Page Three

Students appear in front of court for altered curriculum movement

Taiwan News
Date: 2015-09-25
By: Jocylin FC, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

Six students were arrested for entering the Ministry of Education on July 23. They

Students appear in front of court. Central News Agency.

Students appear in front of court. Central News Agency.

appeared for a court hearing in Taipei on September 24 and held an impromptu press conference outside of Taipei District Prosecutors Office afterwards and told the press they will take all legal responsibility for their actions.

Although the Minister of Education, Wu Se-hwa, said he would withdraw the lawsuit against the students in August, the lawsuit continues. The six students will be summoned again on October 7. On July 23, the police officers of Zhongzheng First Police Precinct arrested the protesters and reporters after the ministry said it would sue anyone who breached its compound.

The students told the press that if Wu really want to help the students, he should persuade the curriculum committee to be more transparent with their procedures. Wu said he learned the students were sued after he read the newspaper. The students said when Wu stated that he learned the students were sued from the newspaper, he has undermined the minister’s credibility.     [FULL  STORY]

Hsinchu County to hold festival of Hakka culture

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/09/25
By: Lu Kang-chun and Lee Hsin-Yin

Taipei, Sept. 25 (CNA) The Hsinchu county government said on its website Friday it will

Photo courtesy of Hsinchu County government

Photo courtesy of Hsinchu County government

hold a festival next month to promote Hakka culture, make Taiwan more visible and link it with the international Hakka community.

A lighting-up ceremony was launched grandly in Hsinchu County Stadium by the Hsinchu County government in the afternoon to celebrate the beginning of the 2015 Taiwan International Festival of Hakka Culture, which will be held from Oct. 14-25.

The festival will comprise various events that will involve scholars, industry representatives and the general public in a celebration of Hakka culture, according to the website.

It is also hoped that the integration of the different participants –including those in industry, the government, academia and research & development institutions — can rejuvenate Hakka culture and elevate its global presence, it said.     [FULL  STORY]

Number of dengue fever cases in Taiwan set to soar past 2014 level

Want China Times
Date: 2015-09-25
By: CNA

The number of dengue fever infections reported in Taiwan since this May could break the

Patients in an emergency room at a hospital in Tainan, Sept. 10. (Photo/Tsao Ting-ting)

Patients in an emergency room at a hospital in Tainan, Sept. 10. (Photo/Tsao Ting-ting)

15,492 level recorded for the whole of last year on Friday, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said Thursday.

As of the previous day, confirmed cases island wide had climbed to 15,282, with 98.4% occurring in southern Taiwan’s most populous municipalities of Tainan and Kaohsiung, the CDC said.

While the country has been seeing daily case increases in the 600-800 range recently, it is likely that the figures for last year–by far the highest annual number since official records began–will be surpassed on Friday, it said.

In addition, there is unlikely to be a drop in the number of cases in the near future, said CDC deputy director-general Chuang Jen-hsiang, who had said previously that the outbreak could ease up by the end of October.

There could be a “plateau period” around the corner, he said, however, suggesting a relatively stable state in the scope of the outbreak–a situation also seen last year.     [FULL  STORY]

Hung would ‘be thrilled’ if Chu was running mate

THE MILL:Speculation that Chu might resign as mayor and join Hung in her election campaign has led Hung to ask if people want to know more about her policies

Taipei Times
Date: Sep 26, 2015
By: Alison Hsiao  /  Staff reporter

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) yesterday said that she would be pleased if KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) decides to quit as New Taipei City mayor and be her running mate.

Hung made the comment when asked about speculation by former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City councilor Hsu Chia-ching (徐佳青) on a political talk show on Thursday night that Chu in October is to resign as mayor and join the presidential race.

“I would be thrilled if Chu resigned as mayor to be my deputy,” she said, but denied that she is to be replaced by Chu as the party’s presidential candidate.

Hung said that society does not lack “rumors,” and that “if you ask me questions about my policy or other issues relating to social well-being, it would be fine to do so one hundred times, but the question that I have been asked over and over again is about my replacement.”

“There is no need to spend time on this topic anymore. I have come this far and it is impossible for me, no matter what twists and turns there might be, to withdraw from the election. I am very determined,” Hung said.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwanese group in Mecca safe: foreign ministry

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/09/24
By: Tang Pei-chun and Christie Chen

Taipei, Sept. 24 (CNA) All 40 members of a Taiwanese Muslim association who are visiting Mecca have been confirmed to be safe, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Thursday.

The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Jeddah Office has established contact with the group and confirmed that group members have returned to their hotels in Mecca, MOFA spokeswomen Eleanor Wang (王珮玲) said.

Over 450 people were killed and 719 were injured in a stampede near the Islamic holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Thursday morning.

The stampede occurred as millions of Muslim pilgrims were participating in the annual Hajj pilgrimage.     [FULL  STORY]

Tsai Ing-wen says Diaoyutai belong to Taiwan

Want China Times
Date: 2015-09-24
By: CNA and Staff Reporter

Tsai Ing-wen, the leader and presidential candidate of Taiwan’s main opposition

Diaoyu, the largest of the Diaoyutai islands. (File photo/Xinhua)

Diaoyu, the largest of the Diaoyutai islands. (File photo/Xinhua)

Democratic Progressive Party, reaffirmed her position Wednesday regarding the status of the disputed Diaoyutai islands in the East China Sea, saying that “they belong to Taiwan.”

The islands are also claimed by China as the Diaoyu and by Japan as the Senkaku. Administered by Japan, they are at the center of a major dispute between China and Japan in which Taiwan’s claim is largely overlooked.

Tsai will lead a delegation to visit Japan Oct. 6-10, and the local media raised the question of the islands while she was attending a Hakka cultural and tourism event in Taoyuan.

Former president Lee Teng-hui claimed in late July while visiting Japan that the islands belong to Japan. Lee’s remarks sparked controversy back in Taiwan and were severely criticized by some political leaders, chiefly from the ruling Kuomintang camp, including President Ma Ying-jeou.     [FULL  STORY]

KMT’s Chang calls for ‘solution’

Taipei Times
Date: Sep 25, 2015
By: Alison Hsiao  /  Staff reporter

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chang Chia-chun (張嘉郡), who last month announced that she would not seek re-election, yesterday said that the party needed to work out a solution if it wanted her to rejoin the legislative elections next year.

KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) on Wednesday said that the party would continue its efforts to recruit Chang for the Jan. 16 elections by helping her “solve her family problem” — in an apparent reference to opposition by her father, former Yunlin County commissioner Chang Jung-wei (張榮味).

Chang Jung-wei last month announced that his daughter was withdrawing from the legislative polls, which Chang Chia-chun later confirmed.

The legislator said that insofar as the party understood the situation that she was in, she hoped that “Chu or [Legislative Speaker] Wang [Jin-pyng (王金平)] could work out a solution.”     [FULL  STORY]

Taoyuan airport planning for expected growth in passenger traffic

Taiwan News
Date: 2015-09-24
By: Central News Agency

Taipei, Sept. 24 (CNA) Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is planning to introduce several new procedures that are likely to expand its capacity to 45 million passengers per year by 2018, as it seeks to deal with an estimated 10 percent annual growth in passenger traffic, the airport operator said Thursday.

The focus will be mainly on improving boarding efficiency by installing more self-service facilities for passenger check-in processing and bag drops, said Fei Hourng-jiun, chief executive officer of Taoyuan Airport Corp. For instance, up to 10 bag drop kiosks could be installed at Taipei Main Station when the new MRT line between Taipei and the Taoyuan airport opens next March, he said. That would allow passengers to check their luggage even before they arrive at the airport, and has the potential to increase the airport’s annual capacity by 1 million passengers, Fei said.      [FULL  STORY]

Kaohsiung to host 2017 EcoMobility World Festival

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/09/24
By: Chen Chi-feng and Lee Mei-yu

Kaohsiung, Sept. 24 (CNA) Kaohsiung kicked off the 2015 International EcoMobility Forum 201509240036t0001and Green Transportation Exhibition Thursday as Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) met with Kim Jong-boo (金忠琯), deputy mayor of Changwon city, South Korea, in the southern Taiwan city.

During the opening ceremony, Kim handed over to Chen the chairmanship of the EcoMobility Alliance of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), and it was announced that the city itself will be the host of 2017 EcoMobility World Festival.

At this year’s exhibition, various companies are showcasing their latest R&D findings in green transportation and technologies, including bicycles, bike rental systems, clean energy cars, and power generating floors.

Chen said that as a founding member of ICLEI, Kaohsiung has put much effort in environmental protection work over the past few years.     [FULL  STORY]

Tsai: the Diaoyutai Islands belong to Taiwan

Taiwan News
Date: 2015-09-23
By: Ko Lin, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen pointed out to a group

Tsai: the Diaoyutai Islands belong to Taiwan. Central News Agency

Tsai: the Diaoyutai Islands belong to Taiwan. Central News Agency

of reporters Wednesday that “the Diaoyutai Islands belong to Taiwan.”

Tsai’s comments came as she plans to visit Japan next month, reports said.

“Our stance is clear. We will say the same thing wherever we go, no question about it,” she affirmed.

According to DPP spokesperson Cheng Yun-peng, Tsai made the initiative as Taiwanese expatriates living in Japan have repeatedly called for a visit by the chairperson.

She will make the visit starting on October 6, where plans to meet with Diet members in Tokyo and also visit Yamaguchi Prefecture, western Japan, to have a look at the regional economy.     [FULL  STORY]