Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-10-14

President Tsai Ing-wen says she hopes that think tanks will help the government find

Taiwan’s place in a changing international order.

Tsai was speaking Saturday at the opening of the 2017 Asia-Pacific Think-tank Summit. The two-day summit is being held in Taipei to discuss regional developments and build a platform for dialogue and cooperation between the region’s think tanks. Leading figures from think tanks in over 30 countries have been invited.

In her address, Tsai said that think tanks are an important tool for governments in a changing world, providing expert analysis and opinion. She said that think tanks allow government agencies to take a further view of the issues they must address.
[FULL  STORY]

Yilan County’s Datong sees 2,000 people cut off from outside world

Taiwan News 
Date: 2017/10/14
By Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – While Tropical Storm Khanun was not scheduled to come

anywhere near Taiwan, the torrential rain was so heavy that Taitung County decided to close offices and schools Saturday afternoon, while rail traffic in several parts of the country also suffered under the downpours.

The Central Weather Bureau ruled that the amounts of rain and the strength of the wind were sufficient for the southeastern county to order the closure of campuses and offices, at least for one afternoon.

The region, which includes Orchid Island and Green Island, also saw disruptions to traffic, with a shutdown of the ferry services to and from the islands, usually popular destinations for weekend tourists.

Railroad tracks between the townships of Guanshan and Ruiyuan were submerged by flooding, making train service there impossible, reports said. Shortly after 3 p.m., the problem was put right and service resumed after having affected an estimated 1,700 passengers, according to the Central News Agency.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/10/14
By: Wu Che-hao, Wang Shu-fen and Kuan-lin Liu

Taipei, Oct. 14 (CNA) A Mongolia-registered cargo ship that ran aground off Changhua County on Friday will be dismantled within a month, the Ministry of Transportation’s Maritime and Port Bureau said Saturday.

In a statement, the bureau said the hull of general cargo ship, the Lienhe (聯合) 36, was severely damaged when it ran aground during turbulent weather on Friday.

Acting on the advice of a ship repair company, the bureau said, it will ensure that the grounded vessel is dismantled.

The bureau said it has advised the owner of the Lienhe 36 to sign a contract with a local shipbuilding company to dismantle the 499-ton vessel, which had been in operation for 17 years, and is expecting a preliminary proposal by Oct. 16 on how that can be done with the minimum environmental impact.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: October 14, 2017
By: Lee Hsin-Yin

TAIPEI (CNA) – The torrential rain caused by the combined effects of northeasterly

winds and Tropical Storm Khanun has disrupted the country’s power supply, according to the state-run Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) on Saturday.

Taipower said a total of 14,530 households in Taiwan had experienced power outages starting Friday, but almost all of them had their power restored by noon, leaving only 332 households without electricity.
[FULL  STORY]

Channel News Asia
Date: 13 Oct 2017
By: AFP

TAIPEI: A man who used a stolen samurai sword to attack a military police guard

outside Taiwan’s presidential office in August has been charged with attempted murder, prosecutors said Friday (Oct 13).

Wielding the sword and carrying the national flag of China, Lu Chun-yi slashed the guard, who was trying to prevent him from entering the complex, in the neck, face, and hands, before being arrested.

The 51-year-old, who has been detained since the Aug 18 attack, has said he wanted to fly the Chinese flag in the presidential office, and was carrying hand-written notes threatening to “behead” President Tsai Ing-wen.

The notes, found in his backpack, also expressed his willingness to die as well as his hopes for China to unify Taiwan soon, according to prosecutors.    [FULL  STORY]

“China may look strong outside, but it has many problems inside,” the Japan Times quoted him as saying

Taiwan News 
Date: 2017/10/13
By: Juvina Lai, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Japan’s former defense minister, Tokuichiro Tamazawa, told

the two-day Yushan Forum in Taipei that as Taiwan already enjoys de facto independence, its best way to deal with China now is to maintain the status quo while remaining calm.

Tamazawa said in his speech, “Taiwan is already an independent democratic and free country. To protect your country, it will be a good idea to refrain from acting with undue haste.”

According to the Japan Times, the ex-defense chief of Japan counseled that Taiwan should maintain its calm so peace and stability between Taiwan and China could prevail, and wait until the time is ‘right.’ He said he believed that the right time will come when  Taiwan will eventually be given the name of an independent nation.

He also mentioned that he wasn’t sure how long it would take for Taiwan to achieve the state of an ‘independent’ nation because it is an issue the Taiwanese government should spend time studying. He used the example of the Baltic countries who got their independence from the Soviet Union.    [FULL STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/10/13
By: Su Mu-chun and Ko Lin

Taipei, Oct. 13 (CNA) Over two dozen Thai and Taiwanese nationals have been arrested during a recent raid on the operational base of an international crime ring that was committing telecommunication fraud in central Taiwan against people in Thailand, an official with the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said Friday.

A total of 25 suspects, including 18 Thai and seven Taiwanese, were arrested at an apartment in Miaoli County’s Toufen City, CIB official Yang Ju-chiao (楊儒樵) said.

Among them, a 30-year-old Taiwanese suspect surnamed Hung (洪) was identified as the ring leader, Yang said, while six other Taiwanese were employed as interpreters to train the Thai suspects on how to carry out various fraud techniques.

According to the investigator, the group included Thai couples Thanyawan and Natthasit, both of whom chose to join the criminal activity in Taiwan for a 30,000 Baht (US$907.16) monthly salary.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Oct 14, 2017
By: Wu Po-wei and Jake Chung  /  Staff reporter, with staff writer

Veteran gay rights advocate Chi Chia-wei (祁家威), who was yesterday announced as

the winner of the Presidential Culture Award in the social reform category, said that he wished he could exchange the award for the right of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) couples in the nation to register their marriages immediately.

Chi — who applied for what would on May 24 result in Constitutional Interpretation No. 748, which has been hailed as a milestone of LGBT rights in Taiwan — said he wished the government would expedite efforts to legalize same-sex marriage.

“Taiwanese should not be kept waiting two more years,” he said.

The constitutional interpretation says that parts of the Civil Code that render same-sex marriages illegal are unconstitutional and that amendments legalizing same-sex marriage should be written into law within two years. Should the amendments not be passed within the allotted time, same-sex couples may use extant Civil Code regulations to register their marital status at household registration offices.
[FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-10-12

The transportation minister, Ho Chen Tan, says Taiwan should develop its logistics

sector to help promote the government’s New Southbound policy.

The policy is the Tsai administration’s strategy to forge closer ties with nations in South and Southeast Asia, as well as with New Zealand and Australia.

Ho Chen was speaking Thursday at the opening of the 2017 International Logistics Development Strategy Forum, held in Taoyuan. He said the logistics sector has seen significant changes in the last ten years and Taiwan faces strong competition from others nations, including China.

He said Taiwan should integrate resources in the sector to help promote the government’s New Southbound policy.    [FULL  STORY]