The China Post
Date: October 5, 2016
By: Yuan-Ming Chiao

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Opposition and ruling party lawmakers occupied committee meeting rooms in the Legislative Yuan on Tuesday in the lead-up to the review of a government-sponsored bill to reform workweek regulations. The review is scheduled for Wednesday.

Tensions were palpable Tuesday afternoon as several opposition Kuomintang (KMT) lawmakers occupied the committee room of the Health and Welfare Committee, where the government-backed bill was set for review.

According to Legislator Lee Yen-hsiu (李彥秀), the party’s lawmakers reserved usage of Conference Room 801 of the legislature’s Chun-Hsien building to “discuss the Electricity Act.” Her colleague Legislator Lin Wei-chou (林為洲) said with a smile that the group would be there “indefinitely” and had made no plans to leave.

The KMT earlier held a press conference vowing to block the review process, thereby preventing a floor vote in which it would be vastly outnumbered. Members of the opposition said the party was employing tactics formerly used by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to “give it a taste of its own medicine.”     [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: October 4, 2016
By: Stephanie Chao

TAIPEI, Taiwan — President Tsai Ing-wen demanded a review of the nation’s annual leave system for workers during the first policy coordination meeting on Monday.

Tsai said Cabinet-backed amendments to the Labor Standards Act — known as “one fixed day off, one flexible day off” (一例一休)” — must be passed by the end of the year in order to impose mandatory two-day weekends.

A review of the annual leave system would allow workers to receive ample rest time, Tsai said.

‘Government must resolve issue of unequal holidays’

The government must resolve the problem of unequal national holidays between the public and private sectors, Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang said, relaying Tsai’s talking points from the meeting.     [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: October 3, 2016
By: The China Post news staff

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Kaohsiung City Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) on Friday expressed her full support for Premier Lin Chuan (林全), saying she had absolute confidence in the performance of his Cabinet.

Chen made the statement in a radio interview conducted by Cheng Hung-yi (鄭弘儀), a well-known local TV and radio host.

Asked whether she was likely to replace Lin as premier in the near future, Chen said this was a presumptuous question that she did not prefer to answer.

There has been speculation that Chen would take over Lin’s post after she completes half of her second term in late December, when the central government can choose her successor directly instead of conducting a by-election.     [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Oct 03, 2016
By: Stacy Hsu / Staff reporter

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) members are being urged to refrain from taking sides amid the controversy over KMT Chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu’s (洪秀柱) perceived inclination to remove the “different interpretations” clause from the so-called “1992 consensus.”

Posting on Facebook a joint statement issued by a number of the KMT’s city and county councilors on Saturday calling for party unity, Hung yesterday said that the party’s top priorities are to steer the nation toward the right path, lead the KMT out of its current predicament and protect the rights of the party’s employees.

“At such a difficult time, we cannot afford internal divisions. No one needs to take sides, because no one can shoulder the cost of ruptures within the party,” Hung said, adding that there is nothing that cannot be resolved through communication.

Hung said that as there are still members who are either concerned or unclear about the KMT’s new policy platform passed at the party’s national congress last month, she plans to tour the nation in the near future to better explain the platform to KMT members.     [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: October 3, 2016
By: CNA

MONTREAL — A Taiwanese official has admitted outside the venue of the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO’s) assembly that Taiwan faces a great challenge in its bid to participate in the event, but said it was receiving warm support from allies of the country.

Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) Deputy Director Ho Shu-ping (何淑萍) made the remarks in an interview with CNA Saturday, before setting off to return to Taiwan after a six-day trip in Montreal.

Heading a seven-member delegation, Ho flew to the Canadian city Sept. 27 when the ICAO opened the 39th session of its assembly there, at the ICAO’s headquarters.

Taiwan was not invited to the event, most likely because of the objections of Beijing, but the Taiwanese government decided to send the delegation here nonetheless to express its appreciation to countries that have shown their support for Taiwan, according to Ho.     [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: October 1, 2016
By: CNA

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Several lectures scheduled to be given by this year’s Tang Prize laureates had to be canceled this week because of Typhoon Megi, which hit Taiwan on Tuesday.

Most of the Tang Prize lectures were slated for Sept. 27 and 28, the two days when the typhoon was affecting Taiwan most heavily, and therefore could not be held as scheduled, the Tang Prize Foundation said.

However, that did not stop the laureates from engaging in other meaningful and fruitful interactions with local professionals and industry experts, the foundation said.

The three scientists who shared the Tang Prize in biopharmaceutical science — Emmanuelle Charpentier, Jennifer Doudna and Feng Zhang (張鋒) – met with Academia Sinica President James Liao (廖俊智) on Sept. 26, according to the foundation.     [FULL  STORY]