Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/05/11
By Chu Che-wei, Chiang Chun-liang, Chen Chi-ching and Elaine Hou

Taipei, May 11 (CNA) A convicted sex offender who broke parole and fled Penghu County Wednesday has been arrested, police said Thursday.

The man, Hsiao Kuo-chang (蕭國昌), was arrested in a hotel room in Taipei’s Wanhua District after police launched an all-out search for him.

He was taken to the city’s Zhongshan police precinct for interrogation, police said.

Police learned that Hsiao, 55, had cut off his electronic monitoring anklet and fled the island county of Penghu by boat on Wednesday.  [FULL  STORY]

‘His legacy ought to be studied and analyzed, if only to remember the horrors and agonies of the history of this island nation, and to educate ourselves on the importance of avoiding a backslide into totalitarianism.’

The News Lens
Date: 2017/05/10
By: Jenna Cody

In the past week, two opinion pieces have appeared in The News Lens tackling the

question of what to do about the troubled legacy of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) in Taiwan.

There is one issue which must be immediately clarified: nobody is suggesting that Chiang be completely deleted from Taiwan’s history.

His legacy ought to be studied and analyzed, if only to remember the horrors and agonies of the history of this island nation, and to educate ourselves on the importance of avoiding a backslide into totalitarianism. I do not believe anyone has suggested that he be deleted from history textbooks, nor would it be wise to do so.

However, it is absolutely correct to remove Chiang’s statues and his place in a “memorial hall” “(Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, in Taipei) which would be best repurposed for more appropriate uses: a vibrant, modern democracy does not need a moribund reminder of the former dictator’s bloody legacy and continued cult of personality among some, in what could otherwise be a public space welcoming to all.
[FULL  STORY]

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/05/10
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News)–The Taipei Children’s Amusement Park (TCAP) will offer

mothers who bring their children a free admission (for mom only) on Sunday, May 14. Mothers will also have free unlimited access to the Ferris wheel on the day of the event.

In addition, mommies will receive a free “lucky bag” by uploading a picture of themselves taken at locations inside TRTC to Facebook with “兒童新樂園” tag and verified by the facility’s customer service center. Each lucky bag contains one carnation, one beverage voucher (valid for the day only), and one free ride ticket (valid through May 31, 2017). Only 520 bags are available on a “first come, first served” basis.

For entire families who visit the Ifkids Children’s Theatre on Mother’s Day, they can take advantage of the “Buy One, Get One Free” deal. Moms who check-in on their Facebook page at either the VR World or the Kawai Candy Land will also receive a free round of entertainment at the respective facility.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/05/10
By: Rita Cheng, Tony Liao and Kuo Chung-han

Washington, May 9 (CNA) The United States “recognizes Taiwan’s continued

leadership on global health issues” and “continues to strongly support Taiwan’s participation as an observer” at World Health Assembly meetings, a U.S. official said on Tuesday.

The U.S. has welcomed Taiwan’s participation as an observer at the past eight WHA meetings, Grace Choi, East Asian and Pacific Affairs Bureau spokesperson in the U.S. Department of State, wrote in an email to CNA in response to a request for a comment on the issue.

She said the U.S. is encouraging authorities in Beijing and Taipei to “engage in constructive dialogue,” on the basis of dignity and respect.    [FULL  STORY]

LOOKING SOUTH:The planned NT$300 billion budget for railway construction in the program would address ‘transportation justice,’ Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan said

Taipei Times
Date: May 11, 2017
By: Chen Wei-han / Staff reporter

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) mayors and county commissioners yesterday

issued a joint statement urging the passage of the Forward-looking Infrastructure Development Program bill, which has been stalled in the legislature, while President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) ordered the DPP to make a concerted effort to ensure the bill’s passage.

In a rare move, all of the DPP’s mayors and county commissioners urged the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to stop obstructing the passage of the eight-year NT$882.4 billion (US$29.15 billion) program, with the mayors of the four DPP-ruled special municipalities attending a news conference advocating the program.

“We are not advocating the program for our own cities’ development … but for national unity and [efficient] resource allocation. Parties are urged to cease irrational opposition for the sake of the nation’s economy and equal regional development,” Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) said.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: May 11, 2017
By: The China Post news staff

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Kuomintang (KMT) chairmanship candidates hammered away on

party unity and reform on national TV at a debate organized by the CTI Television, marking the first of its kind in the party’s history.

In regards to securing solidarity from party members, incumbent Chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) said that she had been “leading as an example” by not complaining after she was suddenly removed as the party’s presidential candidate last year and continuing to serve the party.

Hung’s Vice KMT Chairman and former Taipei City Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) however hinted that Hung’s leadership could lead to deeper segregation among low level members of the party.    [FULL  STORY]

‘Chiang Kai-shek was the greatest single fighter of the CCP, bar none. He also led China through one of the darkest periods of its history, including a brutal war with Japan and two periods of civil war, which wrapped together were a central part of the greatest conflict in human history.’

The News Lens
Date: 2017/05/09
By: Adam Hatch

Chiang Kai-shek (蔣中正) has found himself in the news more than usual recently,

with beheadings of his statues and talk of removing them altogether around Taiwan.

In keeping with the theme, on May 6 The News Lens posted an opinion piece titled “Deleting the Generalissimo from Taiwan is the Right Move.” This piece implied that readers are of one mind regarding Chiang’s legacy, which is subjective and could be read as a narrow understanding of Taiwan and its plethora of political perspectives.

Chiang’s statues deserve to remain on public display. He’s too important of a figure and he did too much for Taiwan to banish all observance of his legacy to the Cihu Mausoleum in Taoyuan.    [FULL  STORY]

Major general met Chinese individuals in third countries

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/05/09
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Prosecutors were interrogating a major general who played

a senior role in Taiwan’s missile command on suspicion of spying for China, reports said Tuesday.

Major General Hsieh Chia-kang (謝嘉康) currently serves as the deputy chief of the Army’s command for the defense of Matsu (馬祖), a small island just off the coast of China’s Fujian Province.

Media were speculating that due to his history, the major general might have revealed important secrets about Taiwan’s missile deployment plans to China, which has over a thousand missiles of its own targeting the island.

Hsieh is believed to know just about everything there is to know about Taiwan’s locally made missiles and about the imported Patriot PAC-3 batteries, as well as about newly developed projectiles which could hit Shanghai.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/05/09
By: Elaine Hou and Lu Hsin-hui

Taipei, May 9 (CNA) Two Perry-class guided missile frigates Taiwan purchased from

the United States are expected to arrive in Kaohsiung later this week and be commissioned into service next year, according to the military.

The two frigates, built in the 1980s, were formally transferred to the Republic of China navy at a ceremony held March 9 in the U.S. state of South Carolina. They are expected to arrive at Zuoying Military Harbor in southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung May 13, the military said Tuesday.

After the two ships arrive in Taiwan, they will join the Navy’s 146th fleet, which is based on the outlying island of Penghu, and are responsible for patrolling the Taiwan Strait, the military said.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: May 10, 2017
By: Staff writer, with CNA

Two senior members of the US House of Representatives on Monday called for

continued support of Taiwan as it became clear that the nation would not be invited to the World Health Assembly (WHA) due to China’s obstruction.

The deadline to register for the event, which opens on May 22 in Geneva, Switzerland, passed on Monday, and Taiwan did not receive an invitation.

Representatives Ed Royce and Eliot Engel, the chairman and ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, made the call in a letter to US Secretary of Health and Human Services Thomas Price.    [FULL  STORY]