Taipei Times
Date: January 28, 2017
By: CNA

TAIPEI, Taiwan — An overhead wire on a train line near Taichung came loose and fell

on Saturday morning, delaying the travel of 6,370 passengers before being repaired shortly before noon, the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) said Saturday.

The electrical wire over the northbound track between Taichung and Xinwuri stations fell before 8 a.m., leading to a shutdown of traffic on that section of track until repairs were completed at 11:35 a.m., the TRA said.

With only one track left open to handle both northbound and southbound traffic, train schedules were delayed, disrupting the travel schedules of 6,370 passengers, the TRA said.

Before the fallen wire was discovered, power to the electrical wire system over the same track between Taichung Station and Taiyuan Station suddenly tripped at 7:33 a.m., but that problem was quickly resolved and did not disrupt train schedules, the TRA said.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-01-27

President Tsai Ing-wen will spend the first few days of the Lunar New Year giving out

lucky red envelopes to members of the public around the country.

The Presidential Office announced Thursday that Tsai would travel to the south of Taiwan on Saturday, the first day of the Chinese Year of the Rooster. She will visit Pingtung in the morning, followed by Chiayi, Tainan and Kaohsiung later in the day.

Tsai will be giving out lucky red envelopes featuring a colorful rooster and a golden egg. The envelopes can fold out into a 3D card.

Sunday will see the president back in the north of the country, traveling to Taipei, New Taipei, Hsinchu and Miaoli. Monday has been set aside for central Taiwan, with visits to Taichung, Changhua, Yunlin and Chiayi.

The Presidential Office also said that Vice President Chen Chien-jen would visit a Catholic church in Taipei on Saturday to offer prayers for the coming year.   [FULL  STORY]

The amount of cash you put inside red packets will depend on the age of the recipient and your family relationship

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/01/26
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

Taipei (Taiwan News) – Giving red envelopes (紅包) during the Lunar New Year is a science, one has to tread cautiously not to be considered rude in giving too little or too brash in giving too much, fortunately the website the Daily View has compiled responses of users of the Taiwanese online forum PTT to create a “Lunar New Year Red Envelope Chart” listing the current “market prices” of red envelopes for each family member.

Red-colored envelopes with money inserted inside are given as gifts for special occasions in Taiwan, as well as mainland China, overseas Chinese communities, and many other East Asian nations. The color red symbolizes good luck and is believed to ward off evil spirits, such as the Nian (年獸), a beast that appears on or around the Lunar New Year.    [FULL  STORY

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/01/27
By: Bien Chin-feng and Lilian Wu

Taipei, Jan. 27 (CNA) A total of 115,951 inbound and outbound passengers were expected to pass through Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taiwan’s main gateway, on Lunar New Year’s Eve on Friday, a relatively steep fall from a day earlier.

The estimate would be nearly 10,000 more than the 106,328 passengers handled by the airport in 2016 but down nearly 15,000 from Thursday’s numbers, the airport said.

The number of inbound and outbound passengers traveling for the Lunar New Year holiday started to spike on Thursday, when the airport handled 130,754 passengers, less than 1,000 more that passed through the airport two days before Lunar New Year’s Day last year.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: January 27, 2017
By: CNA

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump understands the special relationship

between his country and Taiwan and is aware of the value of this relationship, Edwin Feulner, a senior adviser to the Trump transition team, said Thursday.

Taiwan has grown concerned that some of Trump’s remarks suggest he sees Taiwan as a bargaining chip in Washington’s relations with Beijing, but Feulner, the former president of the conservative Heritage Foundation, did not see it that way.

“I think President Trump understands both the unique relationship that the United States has with Taiwan because of the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979 and the fact that’s the law of the land that absolutely binds every administration,” Feulner told Taiwanese reporters on the sidelines of a seminar.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-01-26

Premier Lin Chuan has thanked his Cabinet for its hard work in the eight months since President Tsai

Ing-wen’s administration took office. Lin was speaking at a Cabinet meeting on Thursday.

Lin said his team has faced many challenges but has been able to tackle them one by one.

The premier told his ministers he understands how hard they worked on planning for the long-term care program for the elderly and disabled. He also mentioned the implementation of the new labor law and an amendment to energy policy. Cabinet spokesperson Hsu Kuo-yung conveyed the Premier’s message.

“For the past few months, we have started to see ways of dealing with certain difficulties. We already see some results. I want to thank everyone for your efforts,” Hsu said. “Everyone has been working very hard over these last months. You might have been frustrated while communicating with different parties on certain issues, but I hope you don’t see this as a big burden but as part of the process. Please keep up your efforts.”

Premier Lin wished the Cabinet a good Lunar New Year break. He said he hoped all would return rested and prepared after the holiday.    [SOURCE]

SEF chairman says claim based on misunderstanding

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/01/26
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Taiwan’s top official for talks with China, Tien Hung-mao (田弘茂), on Thursday

denied allegations by Nobel Prize laureate Lee Yuan-tseh (李遠哲) that he had implied death threats against the latter’s family during the 2000 presidential election campaign.

During the campaign, Lee, one of Taiwan’s most respected academics, unexpectedly voiced public support for the opposition presidential candidate, Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who went on to win the election.

In a book, Lee alleged that on the eve of his declaration, a person close to ruling Kuomintang vice-presidential candidate Vincent Siew (蕭萬長) told him that he and his whole family might be killed if he supported Chen.

During a television show Wednesday, Lee named the person in the case as present Straits Exchange Foundation chairman Tien.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/01/26
By: Sophia Yeh and Ko Lin

Taipei, Jan. 26 (CNA) Former President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) request to visit the United States in

February has been approved, Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang (黃重諺) said on Thursday.

A screening committee under the Presidential Office considered the request based on the Classified National Security Information Protection Act and gave Ma the green light because the risks to national intelligence and Ma’s personal safety are considered controllable, Huang said.

Citing an assessment by the National Security Bureau, Huang said the risks related to Ma’s personal security in the U.S. are relatively low.

The government will provide all necessary assistance during Ma’s trip, he added.   [FULL  STORY]