Illegal rooftop apartments are slowly being demolished, but many have learned to love them.

The News Lens
Date: 2017/12/14
By: Morley James Weston

If there is anything more iconic to Taiwan’s urban outskirts than blinking betel nut signs,

it might be the off-kilter corrugated-steel additions on nearly every rooftop. Dinglou Jiagai (頂樓加蓋), illegal rooftop apartments, have been a symptom of Taiwan’s urban expansion since the Japanese era, but a series of fires this year has led the government to take action.

On Nov. 24, 2017, nine people died in a fire in the Zhonghe neighborhood of New Taipei City, prompting reactions from Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫). Two foreign students also died in a fire on a Shilin rooftop apartment on Aug. 10.

Taipei and New Taipei were spurred into action and Dec. 8 began a new campaign against the apartments. Taipei’s government hasn’t shied away from mass demolitions in the past; Da’an Forest Park in downtown Taipei was carved out from a blighted neighborhood in the 1990s. Rooftop apartments are more difficult; they must be taken down with handheld tools in crowded neighborhoods and can affect the income of building owners.    [FULL  STORY]

17-year-old hangs himself after father refused to buy him a scooter two months before his 18th birthday

Taiwan News 
Date 2017/12/14
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A 17-year-old teenager was found to be dead in his room in

New Taipei’s Tucheng District yesterday (Dec. 13) from an apparent hanging, after his father refused to give him a scooter, just two months ahead of this 18th birthday, reported SETN.

At approximately 6 a.m. yesterday, firefighters received a call from a man saying “My son has died!” When rescuers arrived on the scene, they found a 17-year-old male had apparently hung himself in his bedroom and showing now signs of life. His father said his suicide was likely because of a dispute they had over a scooter.

According to an initial police investigation, the deceased has been identified as a second-year vocational student surnmed Fan (范). As he was only two months away from his 18th birthday, the previous evening he asked his father if he give him a scooter in advance, and even said that he was willing to take an part-time job to help pay for it.
[FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/12/14
By: Cheng Chih-chung and Kuan-lin Liu

Taipei, Dec. 14 (CNA) The first students cohorts at Minerva Schools, a revolutionary college startup that conducts courses via online seminars and has no set classrooms, are looking to visit Taipei in the final semester of their four-year programs, which have taken them to six countries so far.

Speaking at an education awards ceremony, Stanley C. Yen (嚴長壽), chairman of the Alliance Cultural Foundation, said the plan was a major development that could serve as an inspiration for Taiwan’s education system.

However, there are some bureaucratic issues, such as visas, that must be resolved before the 100 students from 40 different countries can come to Taiwan under the Minerva Schools program, Yen said, urging the government to assist.   [FULL  STORY]

PRESIDENTIAL PRECEDENT: One legislator said that if there is evidence of wrongdoing, Ma should be immediately detained, as happened to former president Chen Shui-bian

Taipei Times
Date Dec 15, 2017
By: Jason Pan  /  Staff reporter

Lawmakers and judicial officials yesterday responded to charges made by former

president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who has accused prosecutors of leaking information related to an ongoing case in which he is involved, saying that Ma is trying to interfere with the judicial process and shift the public’s focus away from an investigation into financial irregularities in the sales of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) assets.

“If prosecutors have evidence of wrongdoing, they should summon Ma for questioning and detain him,” Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wang Ding-yu (王定宇) said.

“This key recording was recovered from digital files that were deleted, leading to suspicions of tampering and destruction of evidence,” he said, referring to media reports of prosecutors obtaining a recording that allegedly implicates Ma in financial irregularities arising from the sale of KMT-controlled media companies and other assets more than a decade ago.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-12-13

The coast guard says it will work with the defense ministry on strategies to deal with

potential Chinese naval activities in Taiwan’s Exclusive Economic Zone. That was the word from Lee Chung-wei, head of the Coast Guard Administration, on Wednesday.

Lee was responding to lawmakers’ questions about whether the coast guard has strategies in place for potential Chinese naval incursions into Taiwan’s economic zone.

Lee said the administration will work with the defense ministry to come up with appropriate strategies.

“The Coast Guard Administration has signed agreements with the navy and the defense ministry to get their support in times of need. The agreements cannot be discussed here but they do cover the waters around the islands and reefs in the South China Sea. [In the event of an incursion], our priority will be to protect our vessels that are in danger. If a confrontation breaks out, we will still focus on protecting [our vessels] while calling for support,” said Lee.     [FULL  STORY]

Many Taipei residents might not have heard of the free Guizikeng Camping Ground (貴子坑露營場), which is tucked in the hills of Taipei’s Beitou district

Taiwan News 
Date: 2017/12/13
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News)—Many Taipei residents might not have heard of Guizikeng

Camping Site (貴子坑露營場), but they should know about this place if they are interested in taking advantage of the city’s free public campsite for a relaxing recreational experience.

Guizikeng Camping Site, which is tucked in the hills of Taipei’s Beitou district, comprises a grass area that can accommodate 15 family tents and a camping car zone that has 12 spaces for recreational vehicles—each space is equipped with electricity—making the camping experience even more convenient, according to Taipei’s Geotechnical Engineering Office (GEO).

The GEO, which is the governing body of the campsite, said that Guizikeng, boasting a unique natural environment, is an ideal place for camping activities. The circular plaza at the site serves as a venue for field games while city dwellers enjoy a rare opportunity to relish the view of a starry night sky free of light pollution, as well as listening to live concerts featuring melodies from nature, the GEO said. The camping ground is home to a “Lovers’ Lake” populated by lotus and fish. The traces of blue magpies can also be found in the surrounding woods.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/12/13
By: Sabine Cheng and William Yen

Taipei, Dec. 13 (CNA) Regular ticket prices for visitors to the National Palace Museum

(NPM) in Taipei are to be raised from 2018 in the latest move to adjust admittance rates, the museum’s director said Wednesday.

Speaking at a Legislative Yuan Education and Culture Committee meeting, NPM Director Lin Jeng-yi (林正儀) said that according to the Ministry of Finance Charges and Fees Act, the NPM is required to revise its ticket prices once every three years. The last time a revision was made was in July 2014.

From Jan. 1, 2018, admittance to the NPM’s northern branch in Taipei will be raised to NT$350 (US$11.65) from NT$250, while regular group tickets for groups of 10 or more will also be raised from NT$230 to NT$320 per person.    [FULL  STORY]

‘HOW DOES IT FEEL?’ The legitimacy of a meeting last week was initially rejected by opposition lawmakers, resulting in turmoil at the podium before a break was called

Taipei Times
Date: Dec 14, 2017
By: Sean Lin  /  Staff reporter

An attempt by opposition lawmakers yesterday to force the Democratic Progressive Party

(DPP) to return a revised draft amendment of the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法) to committee review was stymied after DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) called absent DPP lawmakers to the meeting to vote down the proposal.

The legislature’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee yesterday held a meeting to review environmental protection budget requests, during which New Power Party (NPP) Legislator Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) made a point of order about what he called “procedural flaws” during a joint committee review of the proposed amendment on Monday last week.

A motion by DPP lawmakers on the two committees to send the revision to cross-caucus negotiations was passed during the review.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-12-12

Taiwan welcomed its 10 millionth visitor of the year on Tuesday. This makes 2017 the

third year in a row to bring more than 10 million tourists to the country.

The makeup of Taiwan’s tourism market has changed markedly in recent years, however, with a steep decline in Chinese visitors due to cross-strait friction.

The Tourism Bureau says the country is now benefiting from the government’s New Southbound policy. The policy seeks closer ties with Australia, New Zealand, and the countries of South and Southeast Asia. The bureau says visa waivers for visitors from Thailand and the Philippines and a conditional waiver for visitors from Vietnam have doubled tourism from these three countries in particular.    [FULL  STORY]