The China Post
Date: June 24, 2017
By: CNA

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Temperatures in Taitung County’s Dawu Township soared to 38.2 degrees Celsius at

noon Saturday, the highest recorded anywhere in Taiwan so far this year, the Central Weather Bureau said.

The high, recorded at 12:08 p.m., was attributed to warm and dry gusts that descend from the sheltered side of mountains into valleys, according to the bureau.

The reading broke the year’s previous record of 37.8 degrees, which was seen two days ago in Dawu as well.

The highest temperature Taiwan has ever experienced in June was 38.7 degrees, recorded in Dawu in 2015, according to the bureau.
[FULL  STORY]

 

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-06-23

The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has called on the Hong Kong government to be more flexible in

exchanges with Taiwan. That was the word from the MAC’s deputy head Chang Tien-chin on Thursday.

The Friends of Hong Kong and Macau Association, an NGO that promotes exchanges between Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau, held a seminar to mark the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China. Chang spoke at the seminar on the frequent exchanges between Hong Kong and Taiwan in trade, tourism, and academia.

Chang also said exchanges between the two sides have been affected by the cooling relations between Taiwan and China. He called on the Hong Kong government to show more flexibility in order to further develop ties with Taiwan.

Chang said Hong Kong and Taiwan share the values of freedom, democracy and human rights. He also called on Beijing to uphold its promise to allow Hong Kong to maintain a high level of autonomy under its “one country, two systems” policy.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/06/23
By: Central News Agency

Musicians across the Chinese-language world will gather in Taipei on Saturday to vie for the top honors at the annual Golden Melody Awards, the biggest music awards show in Taiwan.

Many viewers are expected to tune in to see some of the biggest names in the Mandarin music scene as well as the star-studded performances and tributes to music legends.

This year’s performers include pop diva A-mei, Japanese rock band GLAY, and Taiwanese rock band Mayday, which is leading Golden Melody nominees with eight nods.

A-mei will perform several songs by Chang Yu-sheng, including “Miss You Everyday,” as a tribute to the late singer-songwriter, who was posthumously named a recipient of the Special Contribution Award in May.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/06/23
By: Han Ting-ting and Ko Lin

Taipei, June 23 (CNA) Domestically built electric buses might hit the Japanese market next year,

according to Taiwan-based electric vehicle manufacturer RAC Electric Vehicles Inc.

Earlier in April, the company sealed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cooperation with Japanese firm Sumitomo Corp. in Taipei as part of an effort to help bring RAC buses to the Northeast Asian market.

Incorporated in 1919, Sumitomo, part of the Sumitomo Group, is one of the world’s largest general trading companies.

The signing of the agreement symbolizes Sumitomo’s confidence in Taiwan-developed electric buses, RAC said, adding that their products will likely first be seen in Okinawa next year.
[FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: June 23, 2017
By: CNA

KAOHSIUNG — More than 6,000 pieces of counterfeit brand-name clothing and footwear were seized in

Tainan and Kaohsiung in police raids targeted at markets in those two cities in southern Taiwan, police said Friday.

The brands include Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Nike, Addidas, Under Armour, New Balance, Hello Kitty and Doraemon.

Some of seized counterfeit articles, including sneakers and T-shirts, were put on display at an office of the Second Special Police Corps in Kaohsiung. They would have a total value of NT$5 million (US$164,100) at retails stores if they were genuine, an officer told reporters.

The counterfeits were seized from six vendors in Tainan and Kaohsiung who had been selling them at traditional markets and night markets, which often attract large numbers of tourists, said Tai Chao-tung, a captain of the Special Police Corps’ Criminal Investigation Brigade.    [FULL  STORY]

The program aims to strengthen connections between the young people of Taiwan and their counterparts in the countries covered by the New Southbound Policy

Taiwan News
Date: 2017/06/22
By: Taiwan Today,Agencies

The Young Agricultural Ambassadors New Southbound Policy Exchange Program was launched June 20 in Taipei City as part of government efforts boosting cooperation in agriculture and talent exchanges between Taiwan and the countries covered by the policy.

Organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cabinet-level Council of Agriculture, the first stage of the program involves sending two 15-member groups of 18- to 35-year-old to Indonesia and the Philippines in September for a weeklong visit. During their time in country, the groups will observe Taiwan-backed cooperation projects, similar internationally overseen initiatives and meet with officials responsible for agriculture and related activities.

In addition, the groups will exchange ideas with academics, agricultural economic experts, young entrepreneurs and members of the Taiwan expatriate community. They will also conduct fact-finding visits to agricultural supply chain firms and observe halal-certification procedures.    [FULL  STORY]

REINFORCEMENTS:More people from the center and south are busing in today and plan to camp outside the legislature until review is over, a teachers’ union leader said

Taipei Times
Date: Jun 23, 2017
By: Abraham Gerber  /  Staff reporter

Calls to “fight to the finish” by pension reform opponents drew a tepid response yesterday as protester

numbers continued to dwindle, with only a scattering gathered outside the Legislative Yuan in Taipei as the bill enters its final stretch.

“If the Democratic Progressive Party [DPP] refuses to budge, we will adopt the harshest possible protest measures and a scorched-earth strategy,” National Federation of Teachers’ Unions director-general Huang Yao-nan (黃耀南) said.

He blasted rumors that the final DPP version would be even harsher than that approved by the National Pension Reform Commission, tripling the speed at which preferential savings accounts would be eliminated and pension replacement ratios lowered.

He said his federation and other groups affiliated with the Alliance for Monitoring Pension Reform had issued a mobilization call late on Wednesday following the breakdown of cross-caucus negotiations.
[FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: June 22, 2017
By: CNA

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) will lead a delegation on July 2 to a city forum in

Shanghai, at which officials from both cities will exchange views on building healthy cities, according to the Taipei City Government.

Ko and his Shanghai counterpart Ying Yong (應勇) will address the opening ceremony of the forum, which is expected to be attended by a group of city councilors from Taipei, according to a press release issued by the city government.

Three city councilors, Fu Chung-wu (傅中武) of the Kuomintang, Chen Yen-po (陳彥伯) of the New Party and Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) of the Democratic Progressive Party, were selected by means of draw to join the Taipei delegation.

Liang said he would like to use the opportunity to visit Shanghai’s free trade zone.

Other city councilors, including the KMT’s Lee Fang-ju (李芳儒), said they will pay their own way to attend the forum, although the official activities might not be open to such attendees from Taipei.
[FULL  STORY]