aug. 30).

The 2020 International Kite Festival kicked off this weekend in Hsinchu, a northeastern region famous for its high winds. The incident occurred on Sunday afternoon when a kite with a long strip was accidentally set flying by a sudden gust.

A three-year-old girl surnamed Lin, whose stomach had somehow been entangled with one end of the strip, was instantly pulled into the sky with the kite by the winds.

Based on the footage shared on social media, the girl appears to have swung violently in the sky for several seconds before the kite was pulled down by someone on the ground. A group of people who had been waiting then managed to catch the girl when she fell, and the scene was filled with screaming and yelling.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/30/2020
By Chang Hsiung-feng and Chiang Yi-ching

Taipei, Aug. 30 (CNA) Council of Agriculture (COA) chief Chen Chi-chung (陳吉仲) pledged Sunday to fully implement country of origin labeling on pork products sold in Taiwan, amid concerns from pig farmers regarding a new trade policy.

Chen made the promise after meeting with the Taoyuan Pig Farmers Association, where they discussed how the government will support domestic pig farmers after Taiwan lifts its ban on residue of the controversial feed additive ractopamine in imported pork.

The new policy, which will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2021, was announced by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Aug. 28.

Chen supported an appeal by Taoyuan Pig Farmers Association head Tseng Wen-hu (曾文湖) for full implementation of country of origin labeling on products containing pork and for Taiwan to continue its ban on the use of ractopamine in domestic pigs.    [FULL  STORY]

EASIER: Deep throat saliva specimens would be taken by travelers, which would allow authorities to reduce the number of people who oversee the testing process

Taipei Times
Date: Aug 31, 2020
By: Lee I-chia / Staff reporter

The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) has decided to change the kind of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) diagnostic tests for SARS-CoV-2 required from international travelers arriving at airports, as of tomorrow.

Health authorities would take deep throat saliva (DTS) specimens instead of throat swabs, the center said yesterday.

The CECC evaluated the efficacy of DTS tests between July 2 and Monday last week, with DTS and throat swabs collected from 1,226 travelers who were required to take a COVID-19 test upon arrival at an airport, said Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥), the CECC spokesman

A step-by-step instruction shows how to collect deep throat saliva for COVID-19 testing.

Photo courtesy of the Central Epidemic Command Center

“Among the travelers who were tested, 24 people were confirmed to have COVID-19,” Chuang said.    [FULL  STORY]