Radio Taiwan International
Date: 18 August, 2020
By: Shirley Lin

Taiwan’s Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) on Tuesday announced one new imported case of COVID-19. That brings the total number of confirmed cases in Taiwan to 486.

The latest case is a man in his 60s who had been working in the Philippines. The CECC has identified 17 passengers who have been in close contact with the man on the plane to Taiwan. 
[FULL  STORY]

Time
Date: August 18, 2020
By: Kat Moon

When Damy Li bought a ticket to attend the first concert of Eric Chou’s 2020 How Have You Been tour in Taipei on Aug. 8, she knew she’d have to wear a mask upon entry. What she didn’t know was that she’d win a lottery that got her a second one—a pink medical mask signed by the Mandopop singer-songwriter, who gave it to her onstage. It would be a memento not just of Li’s first concert, but of how fundamentally COVID-19 has changed public life.

That night, the 10,000-plus concertgoers at the Taipei Arena experienced what few have felt in nearly half a year: the energy of a packed house singing along with a beloved artist’s songs. That a concert of this size—larger than any other reported on since social distancing measures began—was taking place in Taiwan is a testament to the self-governing island’s strong response to the coronavirus. Heading into the show, Taiwan, which has a population of more than 23 million, had recorded 479 cases of COVID-19 and seven deaths. Through prevention measures ranging from border control to mandatory 14-day home quarantine for travelers, Taiwan has largely kept the virus at bay. In early June, after no new locally transmitted cases were recorded for eight weeks, restrictions were lifted on audience numbers for large gatherings.

During rehearsal, Chou practices the opening number, “Nobody But Me.” It had been more than a year since he performed his first show at the arena. “Last year, I was just very nervous,” he says. “This year, it’s a feeling more like returning home”    [FULL  STORY]

Pandemic could not stop Indonesian students living in Taiwan from celebrating Indonesian Independence Day

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/08/18
By  Taiwan News

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Indonesian students in Taiwan who were unable to be home for their nation’s Independence Day (Aug. 17) came together on university campuses to play traditional Indonesian games instead.

The Indonesian Student Association in Taiwan (PERPITA) held its Independence Day celebrations, known as “Tuh Baper,” on Friday (Aug. 14) in central and southern Taiwan, followed by a final event on Saturday in northern Taiwan.

In normal times, most students would be home for the summer and would celebrate Independence Day in Indonesia. This summer, the COVID-19 pandemic, which has impacted Indonesia severely, has forced many students to remain in Taiwan.

The student organization invited students living all over Taiwan to join in and play traditional games, such as “makan kerupuk,” or eat the cracker, and “tarik tambang,” Indonesian for tug of war. Afterward, Indonesian foods were served by sponsoring vendors.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/18/2020
By: William Yen

Taipei, Aug. 18 (CNA) A crowdfunding campaign to raise cash for a movie series based on Taiwan's history has shown promising results, with over NT$24 million (US$816,433) raised from more than 6,000 people, according to the campaign's website.

As of 10 p.m. Tuesday, a total of NT$24,479,560 has been raised by 6,633 people since the fundraiser started on Aug. 5, for the "Taiwan 400 Years Film Series," the website showed. The first phase of the campaign, which runs until Oct. 10, is aimed at raising NT$100 million.

The fundraiser has received support from Taiwanese and people from overseas, said acclaimed Taiwanese filmmaker Wei Te-sheng (魏德聖), who directed the popular two-part epic film "Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale," based on the 1930 Wushe Incident in central Taiwan.

Many people have left messages in support of the film, according to the campaign's website.
[FULL  STORY]

ABOUT FACE? ‘The public must not sit idly by … as the DPP turns the nation into a one-party state,’ KMT Institute of Revolutionary Practice director Lo Chih-chiang said

Taipei Times
Date: Aug 19, 2020
By: Shih Hsiao-kuang and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writer

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) yesterday initiated a proposal for a referendum calling for referendum voting to be held concurrently with national elections, with the aim of “returning power to the people.”

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has used its legislative majority to rule aggressively since coming to power in 2016 and prevented members of the public from expressing themselves on issues, Chiang told a news conference in Taipei.

“This situation demonstrates the importance of direct democracy,” he said.

The outcomes of the 2018 referendum votes were not what the DPP had hoped for, so it decoupled referendums from presidential elections, changing the law so that referendum voting would only be held every two years, he said.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 17 August, 2020
By: Katherine Wei

Several officials from the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) have tendered their resignation following a major defeat for the party in Saturday’s mayoral by-election in Kaohsiung. That was the word from KMT Chairperson Johnny Chiang on Monday. 

The KMT’s candidate, Li Mei-jhen, received less than 26% of the vote on Saturday. The ruling DPP’s Chen Chi-mai won the race with 70% of the vote. 

Top KMT officials met on Monday to discuss the race. After the meeting, the KMT announced that the head of the party’s Kaohsiung office, Chuang Chi-wang, had submitted his resignation back in June after the recall of then-Mayor Han Kuo-yu. At the time, the party decided to retain Chuang to help with the by-election. The KMT says that with the conclusion of the by-election, Chuang has completed his mission and that the party is allowing him to take a break from duties.     [FULL  STORY]

South China Morning Post 
Date: August 17, 2020
By: Minnie Chan

• Taiwanese pilots were told to avoid "misfiring" when sent to repel Chinese fighter jets and "intruding" aircraft, according to local media.
   
• Observers say it is a message to both Beijing and Washington that Taipei "won't make any provocative moves."

Taiwan's military has reportedly renewed an order to its pilots "not to fire the first shot" amid rising tensions across the strait, according to local media.

Beijing-friendly China Times on Monday reported that the self-ruled island's air force had told its pilots to avoid "misfiring" when they were dispatched to repel fighter jets from the mainland and other aircraft "intruding" into Taiwan's airspace.    [FULL  STORY]

Inmate escapes from work release program despite soon being eligible for parole

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/08/17
By: Ching-Tse Cheng, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Taiwanese inmate serving time at Tainan's Mingde Minimum-Security Prison escaped from a work release program on Friday (Aug. 14).

The Tainan City Police Department said Monday (Aug. 17) that the inmate, surnamed Lien (連), absconded Friday afternoon from a nearby factory where he had been participating in the work release program. The department said local law enforcement had been able to track Lien down Saturday but that he managed to get away after a car chase ended in a crash and pursuit on foot.

According to the police, the 59-year-old Lien was sentenced to six-and-a-half years for possession of illegal firearms in 2013. After demonstrating good behavior during his imprisonment, Lien was selected for the work release program, which provides inmates with the opportunity to work in the community.

The police said Lien's escape was "unexpected" since he was scheduled to complete his sentence by 2023 and was eligible for parole later this year. They said he had also been granted the privilege to return home once a month and that he could also receive daily visits, reported Liberty Times.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/17/2020
By: William Yen

Taipei, Aug. 17 (CNA) Ordinary hotels will be able in the future to accept individuals who need to be quarantined to accommodate heavy demand at the current level of arrivals, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said Monday.

Taiwan sees up to 2,000 new arrivals per day who need a place to stay during their mandatory 14-day quarantine, with an average of close to 20,000 people in quarantine every day, said CECC spokesman Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥) at a press conference in Taipei.

"There are not enough quarantine hotels to satisfy demand," Chuang said.

At present, almost all people who enter Taiwan, whether Taiwanese or foreign nationals, are required to be quarantined for 14 days to prevent COVID-19 from being brought in from other countries.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Aug 18, 2020
By: Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporter

Nearly 80 percent of students in Taiwan get less than eight hours of sleep per night, a survey released yesterday by the Child Welfare League Foundation showed.

The survey, which looked at sleeping habits and the use of stimulant drinks among junior, senior and vocational high-school students, found that respondents got an average of 6.9 hours of sleep each night.

Overall, students go to bed at 11:15pm and wake up at 6:12am, the foundation said.Junior-high school students reported an average of 7.3 hours of sleep per night, while students in senior or vocational high schools reported 6.5 hours, the survey found.    [FULL  STORY]