Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/06/22
By: Chiang Chin-yeh and Frances Huang

Washington, June 21 (CNA) Taiwan has made "significant" progress in improving the rights enjoyed by Muslims, according to the 2018 International Religious Freedom report released by the U.S. Department of State on Friday.

The report cited the Chinese-Muslim Association as saying: "(the) authorities were making significant progress in improving rights for Muslims" such as by increasing the number of restaurants and hotels that cater to Muslims' dietary requirements and establishing prayer rooms for them.

"The number of halal-certified restaurants and hotels increased from 120 to 160 during the year," the report said. "Local authorities in Taoyuan, Taichung, Yunlin, Chiayi, and Yilan held Eid al-Fitr commemorations. Authorities built new prayer rooms at train stations, libraries, and tourist destinations."

The report even mentioned the remarks made by Vice President Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) when he attended the canonization of Pope Paul VI and six other Catholic figures at St. Peter's Basilica during a trip to the Vatican in October 2018 as an indication of Taiwan's efforts in pushing for religious freedom.    [FULL  STORY]

FLIGHT ATTENDANT FUROR: Some lawmakers said that employees should give notice before a strike, while others said that it could severely damage their bargaining power

Taipei Times
Date: Jun 23, 2019
By: Jonathan Chin  /  Staff writer, with CNA

Party caucuses at the Legislative Yuan yesterday gave mixed opinions on whether there should be a

law requiring workers to give employers advance notice of a strike.

EVA Airways flight attendants began a strike at 4pm on Thursday after negotiations with their employer broke down earlier in the day.

A total of 8,600 travelers were affected on the first day of the strike.

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators Yeh Yi-jin (葉宜津) and Chen Ming-wen (陳明文) had separately proposed amending the law after China Airlines pilots staged a strike earlier this year, DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said.
[FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 21 June, 2019
By: Leslie Liao

American Institute in Taiwan Chairman James Moriarty says that Taiwan is not the biggest issue in US-

China ties. Moriarty was speaking at an Asian policy forum held in Washington, DC on Wednesday.

Moriarty says that the main reason for deteriorating relations between the two sides is China’s desire to drive the US out of Asia and become the dominant force in the region.

Beijing’s claims that Taiwan is at the root of US-China tensions, however, add value to Taiwan’s strategic position within the First Island Chain. Moriarty says that for this reason, Taiwan’s security is of utmost importance to the US in maintaining regional stability and freedom.

Leading Wednesday’s forum was Roy Kamphausen, Senior Vice President for Research at the National Bureau of Asian Research. After the forum, Kamphausen told Voice of America that Beijing cannot directly ask the US to abandon its influence in Asia. Therefore, he said Beijing works to further its goals by placing a focus on the Taiwan issue and its One China Policy.
[FULL  STORY]

The New York Times
Date: June 21, 2019
By Chris Horton

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Like other presidential hopefuls in Taiwan, Terry Gou has spent the past few

weeks working on his public image by carrying toddlers, wrapping dumplings and helping farmers.

Unlike the other candidates, he is a billionaire, the chairman of Foxconn, a major Apple supplier that operates vast factories in China. He has also pressed the flesh with President Trump, who told him, Mr. Gou says, that being president is a “tough job.”

Should Mr. Gou become Taiwan’s president, Mr. Trump would have a lot of say over what might be the toughest part of his job: striking a delicate balance between the interests of the United States and China, especially as the two giants fight a bruising trade war.

On Friday, Mr. Gou handed over the reins of his sprawling electronics manufacturing empire to a new Foxconn operating committee to address potential conflicts of interest as he runs for president. He built Foxconn and amassed a personal fortune of $7 billion by skillfully straddling the gap between China and the United States. For years Foxconn has assembled the iPhone in China, helping make Apple what it is today and becoming China’s biggest private-sector employer at the same time.    [FULL  STORY8]

US State Department ranks Taiwan as Tier 1 for 'fully meeting standards for elimination of trafficking'

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/06/21
By: Duncan DeAeth, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The United States Department of State released its annual report on human trafficking across the globe on Thursday (June 20).

According to the report, Taiwan, clearly identified as a country in the report, ranks among the Tier One countries of the world, which “fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.”

This is the 10th year in a row in which Taiwan has maintained its status as a country dedicated to preventing human trafficking through actionable policies and a strong commitment to prosecuting offenders.

Joining Taiwan in the Tier One classification are 32 other countries, including the United States as wel as neighbors Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/06/21
By: Lee Hsin-Yin

Taipei, June 21 (CNA) EVA Airways said Friday it will not take new flight bookings before June 29 to try to maintain proper transport capacity in the wake of a strike by its flight attendants that had affected nearly 24,000 passengers since it began the previous day.

As the strike continued, the company canceled 112 out of 177 EVA Air flights, or more than 60 percent of its flights, on Saturday, affecting 23,000 passengers, the airline said.

The flights canceled include 59 out of the airline's 89 flights departing from Taiwan Saturday – 46 from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, three from Taipei Songshan Airport, three from Taichung Shui-nan Airport and seven from Kaohsiung International Airport – affecting 13,200 passengers.

Another 53 out of 88 flights returning to Taiwan will be canceled — including 40 to Taoyuan, three to Taipei Songshan, three to Taichung, and seven to Kaohsiung — impacting 10,000 passengers, the carrier said.    [FULL  STORY]

MORTALITY: The number of fatalities in Taiwan rose 0.5 percentage points to 172,859, meaning there was one death every 182 seconds, a one-second increase

Taipei Times
Date: Jun 22, 2019
By: Lin Liang-yi and Jonathan Chin  /  Staff reporter, with staff writer

Cancer remains the No. 1 cause of death in Taiwan, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said

yesterday as it published its routine health statistics from the past year.

The 10 leading causes of death in the nation last year were cancer, cardiovascular diseases, pneumonia, cerebrovascular diseases, diabetes, accidents, chronic lower respiratory tract diseases, hypertension, renal diseases and chronic liver diseases, the ministry said, adding that they accounted for 133,489 deaths, or 77.2 percent of all fatalities.

The number of deaths caused by pneumonia and cardiovascular disease rose last year, while there were fewer due to chronic liver disease and diabetes, it said.

Cancers caused 48,785 deaths, or 28.3 percent of overall fatalities in the nation, with a rate of 206.9 deaths per 100,000 people, up by about 1.5 percentage points annually, the ministry said.
[FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 20 June, 2019
By: Paula Chao

Taiwan and Hong Kong have both been exercising their democracy this week. Two million Hong Kongers hit the streets last Sunday in what some say was the largest protest the city’s ever seen. It was a continuation and extension of public outcry over a Chinese extradition bill. This week also saw an apology from Hong Kong’s chief executive, who has suspended, but failed to withdraw the bill.

In today’s show, we hear from a Hong Kong bookseller who escaped to Taiwan and has some pretty strong words for the public.

Taiwan, on the other hand, has made some major changes to the way it holds referendums. That’s after a public outcry last year over long wait times at the ballot box. In today’s Taiwan Explained, we’ll detail how the changes will affect future elections.    [FULL  STORY]

Defence ministry has ‘precise information’ about movements and location of carrier and escorts on their current exercise

South China Morning Post
Date: 20 Jun, 2019
By: Lawrence Chung  

Taiwan’s military claims to have precise information about the movements and current location of the mainland’s carrier battle group as it sails into the disputed waters of the South China Sea.

The self-ruled island’s defence ministry made the claims in a statement on Thursday but did not elaborate on the position or route of the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning and its escorts, last officially reported to be passing near Japanese waters on June 11.

“The military has been able to exercise all relevant intelligence to get hold of the entire movements of the Liaoning, including those of its ships and planes throughout its voyage in relevant regions,” the ministry said.

“The military has the ability to safeguard Taiwan and maintain peace and stability in the region.”
[FULL  STORY]

It is a ‘Day of Suffering for Referendums,’ says Annette Lu

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/06/20
By: Huang Tzu-ti, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Former Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) got fired up again as she

castigated the passage of an amendment to the Referendum Act on June 18, which mandates that future elections must be “decoupled” from referendums.

The day of the amendment’s third reading at the Legislative Yuan should be designated as a "Day of Suffering for Referendums,” she exclaimed, adding that the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) should apologize to people for its recklessness and arrogance in pushing through the law, reported Liberty Times.

Lu noted that lowering requirements for referendum proposals are to blame for causing the turmoil of last year’s nine-in-one elections, held alongside a vote for ten such proposals. The decision to abolish the Referendum Review Commission by the legislative body does not address the real problem, she lamented.    [FULL  STORY]