Radio Taiwan International
Date: 19 August, 2020
By: Natalie Tso

The defense ministry says that a US warship passed through the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday.

In a rare move, the US Pacific Fleet published pictures of the transit on its Facebook page.

The US Pacific Fleet wrote,  “Sailors stand watch aboard USS Mustin (DDG 89) as the forward-deployed U.S. 7th Fleet guided-missile destroyer transits the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday.” It also wrote, “The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Mustin (DDG 89) conducts routine operations. Mustin is forward-deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations in support of security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.”     [FULL  STORY]

Sputnik International
Date: 19.08.2020
By: Demond Cureton

The developments come after the Chinese mainland streaming services were accused of operating via "illegal" routes with local service providers, according to a Taiwanese government minister.

The Taiwanese government has announced it will ban Chinese tech giants Tencent and iQIYI in September after passing a revised law blocking local partners from providing services to the mainland firms, Variety reported on Wednesday.

Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs said on Tuesday that OTT operators in mainland China will lose access to businesses in the island nation. The news comes as the government launches a two-week public consultation, with a final copy of the law set to enter force on 3 September.
[FULL  STORY]

Radio Free Asia
Date: 2020-08-19

Authorities in Taiwan are set to fully ban Chinese streaming platforms iQiyi and Tencent from operating on the democratic island, removing a final loophole that had routed their content via Hong Kong-listed partner companies.

The economic affairs ministry said it will prohibit Chinese media companies from sending their content to Taiwan via subsidiaries, with effect from early next month.

Taiwan's communications regulator said it will ban individuals, companies, and other organizations from transmitting content originating in China via the internet from Sept. 3.

"Violators will be investigated and dealt with by the National Communications Commission," the economic affairs ministry said in an announcement on its website dated Aug. 18.
[FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/19/2020
By: Wu Che-hao, Sunrise Huang,
Chen Chih-chung and Chiang Yi-ching

Taipei, Aug. 19 (CNA) Health Minister Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC), on Wednesday defended his decision to launch an investigation into the Changhua County Health Bureau, saying it was not clear why the bureau had tested an asymptomatic teenager for COVID-19 after his recent return from the United States.

Amid pushback from scholars and Changhua officials, Chen said the purpose of the investigation was not to penalize anyone but rather to find out what really happened.

At the heart of the issue is the case of a Taiwanese teenager who was confirmed Monday to have COVID-19, after he was tested two days before by the Changhua County Health Bureau.

The teenager, who lives in the U.S., had no symptoms of the disease upon arrival in Taiwan on Aug. 5 or while he was in quarantine, yet the county's health bureau had him tested on Aug. 15, the CECC said.    [FULL  STORY]

NEW RULES: Hotels must apply to local governments to be certified as facilities for COVID-19 quarantines, while personel must receive disease prevention training

Taipei Times
Date: Aug 20, 2020
By: Lee I-chia / Staff reporter

The Central Epidemic Command Center yesterday announced that people in quarantine can only stay at certified “quarantine hotels” if they choose to be quarantined at a hotel.

The Taipei City Government on Monday ordered non-quarantine hotels in the city, which accommodated 683 people in quarantine, to refer them to certified “quarantine hotels” by Friday, or it would publish the hotel’s names.

The center on Monday said that people in quarantine could also stay at general hotels if they conform to quarantine rules.

The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday said that it opposes allowing ordinary hotels to accept guests who are undergoing mandatory quarantine, saying that the capacity of quarantine hotels should be expanded instead.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan Intwernational
Date: 18 August, 2020
By: Shirley Lin

Taiwan’s representative to Canada Winston Chen on Monday said he hopes that  Canada would follow in the footsteps of the US and send Cabinet-level officials to Taiwan. Chen was cited in an opinion piece in the Canadian newspaper The Hill Times.

US Health Secretary Alex Azar’s recent visit to Taiwan was the highest level trip by a US official since 1979. Chen said the visit was historic for Taiwan-US relations. Azar’s visit indicated that diplomatic activities can be carried out despite the absence of formal diplomatic relations. 
[FULL  STORY]

Daily Caller
Date: August 18, 2020
By: Anders Hagstrom, White House Correspondent

The United States has made a 10-year, $62 billion weapons deal with Taiwan for the sale of 90 F-16 fighters, the Agence France-Presse reported Tuesday.

The U.S. has long been Taiwan’s largest supplier of military weapons and the deal represents one of the largest in the nation’s history. The move is sure to anger China, which considers Taiwan to be under its domain. Under the contract, Lockheed Martin will produce 90 new-generation F-16s for sale to Taiwan. Taiwan last purchased a fleet of F-16s in 1992, according to the Asia Times.

While the Pentagon has announced the sale of 90 jets, it has not yet confirmed publicly that Taiwan is the buyer. The AFP has reported, however, that sources close to the deal have confirmed the buyer.

The U.S. government last year approved Taiwan for the purchase of 66 jets, but the new contract has been increased amid President Donald Trump’s increasing criticism of China.
[FULL  STORY]

Sign says ducks keeping cool with AC in New Taipei convenience store

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/08/18
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Photos showing ducks hanging out in a convenience store in New Taipei and a sign explaining that they were just there to enjoy the air conditioning during the sweltering Taiwanese summer went viral over the weekend.

On Saturday (Aug. 15), Twitter user Nala (@nalalandoz) shared a photo of two ducks standing next to a freezer and another photo of a handwritten sign at the checkout counter that read in Chinese, "Those are ducks. They aren't raised by us, they came here to cool off with the air conditioning." In the three days since, the post has gained 13,000 likes, 3,430 retweets, and 136 comments.

A couple of netizens who commented below claimed to have seen the ducks recently in a shop that is next to the Sanhe Night Market in New Taipei City's Sanchong District. One netizen wrote that the ducks belong to a Tempura stand owner next door.

In response, some netizens mentioned another convenience store where a cute corgi is often spotted. Another speculated that the sign had been put in place after the clerks had been badgered about the ducks on too many occasions.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/18/2020
By: Chang Hsiung-feng, Wu Hsin-yun,
Su Szu-yun and Chiang Yi-ching

Taipei, Aug. 18 (CNA) Labor groups on Tuesday praised a proposed minimum wage hike for this year, while industry representatives expressed disappointment, saying that it would create a greater burden for businesses amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Basic Wage Deliberation Committee, convened by the Ministry of Labor and comprised of workers, employers and scholars, said Tuesday that the minimum monthly wage in Taiwan should be raised NT$200 (US$6.8) to NT$24,000, while the minimum hourly wage should increase NT$2 to NT$160.

The proposal still needs to be approved by the Cabinet. If passed, it will apply to all workers in Taiwan except for foreign domestic workers, who are not covered under the Labor Standards Act.

The Taiwan Labour Front welcomed the proposal, saying in a statement that a rise in the minimum wage would make a tangible improvement in the lives of workers.   [FULL  STORY]