Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/12/28
By: Zoe Wei and Evelyn Kao
Taipei, Dec. 28 (CNA) Former workers of the defunct RCA
CNA file photo
factory in Taoyuan, who died from cancer due to exposure to toxic chemicals, as well as their next of kin, are eligible to receive at least NT$200,000 each in occupational hazard compensation from the labor insurance fund, the Occupational Safety Health Council said Monday. [FULL STORY]
Taiwan News
Date: 2015-12-28
By: Ko Lin, Taiwan News, Staff Writer
The National Police Agency (NPA) revealed Monday that the Indonesian police
Marijuana bound for Taiwan seized: NPA.
have seized 1,700 kilograms of marijuana destined for Taiwan with a combined market value of nearly NT$200 million (US$6.1 million).
The bust was the results of a combined effort with Indonesian authorities that a drug-smuggling ring planned to smuggle marijuana into Taiwan from Jakarta before the Chinese New Year holiday.
The NPA said Taiwan has been providing Indonesian police with intelligence about criminal activities involving Taiwanese nationals suspected of controlling the manufacture, shipment and trade of drugs from abroad. [FULL STORY]
Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/12/28
By: Christie Chen
Taipei, Dec. 28 (CNA) Taipei and Kaohsiung, the two largest cities in Taiwan,
CNA file photo
have teamed up on the issue of same-sex partnership registration, agreeing to allow such partnerships registered in one city to be effective in the other beginning on Jan. 1.
As of Nov. 30, 44 same-sex couples had registered their partnerships in Taipei’s household records since the city began allowing such registration in June 2015, Taipei’s Department of Civil Affairs said Monday.
The collaboration will allow the two cities to share records, and if couples move their household registration to the other city, they will not have to re-register their partnership, the department said. [FULL STORY]
Taiwan Today
Date: December 28, 2015
A service center aimed at introducing 3-D printing technology to Taiwan’s sand
Premier Mao Chi-kuo (center) is joined by other officials in inaugurating the 3-D printing center for sand casting Dec. 26 in southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung City. (CNA)
casting industry commenced operations Dec. 26 in Kaohsiung City.
In the inauguration ceremony, Premier Mao Chi-kuo said this is just the beginning of many government measures to promote innovation among Taiwan’s traditional industries and reposition them in global supply chains.
“By creating a better and more challenging work environment, the project will bring about a revolutionary change and transform the industry into one driven by advanced technology and innovation,” Mao said, adding that it will also encourage the involvement of the younger generations. [FULL STORY]
Concern over the concentration of fine particulate matter measuring 25 micrometers in diameter or smaller (PM2.5) has taken center stage in protests targeting industrial polluters, particularly Formosa Plastics Group’s naphtha cracker in Yunlin County. National Taiwan University College of Public Health associate dean Chan Chang-chuan, who has conducted epidemiological studies on the cracker’s effects on the health of local residents, shared his views on the issue of pollution in an interview with Chen Wei-han of the ‘Taipei Times’
Taipei Times
Date: Dec 29, 2015
By: Chen Wei-han / Staff reporter
Taipei Times: What are the health risks associated with PM2.5? Which activity
National Taiwan University public health professor Chan Chang-chuan poses for a photograph during an interview on Dec. 10 in Taipei. Photo: Chen Wei-han, Taipei Times
contributes the most to PM2.5 emissions? What are the health risks posed by coal-fired power plants and Formosa Plastics Group’s naphtha cracker in Yunlin?
Chan Chang-chuan (詹長權): The most obvious health effect of PM2.5 exposure is increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, strokes, lung cancer, chronic lung diseases and central nervous system disorders. Children exposed to PM2.5 could develop asthma and respiratory diseases. According to the studies we have conducted, the health effects of the naphtha cracker can be observed most clearly among residents living within 10km of the compound, where the occurrence of cancer has tripled. [FULL STORY]
Taiwan News
Date: 2015-12-27
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer
Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen Sunday urged
Tsai urges voters to turn Taiwan around.
voters to turn Taiwan around by voting for her and DPP legislative candidates during the conclusion of the first presidential debate.
She mentioned a story about her campaign head and Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu. She said when Chen was arrested by ruling KMT for her role in the Formosa Incident and sentenced to death, Chen was told to write a will, but she had no idea for whom she should write the will, so she wrote a will for people of Taiwan. Tsai said because of people like Chen, today the three presidential candidates can stand on the same stage to debate. [FULL STORY]
Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/12/27
By: Chen Wei-ting and Evelyn Kao
Taipei, Dec. 27 (CNA) The government has raised its travel warning for South
CNA file photo
and Central America because of a recent increase in confirmed cases of Zika virus infection in some countries there, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said Sunday.
The CDC cautioned local citizens to take precautions against mosquito bites if they plan to travel to South or Central America, adding that the government has raised its travel warning for these regions to the level of “Watch.”
As there is no vaccine or medication for Zika, travelers to these regions are advised to use insect repellent, wear protective clothing, and stay in lodgings where there are mosquito screens on windows and doors, the CDC added. [FULL STORY]
BEYOND RECOGNITIONThe bodies found at the Miaoli factory were so burned that their genders could not be immediately determined, the fire department said
Taipei Times
Date: Dec 28, 2015
By: Staff writer, with CNA
Seven workers were killed and four injured in a fire yesterday morning at a joss
Inspectors from the Miaoli County Fire Bureau’s Fire Investigation Section yesterday examine the scene of a joss paper factory fire in Houlong Township that killed seven workers and injured four. Photo: Chang Hsun-teng, Taipei Times
paper factory in Miaoli County’s Houlong Township (後龍).
The blaze was strong enough to destroy the two-story sheet metal factory covering 70 ping (231.4m2).
Firefighters rushed to battle the blaze which trapped 15 workers inside the building. Of the 15 workers, three men and one woman were injured and rushed to a local hospital, with the woman suffering life-threatening injuries, the fire department said.
Seven bodies found at the scene were so burned that their gender scould not be immediately determined, the fire department said, adding that they were later identified as females, all from other parts of Taiwan.
Tsai Chung-keng (蔡忠耿), 31, one of the injured workers, said he woke up in time to escape the blaze and then climbed to the second floor of the building, removing windows and rescuing his wife. His wife suffered burns to 90 percent of her body and was transferred to a hospital in Taichung. [FULL STORY]
Asia One
Date: Dec 26, 2015
Christmas has always been a family affair for 18-year-old Megan Loy.
But the holiday takes on a special meaning this year for the Singaporean, who
Singaporean burn victim Megan Loy, who had suffered severe burns on 80 per cent of her body after a huge fire broke out at a water park in Taipei on June 27. Photo: The Straits Times
suffered serious burns on up to 80 per cent of her body when a blaze broke out at the Colour Play Asia festival in Taipei on June 27.
“I now live life with no regrets. I feel like if I had died that day, my biggest regret would probably be not telling my family that I love them enough,” said Megan, who was flown to Singapore on June 30, and discharged from the Burns Centre at Singapore General Hospital (SGH) at the end of October.
Her burn wounds have now been reduced to less than 5 per cent of her body after nine skin grafts.
The family did away with exchanging Christmas gifts last year and donated to the underprivileged instead. Since Megan’s 15-year-old sister Lauren returned from Shanghai two weeks ago, they have been spending the holidays simply, in each other’s company.
– See more at: http://news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/taipei-fire-survivor-lives-no-regrets#sthash.PzDTAhfE.dpuf
Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/12/26
By: Lee Hsin-Yin
Taipei, Dec. 26 (CNA) Taipei has topped all administrative areas across Taiwan 
in pedestrian deaths in traffic accidents so far this year, with 23 fatalities, data from local police departments showed.
The number of those dying within 24 hours after a traffic accident hit 74, including 23 pedestrians, 39 motorbike riders and six cyclists, according to the Traffic Division of Taipei City Police Department.
Among the 23 deceased, 17 were aged 65 or older, transport official Chung Hui-yu (鍾慧諭) said, adding that they were most likely involved in the accidents because they could not see clearly and move fast enough to avoid oncoming vehicles.
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) has demanded related authorities draft up plans to improve the situation and educate vehicle drivers to yield to pedestrians in traffic. [FULL STORY]
