Radio Taiwan International
Date: 03 September, 2020
By: Paula Chao

My name is Yuanbao![/caption] The Taipei Zoo’s panda cub has been given the name “Yuanbao.” That’s according to an announcement the zoo made on Sunday.

The name Yuanbao received over 8,700 votes in a naming contest, beating out the runner-up, “Rourou.”

Taipei Zoo’s newborn Yuanbao is only about two months old, but she is already a media darling. Yuanbao spends most of her time sleeping and suckling milk.

Last week, the panda cub still didn’t know what her name was. Yuanbao or Rourou? Now, it’s official. After an online vote, the public chose Yuanbao as the baby panda’s name.
[FULL  STORY]

The Hill
Date: 09/03/20
By: David Sauer

Crucial to maintaining peace and stability in East Asia is protecting Taiwan’s thriving democracy. After the enactment of Hong Kong’s National Security Law and subsequent domination of Hong Kong’s democracy by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the Chinese government undoubtedly has refocused its rapacious gaze upon democratic Taiwan. As the only functioning Chinese language democracy in the world, Taiwan’s democracy and freedoms pose an existential threat to the CCP’s authoritarian rule over the Chinese people. 

The United States must stand with democratic Taiwan as it continues to confront China’s efforts to take over the island.  

Taiwan’s geopolitical importance to the United States stands without question. Enjoying one of the world’s freest societies, Taiwan’s population of approximately 23 million is roughly the same as Australia’s. Taiwan is a world leader in advanced technology, particularly in the semiconductor industry. CCP control of centers of technological excellence, such as Taiwan Semiconductor, would give China an enormous technological boost, potentially resulting in a strategic disaster for the United States.  

Geographically, Taiwan sits astride one of the busiest trade routes in the world. The government that controls Taiwan also thereby controls Japan’s and the Korean Peninsula’s sea lines of communication. Should China succeed in its designs to take over the island, it would not be surprising to see People’s Liberation Army (PLA) submarine bases spring up in order to deploy submarines into the deep waters of the Pacific Ocean, a move that likely would complicate U.S. Navy efforts to locate them.      [FULL  STORY]

Insiders worried Taiwanese personal data vulnerable to Chinese authorities invoking Hong Kong national security law

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/09/03
By: Sophia Yang, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

Taiwan's Ministry of Interior (MOI) revealed the design of new eID in 2019. (MOI photo)

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Nearly 24 million Taiwanese citizens might be at risk of exposure to personal data breaches as a result of the government's ambitions in the field of digital identification, as the foreign subcontractors for the new electronic identity (eID) cards are said to have assisted China with building ID systems in the past and are capable of trafficking huge amounts of Taiwanese biometric data to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) under the Hong Kong Security Law.

TECO Electric & Machinery Co. Ltd. (東元電機), the winner of the Taiwan’s eID contract, is currently under investigation for bidding with a falsified certificate of ISO 14298. The company was previously involved in a number of government projects, including the making of 20 million National Health Insurance cards in 2001, iPass in 2005, and the Alien Resident Certificate (ARC), according to the report.

People familiar with the matter told MirrorMedia that after winning the NT$3.29 billion (US$ 112 million) eID contract, TECO contracted the card production to several firms, including French Idemia and American Datacard, at the price of NT$2.8 billion in total. The two companies, however, are said to be working with the Chinese communist regime on different projects.

Idemia, formerly known as Morpho, is the global leader in providing biometric surveillance and security systems, and in the U.S., it is involved in the making of state-issued drivers licenses. With a sales office in Hong Kong offering digital identity and smart transaction solutions, the company is also assisting China with surveillance, ID systems, and biometric payments.
[FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 09/03/2020
By: Liu Shih-yi and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, Sept. 3 (CNA) The Taiwan High Court on Thursday upheld a lower court's ruling sentencing a Filipino man to four years in jail for sexually assaulting an American woman while she was on a flight from the United States to Taiwan last year.

The 40-year-old man from the Philippines Kenneth Bolivar Distura was found guilty of forcible sexual intercourse for intentionally sexually touching the woman sitting next to him and forcing her to engage in a sexual act against her will on a flight from Seattle to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Aug. 12, 2019, according to the Taipei District Court.

The district court in March sentenced Distura to four years in prison. After completing the jail term, he will be deported, the district court said.

According to the district court, Distura first chatted with the woman and found she was traveling alone. After she fell asleep, he started to touch her sexually, taking advantage of the lights being turned off during the flight.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Sep 04, 2020
By: William Hetherington / Staff writer, with CNA

A Brazilian artist who came to Taiwan to study after falling in love with the nation’s movies and music has written a comic book depicting a love story between a soccer player and a betel nut sales girl.

The Betel Nut Beauty (檳榔美少女) is Lucas Paixao’s first serialized work and his first publication, he said.

Paixao first came to Taiwan in 2014 as an exchange student at Taipei National University of the Arts’ School of Fine Arts, he said.

The series showcases his view of unique aspects of Taiwan’s culture, as well as his deep love for comics, critics have said.

Paixao, who was born in Salvador, Brazil, became a fan of Taiwanese all-girl pop group S.H.E when he was 12 years old, which motivated him to learn Mandarin and sparked his interest in Taiwanese culture, especially films and TV dramas.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 02 September, 2020
By: Natalie Tso

The US has published a report which has reiterated its support for the Taiwan Relations Act and its commitment to selling weapons to Taiwan so it can defend itself amidst a growing threat from China.

The US Department of Defense published its 2020 Report on Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China on Tuesday.     [FULL  STORY]

A U.S. military presence on Taiping Island or on Taiwan itself would be a serious provocation for China.

The National Interest
Date: September 2, 2020
By: Stratfor Worldview Follow @Stratfor on TwitterL

Here's What You Need To Remember: Access to Taiping would give the United States greater mobility in the South China Sea, as well as provide ammunition for rivals such as Vietnam or the Philippines to undermine Beijing's territorial claims.

Enhanced security cooperation between Taiwan and the United States could easily expand as the pair work to balance against China's increased military presence in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea. On Nov. 5, Taiwanese Defense Minister Yen Teh-fa told legislators that his government would consider allowing the U.S. Navy access to Taiping Island if Washington requested it. The remark is by no means conclusive, though Yen emphasized that the United States could be granted access for humanitarian or regional security operations if they aligned with Taiwan's interests.

Allowing the United States access to the island would further challenge the status quo at a time when the U.S. Navy is stepping up its presence in the Taiwan Strait. Over the past few months, U.S. warships have twice passed through the Taiwan Strait in a possible attempt to standardize patrols there or even pave the way for an aircraft carrier group to transit through. And in October, a U.S. Navy research ship docked in Taiwan's southern port city of Kaohsiung for refueling. Moreover, Taiwanese media has speculated that U.S. vessels will dock in Taiwan as part of naval exercises that are expected to occur in the region this month. However, U.S. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson declined to confirm or deny such a possibility.

Background

0Taiping, one of two islands Taiwan controls in the South China Sea, is the largest naturally occurring Spratly Island; 1.4 kilometers long and 400 meters wide (.87 miles and .25 miles, respectively). The island sits 1,600 kilometers away from Taiwan in the South China Sea Basin, and bears strategic importance as an ideal location from which to secure sea lanes and establish a presence in the disputed region. Thanks to its strategic location and resources — Taiping possesses ample fisheries and is the only one of the Spratly Islands with an indigenous supply of fresh water — the island has served as an important logistics base.    [FULL  STORY]

Magnitude 4.6 temblor rattles Taitung, Taiwan

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/09/02
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A magnitude 4.6 earthquake rocked southeastern Taiwan at 4:44 p.m. this afternoon (Sept. 2), according to the Central Weather Bureau (CWB).

The epicenter of the temblor was 5.5 kilometers east of Taitung County Hall at a focal depth of 34.5 kilometers, according to CWB data. Taiwan uses an intensity scale of 1 to 7, which gauges the degree to which a quake is felt at a specific location.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 09/02/2020
By: Chen Yun-yu and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, Sept. 2 (CNA) The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), the de facto U.S. embassy in Taiwan, on Wednesday hosted a commemorative ceremony to unveil a memorial in its new Neihu compound in Taipei to honor the 126 U.S. service members who lost their lives defending Taiwan since 1949.

The memorial includes medals and two framed certificates of the Republic of China Commemorative Medals of the Operations of Defending Taiwan conferred posthumously to Lt. Col. Alfred Medendorp and Lt. Col. Frank Lynn in February 2016 by former President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).

The medals and certificates will be displayed in the AIT's lobby to honor all U.S. personnel — past, present and future — who participated or will participate in the U.S.-Taiwan strategic partnership and support Taiwan's self-defense, said AIT Director Brent Christensen at the ceremony.

U.S.-Taiwan relationships continued following the conclusion of World War II and after the first Taiwan Strait crisis. At its peak, the U.S. military commanded a combined 30,000 service members, Christensen said.    [FULL  STORY]

FIRE AND FOOD SAFETY: While extra attention is required to prevent unwanted fires, bacteria in food offerings is also an issue, the FDA says

Taipei Times
Date: Sep 03, 2020
By: Dennis Xie / Staff writer, with CNA

The Taipei Fire Department on Tuesday, the eve of the Ghost Festival offered four tips on how to safely burn paper ghost money.

As it is custom in Taiwan to make offerings and burn ghost money to commemorate ancestors during the festival, which falls on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month every year, the department reminded people how to observe the tradition in a safe way.

First, people should be extra carious when burning ghost money and prevent any paper that is on fire from drifting up in the air and causing damage, the department said.

Second, if firecrackers are used as part of the ceremony, environmentally friendly firecrackers are better, it said.    [FULL  STORY]