Page Three

Zip around the streets of Taipei in a “forest bus”

The bus is themed as “a boy’s imaginary forest”

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/05/23
By: Maggie Huang, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A “forest bus” is going to start its service on Wednesday, as passengers will be able to sit on the grass in the bus, and enjoy the ride around Taipei city in a plant filled observatory.

The bus is themed as “a boy’s imaginary forest,” featuring the concept of integrating more green space into cities. The “forest bus” is the very first of its kind, while plants were installed inside the No. 203 Kuang-Hua bus, which zips around the streets of Taipei.

Florist Alfie Lin and designer Xiao Qing-Yang join hands introducing the “forest bus” to Taipei citizens, turning the No.203 bus into an observatory by decorating it with Taiwan’s local seasonal plants.

The bus will start service from May 24 to May 28, and will serve the route of bus No.203 which departs on 9:30 a.m. from Tienmu and head to Xizhi, passing by Shi-dong Market, Taipei Tianmu Baseball Stadium, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Qingguang Market, Xingtian Temple, Raohe Street Night Market, Nankang Software Park.
[FULL  STORY]

Han Kuang tests branches’ coordination

Taipei Times
Date: May 24, 2017
By: Staff writer, with CNA

All three branches of Taiwan’s military yesterday took part in a drill against a simulated attack by China, in the second stage of this year’s Han Kuang series of military exercises, the military said.

During the drill, F-16 jets, which took off from air bases in Hualien and Chiayi, flew a route that simulated an attack by China on Taiwan proper, the military said.
In response, ground forces from the three branches of Taiwan’s military were deployed with the aim of testing the nation’s defense capabilities, the military said.
The exercise was focused on closely monitoring the movements of enemy aircraft and taking defensive action, the military said.    [FULL  STORY]

Discontent with president’s performance drops to 51.8%: poll

The China Post
Date: May 23, 2017
By: CNA

TAIPEI, Taiwan — President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) public approval rating is 39.4 percent, while 51.8 percent of the public are dissatisfied with her performance in handling national affairs and policies, according to a monthly survey released Monday.

The disapproval rating was significantly higher than the 8.8 percent in the poll published a year ago, shortly after Tsai of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) took office on May 20, 2016, said the Taiwan Public Opinion Foundation.

The foundation has had the survey on the Tsai government’s performance conducted every month since it was inaugurated last May.

The government’s approval rating has since dropped from a high of 69.9 percent to 39.4 percent, the survey shows.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan health minister positive about talks with US counterpart

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-05-22

Taiwan’s health minister, Chen Shih-chung, met with his US counterpart in Geneva

US Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price met with Taiwan’s Health and Welfare Minister Chen Shih-chung (CNA)

on Sunday (local time). Chen said following the talks that he was “excited” about the prospects for working with the US on health and disease prevention measures.

Chen’s meeting with US Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price came one day ahead of the World Health Assembly (WHA) meeting. The governing body of the World Health Organization (WHO) has excluded Taiwan from participating this year despite the fact that it has been an observer since 2009. This year’s exclusion is being seen as a move by Beijing to limit Taiwan’s international participation under President Tsai Ing-wen.

Chen described the 45 minute discussion with Price as very friendly. During the meeting he spoke about Taiwan’s contributions to fighting H7N9 bird flu. He said that China’s lack of transparency about the epidemic had made it necessary for Taiwan to rely on other countries for assistance. Chen said that the United States had agreed that the situation had led to a global and regional gap in epidemic prevention.    [FULL  STORY]

China sends letter barring ‘Taiwan Province’ from attending WHA

Letter sent by China to WHO states that ‘Taiwan Province of China’ shall not participate in WHA

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/05/22
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — For the first time in eight years, Taiwan has been

(By Central News Agency)

excluded from attending the World Health Assembly (WHA) due to pressure from China on its governing body the World Health Organization (WHO) including a letter stating “Taiwan Province” should not attend the annual event.

The first paragraph of the letter compliments permanent member nations and then announces Taiwan’s exclusion:

“The Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the United Nations Office at Geneva and Other International Organizations in Switzerland presents its complements to all Permanent Missions in Geneva and has the honor to inform the latter that the Chinese Government has decided that Taiwan Province of China shall not participate in the 70th World Health Assembly to be held from 22 to 31 May 2017 in Geneva, Switzerland.”    [FULL  STORY]

Animal health body to list Taiwan as FMD-free with vaccination

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/05/22
By: Emmanuelle Tzeng and Y.F. Low

Paris, May 21 (CNA) The World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) has approved Taiwan’s application to be listed among the “member countries and zones recognized as free from foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) with vaccination,” a Taiwan official said Sunday.

Taiwan is expected to receive an official certificate of its FMD status from the OIE on May 25, according to Shih Tai-hua (施泰華), deputy chief of the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine, who is attending the 85th General Session of the World Assembly of OIE Delegates in Paris.

The listing will apply to Taiwan proper, Penghu and Matsu, Shih said, adding that Taiwan’s efforts on FMD prevention and control have produced results.

He said that next year FMD vaccination will stop in Taiwan and those two island counties and in 2019, Taiwan will apply for listing among the “member countries and zones recognized as free from FMD without vaccination.”    [FULL  STORY]

Chen’s request to attend memorial service rejected

Taipei Times
Date: May 23, 2017
By: Staff writer, with CNA

Taichung Prison denied a request by former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who is on medical parole after being convicted of corruption, to attend a memorial service last night.

The prison said it turned down Chen’s request because it would not be good for his health to attend a memorial service in Tainan for Tsai You-chuan (蔡有全), who once served as Chen’s national policy adviser.

Tsai, an independence advocate, died of a heart attack on May 4 at the age of 66.
The prison’s decision came a day after Chen attended an annual fundraising dinner held by the Ketagalan Foundation, a non-profit organization that he founded in 2003, on Friday in Taipei.

Taichung Prison, where Chen was incarcerated before being released on medical parole in 2015, gave the permission after Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital’s medical team suggested that such a “functional treatment in a social setting” would be beneficial for Chen’s medical condition.    [FULL  STORY]

Tigerair disciplines 3 pilots for sleeping during flights

The China Post
Date: May 22, 2017
By: CNA

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Tigerair Taiwan, a budget airline, confirmed Monday that it has disciplined three pilots for sleeping during flights.

Tigerair said one of the three pilots is a foreign national, while the other two are Taiwanese. An executive of the management department was also reprimanded.

The company started an internal investigation after a co-pilot alleged he had seen eight pilots asleep during flights in a letter to a local newspaper.

The co-pilot, revealed that over a one year period he had taken pictures of the pilots sleeping during flights.    [FULL  STORY]

The restaurants in Taipei that harness the goodness of Taiwan

Farm-to-table dining options are aplenty in Taiwan.

Chef Andre Chiang of RAW putting the finishing touches to the dishes. (Photo: David Hagerman © 2017 The New York Times)

Channel News Asia
Date: 21 May 2017

TAIPEI: Taipei has always been a city where one doesn’t have to work hard to eat

Chef Andre Chiang of RAW putting the finishing touches to the dishes. (Photo: David Hagerman © 2017 The New York Times)

awfully well: It has a street food scene as vibrant as that of Bangkok; restaurants that specialise in both Taiwanese and regional cuisines from around China; thousands of cheap and cheerful joints at which to drink cold beer with small plates and quick stir-fries; and a plethora of sushi bars, a remnant of decades spent under Japanese rule.

It’s easier than ever to enjoy those qualities, largely thanks to a crop of chefs drawing inspiration from homegrown ingredients: Cured mullet roe, lily stems, purple taro, pork from local black pig. Taiwan offers possibilities for farm-to-table dining that don’t exist in Singapore and Hong Kong.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan shines at Intel science contest

Taiwanese students won five awards at the 2017 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/05/21
By: Central News Agency

Taiwanese students won five awards at the 2017 Intel International Science and

Yeh Chia-yu (葉家宇) became the first vocational school student to win the award at the 2017 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair(By Central News Agency)

Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) in Los Angeles this week, according to the National Taiwan Science Education Center on Saturday.

The winning projects, which garnered four Intel ISEF Grand Awards and one American Mathematical Society special award, stood out from 1,300 works from 78 countries, the center said in a statement.

The center selected nine projects by 13 students from Taiwan to compete in the world’s largest pre-college science competition.

The most notable winner was Yeh Chia-yu (葉家宇) from Chung Shan Industrial & Commercial School, who became the first vocational school student to win the award, the center said.    [FULL  STORY]