The China Post
Date: March 25, 2017
By: Christine Chou

Le Bleu Ballon is perfectly oddball. Instead of being set up in one of Taipei’s French

patisserie hubs like East District or Zhongshan, the shop is charmingly hidden in a discreet alleyway. With the quiet neighborhood surroundings, it’s easy to forget that Shilin Night Market is only a 10-minute walk away.

“Le Bleu Ballon: A Somewhat French-style Patisserie,” reads the small sign in front of the shop, signaling a “deviance” from classic French offerings — that something playful and unconventional is in store.

I don’t know what traditional pastry chefs in France would think about this Le Cordon Bleu-trained pastry chef’s take on the classic Opera cake, a French favorite, but I love it. Le Bleu Ballon’s Berry Opera (NT$160) is made with layers of hand-crafted blueberry mouse, yogurt cheese, almond cake and French shortbread cookies.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-03-23

Taiwan’s top envoy to the United States, Stanley Kao, attended a meeting of the US-led

coalition to counter the militant group Islamic State (IS). US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson presided over the meeting on Wednesday in Washington. It was the first such meeting since President Donald Trump took office in January.

The meeting came on the same day as a terrorist attack near the Houses of Parliament in London. The attack left five people dead and 40 injured. The perpetrator was shot dead by police.

Taiwan’s participation in the anti-IS coalition has been in the area of humanitarian assistance. Such efforts include the donation of 350 temporary housing units for refugees in Iraq displaced by IS in 2014. Taiwan also donated US$100,000 to help provide shelter for refugees in that area.     [FULL STORY]

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/03/23
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News)–Mobile payments are mainly used for paying restaurant bills and vouchers, and for transportation fees in Taiwan, according to a survey released by Taipei-based IT research institute MIC (Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute) on Monday.

According to the survey, 76.4 percent of those surveyed have used mobile payment to pay for dinning, while 33.2 percent of them have used the systems for paying transportation fees, parking fees, and gas expenses.

Goods and Services Purchased at Brick-and-mortar Stores Using Mobile Payment Services

.Note: Sample size: 1,059 (male vs. female = 529: 530)

Less than 20 percent of the surveyed have used mobile payment on any of the four categories–clothing, entertainment, daily living, and medical care, according to the survey.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/03/23
By: Miao Chung-han and Lilian Wu

Taipei, March 23 (CNA) Taiwan has no news about the whereabouts of a former party

worker for the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said Thursday.

Lee Ming-che (李明哲) went missing after traveling from Macao to Guangdong on Sunday. Radio Free Asia, a private, non-profit corporation, reported Monday that 42-year-old Lee, who works at Wenshan Community College in Taipei, has a keen interest in human rights issues in mainland China.

MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said Lee went missing after entering China from Macao on Sunday.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: March 24, 2017
By: Kuan-lin Liu

“At the beginning … we in the dining services industry said that this law was

implemented in too rushed a fashion. It didn’t let us prepare, nor was there any guidance or education. I think that we all thought these were flaws in the policy,” said Brian Lin (林奕成), general manager of Jing Xiang Group Co., Ltd. (京享實業有限公司), reflecting on the new workweek law.

The labor law made headlines again earlier this month after Nantou Magistrate Lin Ming-chen (林明溱) said he was refusing to implement the law in his county, claiming that the regulations severely disrupted previous industry arrangements.

Other local leaders also came out to question the workweek law, while a few gave it their backing.    [FULL  STORY]

Father Yves Moal has spent 50 years in Taiwan

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/03/22
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – French Catholic missionary Yves Moal will soon receive a

Taiwanese passport while being able to keep his original nationality, 50 years after arriving in the country, reports said Wednesday.

Moal, who is known as Liu Yi-feng (劉一峰) in Mandarin, visited a police station in Yuli, Hualien County, Wednesday to apply for the proof of good behavior or police criminal record certificate which would allow him to apply for Taiwanese citizenship, reports said.

The local police chief described the Frenchman as a “good neighbor” and thanked him for his constant efforts helping to find work for the homeless, drug addicts and other groups, reports said.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/03/22
By: Chen Cheng-wei and S.C. Chang

Taipei, March 22 (CNA) The United States and Taiwan have signed a memorandum of

understanding to strengthen cooperation on combating intellectual property infringement and trade fraud crimes, a U.S. official said Wednesday.

Kin Moy, director of the American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) Taipei Office, made the announcement at a dinner party hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei, which was attended by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).

The MOU, signed by the AIT and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the U.S., aims to facilitate cooperation between law enforcement authorities in both countries regarding cooperative investigative responses to violations of intellectual property rights laws and trade fraud laws, according to Moy.
[FULL  STORY]