NextShark
Date: ·October 11, 2019
By: Carl Samson·

A Taiwanese man who succumbed to liver cancer in 2006 is posthumously touching people’s hearts as advanced birthday letters for his young daughter emerged on Facebook earlier this week.

The man penned the letters for his child from when she was 2 in 2007 until she turns 20 in 2025, according to the daughter’s mother, Bella Chu.

Chu and her daughter in 2016. Image via Facebook / Bella Chu

Their daughter, who was born in January 2005, is now in her third year of junior high school.

Despite feeling weak, her father wrote all 19 letters in May 2006, the month before he died.

Convinced that their daughter was too young to understand the letters, Chu kept them to herself until now, when she finally returns them to their rightful owner.    [FULL  STORY]

Two academics offer perspectives on recent Lennon Wall vandalism incidents

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/10/11
By: Liao, Jo-Luen , Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Recent reports of Chinese students vandalizing pro-Hong Kong Lennon Walls have sparked conflicts on Taiwanese university campuses, and scholars have expressed different perspectives on the incidents.

Zheng Zhi-peng (鄭志鵬), associate professor at National Tsing Hua University, said that despite a series of similar events occurring in schools, only a few Chinese students were involved. Therefore, he cautions people against making hasty generalizations, reported CNA.

According to Zheng, these incidents of vandalism reflect the collective anxiety of Chinese students, which can be traced to three sources:

1. Xi’s promotion of the “Chinese Dream” has invoked nationalism and the desire for international recognition and respect.
2. Hong Kong's anti-extradition movement has resulted in Taiwanese viewing the Chinese government as untrustworthy since the current situation demonstrates it has breached the one country, two systems principle, putting unification even further out of reach.
3. Taiwanese students are increasingly aware of Chinese tactics to influence Taiwan, and when such topics are discussed with Chinese students, quarrels easily break out.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/10/11
By: Chiu Chun-chin and Chi Jo-yao

Taipei, Oct. 11 (CNA) Vice President Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) said he will again invite Pope Francis

to visit Taiwan when he attends the canonization of late British Cardinal John Henry Newman and four others on Oct. 13 in Vatican City.

The vice president made the remark at Taoyuan International Airport on Thursday evening before he departed Taiwan as the special envoy of President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) for the canonization, during which he is expected to meet with the pontiff.

Chen said Taiwan and the Holy See, Taiwan's only diplomatic ally in Europe, enjoy close relations and work together on humanitarian aid, preventing human trafficking and facilitating cultural and religious exchanges.

The vice president said Taiwan will go on supporting Pope Francis' work to spread the messages of religious freedom, social justice and care for the underprivileged.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Oct 12, 2019
By: Lo Chi and Sherry Hsiao  /  Staff reporter, with staff writer

The Executive Yuan’s Consumer Protection Committee has warned people not to drink directly from

disposable cups sealed with plastic, as the ink near its rim might not be safe to ingest.

Since the Environmental Protection Administration’s ban on single-use plastic straws at dine-in venues went into effect on July 1, many people have started to drink directly from disposable cups after peeling off the plastic seal, the department said.

However, most of the disposable cups that stores use to serve drinks are printed with bright colors and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has no regulations on the ink that may appear on the edges of those cups, committee officer Wang Te-ming (王德明) said on Monday.

To protect consumer safety, the FDA should ensure that the local health departments provide guidance to drinkware manufacturers to reduce the use of ink near the rims of the cups, he said.
[FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 09 October, 2019
By: Shirley Lin

Former president Ma Ying-jeou (left) and KMT chair Wu Den-yih (right) will be attending national day celebration.[/caption] Former President Ma Ying-jeou and Kuomintang chair Wu Den-yih will be attending the national day celebrations on Thursday. Both Ma and Wu have been present at the celebrations each year since President Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party took office in 2016.

Meanwhile, People First Party Secretary-General Lee Hung-chun said Wednesday that party chair James Soong will be attending the event as well. Lee said that Soong will attend both as a citizen and in his capacity as chair of the People First Party.    [SOURCE]

Epoch Times
Date: October 9, 2019
By: Frank Fang

TAIPEI, Taiwan—A mainland Chinese tourist has been kicked out of Taiwan on Oct. 8, after he was charged for intentionally destroying a “Lennon Wall” erected by local supporters of the ongoing Hong Kong protests.

Li Shaodong, 30, was arrested after he tore down posters plastered on a wall inside the campus of National Taiwan University (NTU) on Oct. 7 morning and tried to flee the scene. At many college campuses in Taiwan, students have put up such Lennon Walls, large mosaics of post-it notes and posters that convey messages of solidarity with the Hong Kong protesters.

Li’s actions were caught on video by an NTU student.

Mass demonstrations in Hong Kong against a now-suspended extradition bill have since broadened to include calls for greater democracy. Now in their 18th consecutive week, the protests against Beijing’s growing encroachment upon Hong Kong affairs enjoy enormous support in Taiwan. Some locals have supported drives to donate helmets and gas masks to Hong Kong protesters, while others have joined local rallies to voice support for the demonstrations.
[FULL  STORY]

Vietnamese masseur indicted for raping female college student while boyfriend was on other side of curtain in Taipei spa

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/10/09
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Vietnamese migrant worker has been indicted for allegedly sexually

assaulting a Taiwanese college student while her boyfriend was being massaged on the other side of the curtain.

Unaccounted for Vietnamese worker Nguyen Minh Duc, 31, has been indicted by the Taipei District Prosecutor's Office on charges of aggravated forcible sexual intercourse (強制性交罪) among other crimes. Prosecutors allege that he used a false identity after absconding from his employer to work in a massage parlor.

Nguyen came to Taiwan in August 2014 as a migrant worker. However, in August of 2015, his employer reported that he had absconded from the worksite and that his residence permit was revoked.

In order to avoid arrest and secure employment, Nguyen obtained a copy of the ID of a Taiwanese national surnamed Ho (何) from a compatriot. In July of this year, Nguyen used the fake ID to land a job at a massage parlor on Kaifeng Street in Taipei City.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/10/09
By: Wu Po-wei and Joseph Yeh

Taipei, Oct. 9 (CNA) A newly built Muslim prayer room is now open to visitors at the Taipei 101 tower, one of the top tourist attractions in the country, as part of an effort to create a Muslim-friendly environment, a member of the building management staff said Wednesday.

Each year, tens of thousands of visitors, including tourists from Muslim countries, visit the iconic building in Taipei's Xinyi business district, according to Elva Huang (黃瓊萱), who is in charge of tourism and marketing at Taipei 101.

To cater to Muslims visitors and to show respect for their religious beliefs, a Muslim prayer room was recently constructed on the fifth floor of Taipei 101, Huang told CNA.

The Muslim prayer room is now open for use by anyone, once they make the request at the information center in the building, she said.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Oct 10, 2019
By: Staff writer, with CNA

The Hualien District Court on Tuesday sentenced three people involved in the construction of a residential building in Hualien City to five years in prison each for 14 deaths caused by the partial collapse of the building during an earthquake last year.

The court convicted the project’s developer, Liu Ying-lin (劉英麟), its architect, Yu Te-jung (游德榮), and its civil engineer, Chen Chen-hsiang (陳禎祥), on charges of negligent homicide.

The ruling can be appealed.

The magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck eastern Hualien County at 11:50pm on Feb. 6 last year, with an intensity level of 7 — the highest on Taiwan’s 7-tier intensity scale.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 08 October, 2019
By: Paula Chao

President Tsai Ing-wen says the government would like to thank Eswatini for its strong support for Taiwan’s bid to participate in the international community.  Tsai was speaking Tuesday while meeting with visiting Eswatini Prime Minister Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini.

Dlamini is leading a delegation to attend the National Day celebrations on October 10. This is his first visit to Taiwan.    [FULL  STORY]