Taipei’s Minsheng Junior High School has become the first public high school in Taiwan to have gender-neutral restrooms.

Taiwan News
Date: 2016/11/21
By: Wendy Lee , Taiwan News, Staff Writer

Taipei’s Minsheng Junior High School has become the first public high school in Taiwan to have gender-neutral restrooms.

A sticker bearing the words “All Gender Restroom” is placed on the entrance to a bathroom at Minsheng, and is meant to provide a unisex facility that is private and safe for all regardless of gender or sexual orientation.

Taipei City Deputy Mayor Chen Chin-jun said on Monday that the school’s recent addition of gender-neutral restrooms is a practical application that can help raise cultural awareness of gender inclusiveness.

Europe has used gender-neutral restrooms for decades, while some universities in Taiwan such as Shih Hsin University and National Cheng Kung University have also introduced gender-neutral restrooms on campuses, but it is only recently Taiwan’s government made a push for more gender-neutral bathrooms in government departments and agencies, he said.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/11/21
By: Wang Shu-fen and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, Nov. 21 (CNA) Accidental damage to electric transmission lines on a Chu-Kuang Express (莒光號) train at Qidu Station in Keelung on Monday caused a disruption of rail services in the area for about four hours.

After the accident occurred at 1:17 p.m., trains from Qidu to Yilan and Xizhi were allowed to travel only in one direction and were running 10-17 minutes late. Some 55 trains carrying 9,800 passengers were affected by the problem.

The damage to the power system was repaired at 5:45 p.m. and rail services on the lines returned to normal shortly after.    [SOURCE]

IN DENIAL:When people unable to book tickets with TransAsia began to suspect serious problems, the airline at first refused to admit it was planning to suspend flights

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 22, 2016
By: Shelley Shan / Staff reporter

The Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) yesterday confirmed that TransAsia Airways (復興航空) is

to suspend services for one day today, adding that the airline could be fined up to NT$3 million (US$93,750) for halting flights without seeking prior approval.

CAA Deputy Director-General Fang Chih-wen (方志文) said that the administration had not known that TransAsia planned to suspend services until it received a telephone call from the airline yesterday afternoon, adding that the company had not submitted an application requesting the cessation.

The company also did not explain during the phone conversation with the administration why it had taken the decision, he said.

This is probably the first time that a domestic airline has halted flights without the CAA’s approval, he said, adding that the company has contravened the Civil Aviation Act (民用航空法).    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: November 22, 2016
By: Kuan-lin Liu

National Taiwan University’s labor union and graduate student association published a petition Sunday

demanding that allegations of academic fraud by faculty be investigated by an independent committee.

This petition came after a press conference held by NTU President Yang Pan-chyr (楊泮池) on Saturday, during which he responded to allegations NTU faculty had committed academic fraud by saying that graduate students would be required to take an academic ethics class in the future.

Immediately following the press conference, NTU Labor Union Secretary General Tseng Chih-hua (曾稚驊) responded to Yang’s comments, saying the president was using “technical issues” as a cover-up for political ones in academia.

Tseng said the demands placed on academics to produce scholarly articles had created a breeding ground for academic fraud.

Professors throw their graduate students under the bus at the first sign of trouble and blame them for not paying more attention in their research, he said.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: November 21, 2016
By: The China Post news staff

TAIPEI, Taiwan — The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) promised Sunday to continue its

investigation into a two-decades-old mass murder case, although the statute of limitations on the case was set to expire on Monday.

New clues into the case emerged last week, after a key figure in the investigation came forward following a fatefully timed dream.

CIB Deputy Commissioner Huang Chia-lu told the Central News Agency that the bureau “will not give up on any clues and will continue to investigate the case.”

Eight people, including then-Taoyuan County Magistrate Liu Pang-yu (劉邦友), were killed on Nov. 21, 1996.

Then-City Councilor Teng Wen-chang (鄧文昌) was the only one of nine people gathered at Liu’s residence in Taoyuan to survive. He suffered major injuries and memory loss during the incident.    [FULL  STORY]

The parents of the battered woman said, “We can’t help because she has fallen in love. We can only wish her a happy life.”

Taiwan News
Date: 2016/11/20
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

A middle-aged Canadian man pummeled his Taiwanese girlfriend to the ground in open view of many

bystanders in Taipei around midnight on Sunday, but the victim refused to press charges.

Witnesses of the scuffle reported the incident to local police, who arrived at the scene shortly after they received the report and immediately separated the couple and sent the injured woman to hospital.

According an investigation by the police, the couple has been reported to have been involved in physical conflicts with each other after drinking on three previous occasions. However, each time after they sobered up, neither party would press charges.

According to police investigation, the 24-year-old woman surnamed Chen, who is a college student in Taipei, and her 40-year-old Canadian boyfriend, who was only identified by his first name “Dennis,” had an argument on the street at the intersection of Keelung Road and Leye Street. The argument soon escalated into a brawl that resulted in the woman being pummeled to the ground by the man and her glasses being shattered on the sidewalk. There were also traces of blood on the paper bag she left behind, police said.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/11/20
By: You Kai-hsiang and Bear Lee

Taipei, Nov. 20 (CNA) The United States will not play any role in a Taiwan drill scheduled to be held in the South South China Sea at the end of this month, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said Sunday evening.

The joint drill will focus on humanitarian rescue missions and be led by the CGA with support from the Navy in line with the policy of the Navy supporting Coast Guard Administration operations

CGA in a press release denied local media reports that the U.S. will send observers to join the drill in the waters around the Taiwan-controlled Taipei Island.

“The reports are totally untrue,” CGA said.

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has instructed that Taiping Island — the largest island in the South China Sea — should be turned into a center for humanitarian rescue and a supply base, following an international arbitration court ruling in July that Taiping is a “rock.”    [FULL  STORY]

‘SHARED DAILY EXPERIENCES’:The former president said that personal exchanges would allow people in China to better understand the ‘value of Taiwan’s existence’

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 21, 2016
By: Lu Yi-hsuan and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writer

Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) on Saturday called for respect for every individual’s sexual

orientation, as he met with Asian students at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana to discuss a number of issues, including the value of Taiwan’s democratic system, gay rights and the importance of increased cultural exchanges with China.

He made the remarks at a forum held by the university, addressing students from Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau and China on the subject of cross-strait relations.

Ma, on his first trip to the US since leaving office in May, began by saying that Taiwan-China relations could be “natural” if they are based on “shared daily experiences,” such as exchanges between students.

Praising Taiwan’s democratic system, Ma said that it is imperative that the decisions made by individuals in Taiwan be free of social interference, and he expressed his belief that society would make the right decision on the legislature’s draft bills to legalize same-sex marriage through the democratic process.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: November 21, 2016
By: Stephanie Chao

TAIPEI, Taiwan — R.O.C. envoy James Soong (宋楚瑜) had “natural and friendly interaction” with

Chinese leader Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders’ summit in Peru, a Taiwan delegation member said Sunday.

Soong and Xi discussed the cross-strait economy and trade issues during a brief exchange before the APEC Business Advisory Council Dialogue, said lawmaker Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞), an adviser in Taiwan’s APEC delegation.

After exchanging pleasantries, Soong said Taiwan hoped China would reaffirm its pledge to look out for Taiwan’s small and medium-sized enterprises, Lee said.

“It was all very natural,” Lee said. “Xi took the initiative to remark that James Soong appeared to be wearing the same tie he wore at their previous meeting two years ago. That’s how natural it was.”

Neither Soong nor government officials have confirmed that it was the same orange tie, Soong’s trademark accessory.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: November 20, 2016
By: The China Post news staff

National Taiwan University (NTU) President Yang Pan-chyr fought back Saturday against academic

fraud allegations targeting himself and other researchers at the school, appearing to try to shift the blame to the media and coauthors.

Reports emerged in the past week that 11 papers published by an NTU research team had been identified as “problematic” on PubPeer, a website that allows users to leave feedback on academic articles.

The papers, four of which Yang coauthored, were said to have serious flaws, including images of test results that had allegedly been digitally altered.

Professor Kuo Min-liang, who led the research team, apologized for the controversy and stood down earlier in the week.

But Yang defended his work at a press conference Saturday, saying none of his four articles had been retracted.   [FULL  STORY]