STEPPING UP? Mom Loves Taiwan secretary-general Yang Shun-mei said that the New Taipei City Government is most likely incapable of handling a nuclear disaster

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 16, 2019
By: Lin Chia-nan  /  Staff reporter

Nuclear power opponents yesterday invited President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), New Taipei

City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) and Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) to participate in a parade on Saturday next week to stand up against nuclear waste disposal.

Tsai was approached because her administration came up with the “nuclear-free homeland by 2025” policy and because three nuclear power plants in New Taipei City are near Taipei, National Anti-Nuclear Action Platform spokesperson Tsuei Su-hsin (崔愫欣) told a news conference outside the Presidential Office Building in Taipei.

In February, Hou said that he was not opposed to using nuclear power, but safety was his chief concern, after former New Taipei City mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) had earlier that month announced that he would consider starting up the mothballed Fourth Nuclear Power Plant if he is elected president next year.

Chu’s remarks drew criticism due to his previous opposition to storing nuclear waste in New Taipei City, at Shihmen District’s (石門) Jinshan Nuclear Power Plant and in Wanli District’s (萬里) Guosheng Nuclear Power Plant.    [FULL  STORY]

Firstpost
Date: Apr 13, 2019
By: Lakshmi Govindrajan Javeri

I don’t think I can ever forget “Penguin’s” laugh. The Taiwanese name of this six-year-old girl sounds rather similar to the word “penguin”, yet the language barrier was rendered irrelevant by her hearty, resounding laughter that reverberated through the corridors of the magnificent Fo Guang Shan monastery in Kaohsiung.

The largest Buddhist monastery in Taiwan, it was our final major sightseeing halt in the week-long sojourn before we wound down for the day and geared up for the flight back home.

Ageless in Taiwan

In essence, she was everything that Taiwan stands for: Young yet steeped in ancient cultural legacy, while being infectiously genuine with a powerful, all-embracing attitude to the world.

Despite all my research and preparation for the trip, I was pleasantly surprised at how this island is actually a bit of a time machine. It is a young economy that straddles rich heritage dating back centuries on the one hand, and world-famous ultra high-tech modernity on the other. One may say that this feeling of balancing the ancient with the futuristic is typical of the region, with countries like China and Japan leading the pack. Yet, Taiwan’s geographical, historical and cultural lineage coupled with its unique political landscape gives it a distinct identity.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/04/13
By: Elaine Hou and Ko Lin 

Taipei, April 13 (CNA) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) called Saturday for the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) to invite Taiwan to participate in its general assembly this year, stressing that China has no right to represent Taiwan.

Taiwan, officially designated the Republic of China (ROC), was a member state of Interpol until 1984, when the People’s Republic of China (PRC) was admitted into the world body. Taiwan decided to withdraw after Interpol sought to change the country’s official name from the ROC to “China Taiwan.”

Responding to media reports suggesting that Interpol has again declined to invite Taiwan to the annual event, MOFA spokesman Andrew Lee (李憲章) said that “Taiwan is not part of China and the latter has no right to represent the country on the international stage.”

Only the democratically elected government of the country can be responsible for the wellbeing of Taiwan’s 23 million people, Lee said.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International 
Date: 12 April, 2019
By: Jake Chen

KMT lawmakers have blocked the nominee for new chair of the Central Election Commission from going through the review process.

The position has sat vacant since former chair Chen Ing-chin resigned amid criticism of his handling of last November’s elections.

Premier Su Tseng-chang nominated former Yunlin County Magistrate Lee Chin-yung for the job in February. The review of Lee’s nomination was scheduled to take place at the Legislature Thursday.

However, the nomination drew strong opposition from KMT lawmakers.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan Today
Date: April 12, 2019

Every spring, throngs of worshippers parade through cities and counties across Taiwan alongside palanquins bearing statues of Mazu, goddess of the sea. These pilgrimages are among the most anticipated annual religious events in the country, drawing large numbers of revelers and curious onlookers from home and abroad.

Mazu is the most revered deity in Taiwan, with the country home to an estimated 10 million believers and 2,300 temples dedicated to the goddess. The pilgrimages are typically held around the end of March and beginning of April. The exact date is determined at the start of the year by asking the deity through the casting of moon blocks, crescent-shaped wooden divination tools.

These events allow devotees to express gratitude to the goddess and seek blessings. Bowing and crawling beneath the palanquin, in particular, are thought to bring good fortune. As the processions pass through towns and villages, followers kneel in the middle of the road, waiting for the deity to pass over them.

Huang Wan-ping, a 29-year-old who has participated in six processions, said she was deeply touched by the devotion of participants when she first took part in the Baishatun Mazu Pilgrimage. Setting off from Gong Tian Temple in northern Taiwan’s Miaoli County, the Baishatun event is known for adhering to the old tradition of not following a fixed route, but allowing the deity to determine the path.    [FULL  STORY]

The five minute film is entitled ’40’

Taiwan News 
Date: 2019/04/12
By: Duncan DeAeth, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – In honor of the 40th anniversary of the Taiwan Relations Act, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been hosting various events under the theme of “TRA @40: An Enduring Partnership.”

As part of the campaign to highlight the importance of Taiwan and U.S. relations, MOFA has organized several events and event produced a short film on the topic, entitled simply “40” (四十).

The short film, just five and a half minutes, was uploaded online on Wednesday, April 10, the date that the Taiwan Relations Act was signed into law in 1979 by the Carter Administration.

The film gives the audience a glimpse of an aging professor, who is visiting Taiwan to meet an old friend in the current year.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date 2019/04/12
By: Wen Kuei-hsiang and Ko Lin

Taipei, April 12 (CNA) U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State David Meale told

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) Friday that the United States looks forward to deepening its economic relations with Taiwan.

During their meeting at the Presidential Office, Meale said the U.S. government is focused on promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific strategy that enables its private sector and economies throughout the region to engage in meaningful economic interactions.

He also thanked Taiwan for its support of the U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy, while noting that there is a lot for the two sides to discuss about “how to move forward on unleashing the power of the private sector from western India to the western United States.”

“Obviously, we have much to build upon in terms of the enduring nature of our economic relationship and moving forward together to deepen its potential,” he added.
[FULL  STORY]