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Ko broke his promises: DPP lawmaker

‘FRAUD’: Only 29 proposals were put to vote on the i-Voting system, all of which were launched by government agencies, while resident-initiated proposals were rejected

Taipei Times
Date: Dec 27, 2017
By: Chen Wei-han  /  Staff reporter

Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) has broken eight of his 30 campaign promises and

Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Pasuya Yao holds a photo of Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je at a news conference in Taipei yesterday as he accused Ko of breaking eight of his 30 campaign promises and achieving unsatisfactory results for 14 others.  Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times

achieved only unsatisfactory results for another 14, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Pasuya Yao (姚文智) said yesterday, questioning Ko’s capability as mayor.

After Ko on Monday unveiled a report enumerating his achievements in office, Yao, who has announced his bid for Taipei mayor in next year’s local elections, called a news conference to review Ko’s three years in office.

Ko has failed to realize the i-Voting system, public participation in budgeting, social housing and subsidies, public long-term care services, public childcare services, music industry improvement, establishing cultural industry infrastructure and independent cultural policy formation process, Yao said.

The mayor has failed to achieve tangible results in 14 other pledges, including improving on-campus food safety, reorganizing bus routes, initiating government-led urban renewal, establishing affordable kindergartens, improving community daycare services, improving police management and public security, building energy efficient infrastructures and improving the business environment, Yao added.    [FULL  STORY]

China’s Military Flybys Raise Alarm in Taiwan

Voice of America
Date: December 25, 2017
By: Ralph Jennings

TAIPEI, TAIWAN — Taiwan is facing a new source of pressure from rival China as the

China unveils its J-20 stealth fighter during an air show in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, China, Nov. 1, 2016. Military planes from China have increasingly skirted the island of Taiwan.

communist government increasingly often sends military aircraft to skirt the island, a challenge to the local armed forces.

Planes from China flew near Taiwan in November and December, raising concern last week at the presidential office in Taipei. Over the past two years, Chinese military units have sent planes 10 times just outside the Taiwanese air defense zone, former Taiwan defense minister Andrew Yang estimates.

China considers self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory that must eventually be unified. Officials in Beijing resent Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen for not accepting their “one-China” principle, which would bind the two sides under one flag, as a condition for any talks.

China is conducting the long-range flights in part to warn Taiwan against moving toward formal independence at the risk of a military strike, analysts say.    [FULL  STORY]

Presidential Office unveils New Year greeting cards

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-12-25

The Presidential Office has unveiled its New Year greeting cards, which were designed by artist Liao Jun-yu.

As 2018 is the Year of the Dog on the Chinese calendar, the card features President Tsai Ing-wen’s three retired guide dogs against a bright purple background. The colorful fireworks also display the festivity of the Chinese Lunar New Year.

The greeting card was designed by Liao Jun-yu, a young man who sports a crew cut and a pony tail.    [FULL  STORY]

Chinese official threatens ‘decisive action’ if Taiwan declares independence

In an article published Dec. 25, Chinese official claims an ‘overwhelming advantage’ over Taiwan 

Taiwan News 
Date: 2017/12/25
By: Duncan DeAeth, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – On Dec. 25, the Chinese state-run newspaper “The Study

Screenshot of the article

Times,” published an article by Liu Junchuan (劉軍川), an official with the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, which asserts that the annexation of Taiwan is a top priority of the Chinese government.

His commentary is outrageous and quickly drew the attention of Taiwanese media.

“The Study Times” is published by the Central Party School and is essential reading for future Communist Party officials. The article is entitled “The Great Renaissance of the Chinese People demands the complete Reunification of the Motherland” (中華民族偉大復興必然要求實現祖國完全統一), which is a rewording of a statement made  by Xi Jinping.

The article makes the claim that China has every advantage in regards to solving the Taiwan issue, and more interesting, that taking control of Taiwan is prerequisite for the continued advancement of China’s interests economically, militarily, socially, and culturally.
[FULL  STORY]

2017 to end without a ‘cold surge’ in Taiwan

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/12/25
By: Chen Wei-ting and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, Dec. 25 (CNA) With no sign of a cold surge set to arrive in Taiwan in the final days of the year, 2017 will be the first year in nearly two decades not to experience a cold surge for the entire year, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) said Monday.

A cold surge is said to have occurred when the lowest temperature in the Taipei metropolitan area falls to 10 degrees Celsius or lower, according to the CWB.

Cold surges in Taiwan usually arrive around New Year’s Day and tend to fall between Dec. 10 and Jan. 23 the next year, according to CWB forecaster Hsu Chung-yi (徐仲毅).

But no cold surges were recorded last winter (from late 2016 to early 2017), and none have been experienced so far this winter, Hsu said, meaning that 10 degree or lower temperatures in greater Taipei will have been absent for a full year for the first time since 2000.    [FULL  STORY]

Minister meets with new NWL chair

CLOCK IS TICKING: The National Women’s League said it is willing to restart talks, one day after it replaced its chair and one day before its affiliation status is to be decided

Taipei Times
Date: Dec 26, 2017
By: Staff writer, with CNA

Minister of the Interior Yeh Jiunn-rong (葉俊榮) yesterday held an hour-long meeting with

Minister of the Interior Yeh Jiunn-rong speaks at a meeting of the legislature’s Internal Administration Committee in Taipei yesterday.  Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times

the newly appointed chairwoman of the National Women’s League (NWL), Joanna Lei (雷倩).

The meeting came one day before a planned meeting of the Cabinet’s Ill-gotten Party Assets Settlement Committee to decide whether the league is affiliated with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).

Earlier yesterday, the league called the Ministry of the Interior to signal its willingness to restart negotiations over the administrative contract drawn by the ministry, an unnamed source said.

After the league’s call, Yeh took a leave of absence from the Legislative Yuan session and received Lei for a meeting at the ministry, the source said.    [FULL  STORY]

‘Baby box’ plan canceled after public backlash

Taipei Times
Date: Dec 25, 2017
By: Wu Liang-yi and Sherry Hsiao  /  Staff reporter, with staff writer

The Ministry of Health and Welfare on Saturday announced that it would cancel its NT$600 million (US$20 million) “baby box” program proposal, which aimed to address the nation’s low fertility rate and the trend toward having fewer children.

The ministry in October proposed the program, which is modeled after a Finnish policy.

The so-called baby boxes would include childcare information and necessities for newborns, and each box would cost about NT$952 to produce.

The program was originally included as part of the Forward-looking Infrastructure Development Program.    [FULL  STORY]

East Asian Weather Report for Monday, Dec. 25

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-12-24

In Taiwan, Taipei in the north will have some light cloud and temperatures in the area of 16 to 17 C. It will be cloudy as well in Kaohsiung in the south but slightly warmer, with a high of 22 C.

Elsewhere in Asia, the outlook is mostly sunny for the region. Hong Kong will have sun and a high of 19 C. It will be sunny as well in Beijing, though temperatures won’t get above 3 C. Tokyo can expect sunny skies and a high of 15 C. And there will be sun in Seoul but with a high of just 2 C.    [SOURCE]

Taiwan cop exerts extraordinary investigative effort to help a man find his wallet

A Taoyuan police officer exerted extraordinary investigative effort to help a man find his wallet that contained NT$30,000

Taiwan News 
Date: 2017/12/24
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News)—A Taoyuan police officer exerted extraordinary investigative effort

A Taoyuan police officer exerted extraordinary investigative effort to help a man find his wallet that contained NT$30,000. (By Wikimedia Commons)

to help a man find his wallet that contained NT$30,000.

Tsai Chia-nan (蔡佳男) of Longxing Police Station told reporters that a man surnamed Zhong (鍾) nervously came to the police station last night (Saturday night) to ask for help to locate his lost wallet. Zhong told the officer that he went to a department store in the downtown area with NT$30,000 cash in his wallet because he wanted to buy a birthday gift for his daughter. As he couldn’t find a becoming gift for his daughter, he took a taxi home, Zhong said, adding when he came home, he couldn’t find his wallet.

After asking Zhong about such details as where he took the taxi, the time he arrived home, and the distance of the taxi ride, Tsai figured out a possible route of the taxi ride and the intersections the taxi might have passed. Reviewing of the surveillance footage that corresponded to the timeframe of the taxi ride found that only two taxis passed the intersections during that time. The officer also provided the photos of the two drivers for Zhong to identify. After making such efforts, the police officer was able to successfully find out the taxi Zhong took Saturday night.     [FULL  STORY]

TOEIC test in Taiwan canceled due to technical error

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/12/24
By: Phoenix Hsu and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, Dec. 24 (CNA) A Test of English for International Communications, better known as

Image taken from Pixabay

TOEIC, test session in Taiwan was canceled Sunday because the questions spoken in English for audio broadcasting did not match the content printed in the test book, affecting about 24,000 test-takers.

The TOEIC test started with a listening comprehension test, according to the Taiwan organizer of the test.

However, when the first audio question was spoken, some test takers reported that the question did not match the answer sheet in the test book, the organizer said, adding that it decided to cancel the test and send the test-takers home.    [FULL  STORY]