MAINTAINING PRESSURE:Activists who have been staging a ‘sleepout’ on Ketagalan Boulevard used the anniversary of 228 to call for transitional justice for all

Taipei Times
Date: Mar 01, 2017
By: Chen Wei-han / Staff reporter

New regulations announced by the Council of Indigenous Peoples that exclude privately

held land from being recognized as traditional Aboriginal territory perpetuate the injustices done to Aborigines for more than a century, Aboriginal rights advocates said yesterday in Taipei.

A group of protesters, who have been staging a “sleepout” on Ketagalan Boulevard down the street from the Presidential Office Building since Thursday last week, offered lilies to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the 228 Incident and called for the restoration of traditional Aboriginal territories and transitional justice for all Taiwanese, regardless of ethnicity.

Several of the protesters had planned to attend a commemoration ceremony at the 228 Peace Memorial Park to offer condolences to families of the victims of the 228 Massacre, but were prevented from entering the venue.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: March 1, 2017
By: Dimitri Bruyas

The jewel in the crown of Bologna Children’s Book Fair, the “Illustrator’s Exhibition” (波

隆納世界插畫大展) is showcasing the latest in innovation with the works of 77 artists chosen by a prestigious international jury that met in Bologna to evaluate and discuss the works of 3,191 illustrators from 61 countries.

The “50th anniversary of the Illustrators’ Exhibition” includes works by 77 artists from around the world that have contributed to the history of illustration, including seven Taiwanese illustrators. The exhibition, which is part of a long tour that passes through the cultural hubs of different countries, runs at Taipei’s Huashan 1914 Creative Park (華山藝文中心) until April 26.

“This exhibition tells us that the work of illustrators have changed, including the their medium of expression and the topics they are illustrating,” Elena Pasoli from Bologna Fiere told The China Post on Feb. 23. “In addition to telling fairy tales and describing extraordinary worlds, contemporary illustrators are very interested in how parents talk with children about reality in topics like immigration.”

Another highlight in the industry was the “merging of tools,” said Pasoli, who pointed to the development of illustrated books with “augmented reality” in which book illustrations are animated when seen through a specific app. The new technology points to new exciting developments in the children book industry amid poor performances in other sectors.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 17-02-27

The defense ministry says it will offer financial rewards to tipsters who provide information about drug

abuse at an air force base in Taichung. That’s the word from Defense Minister Feng Shih-kuan on Monday.

During his inspection of the air force base, Feng demanded that soldiers take the reputation of the military seriously. Feng also said individual whistleblowers will receive a financial reward of NT$100,000 (US$3,333) and that groups will be offered NT$500,000 (US$16,666) for information about drug abuse.

The move came after 51 small bags of amphetamine were found at the air force base a week ago. So far, 20 soldiers have tested positive following urine tests.    [FULL  STORY]

Tofu company allegedly held migrant workers against their will for almost 14 years

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/02/27
By: Maggie Huang, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Kaohsiung’s Chan Shen Country Food Co., Ltd. (筌聖老家) tofu factory, which was allegedly holding migrant workers against their will for almost 14 years, has caused outrage from the Taiwanese society. Netizens have started boycotting Chan Shen’s products after the scandal was uncovered.

The tofu factory’s biggest retailer, Leezen (里仁), announced on its official page that it will remove all Chan Shen products from shelves and that it has suspended its cooperation with the company.

Kaohsiung police raided a dried tofu factory and rescued four migrant workers who had been locked inside on the second floor of the factory for up to 14 years and worked 15 hours every day.

An Indonesian worker named A-fan bought a cell phone from her Taiwanese coworker and texted her husband who is in Indonesia to call the police. Four migrant workers were finally rescued earlier this month.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/02/27
By: Lu Hsin-hui, Claudia Liu and S.C. Chang

Taipei, Feb. 27 (CNA) Some 300 members of human rights and other civic groups marched through several historical sites in Taipei on Monday in commemoration of the Feb. 28, 1947 uprising that was brutally suppressed, calling for more government action to realize “transitional justice.”

Among them was Cheng Ching-hua (鄭清華), executive board member of a foundation dedicated to the memory of his brother Nylon Cheng (鄭南榕), urged the government to enact a law on transitional justice and set up an agency to implement its policy goals.

Nylon Cheng, a pro-democracy activist who founded the Freedom Era Weekly, died after setting himself on fire in support of freedom of speech in 1989 at the age of 41.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-02-26

President Tsai Ing-wen explained in a SundayFacebook post the government’s efforts to

make documents related to the 228 Incident available to the public.

The 228 Incident was a bloody crackdown against anti-government protests that began on February 28, 1947. It is not known how many people died as a result of the violence, but academics put the figure at somewhere between 10,000 and 30,000 people.

Tsai said that achieving transitional justice is the most important democratic endeavor facing Taiwan. She said that sifting through government documents to reveal what really happened during the crackdown is one of the most critical and complex tasks at hand. She said the documents of various government agencies can reveal the traces of history and provide clues about what happened.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/02/26
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

Taipei (Taiwan News)–The number of electricity users who voluntarily purchased green

power in Taiwan has grown from 531 to more than 7,000, while the consumption of green power has grown from 4.35 million kWh to more than 270 million kWh since 2014 when the Green Power Pilot Program, a three-year promotional scheme, was initialed by the country’s Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), according to the ministry.

Compared to the first year, the number of customers has increased by 12 times, and the amount of traded green power has increased by 61 times in 2016. These facts show that more and more people are willing to join, the MOEA said.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/02/26
By: Sabine Cheng and Lee Hsin-Yin

Taipei, Feb. 26 (CNA) Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart, who play the roles of “Wolverine” and “Professor X,” respectively, in the X-Men movie series, received a warm welcome Sunday by fans in Taiwan, where the Hollywood stars will promote their new movie “Logan.”

Fans at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport cheered when Jackman and Stewart arrived, and in return, the actors waved their hands, with Jackman saying “Hello” in Mandarin.

Jackman and Stewart are scheduled to meet with their fans at 6 p.m. Monday at the Taipei 101 fountain plaza.    [FULL  STORY]