Want China Times
Date: 2015-07-11
By: CNA

Over the past two weeks, 13 people agreed to donate their organs or skin after they

died, showing a trend toward increased organ donations in the wake of a dust explosion at a water park in New Taipei, the organ registry and sharing center said Friday.

The June 27 explosion left nearly 500 injured and four dead, as of Friday.

Since the accident occurred, there have been 13 organ donors, including a victim in the explosion whose parents decided to donate his organs after he was pronounced brain dead earlier Friday, according to the Taiwan Organ Registry and Sharing Center.

The 23-year-old victim was a Taipei Medical University dentistry student.

Four of the 13 donors also agreed to donate their skin, in addition to organs, the center said.

Lee Po-chang, chairman of the center, said the number of organ donors tends to rise in the wake of major disasters, citing the recent colored power explosion as an example.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/07/11
By: Chen Ching-fang and Lillian Lin

Taipei, July 11 (CNA) Alzheimer nursing experts from Taiwan, Japan and South Korea

met in Taipei Saturday to exchange views on the training of skilled nursing personnel and the establishment of a certification system for Alzheimer nurses.

Chen Liang-kung (陳亮恭), chairman of the Taiwan Association of Integrated Care, said the fast-growing number of Alzheimer patients and insufficient specialized nursing manpower are issues that require attention.

According to the specialist in geriatrics and gerontology, an estimated 230,000 people in Taiwan are currently suffering from dementia, many of whom are not getting skilled nursing care.

On May 15, the Legislature passed a bill on long-term care services. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said that if national long-term care services are to be implemented, there will be a serious manpower shortage of 40,000 nursing personnel.     [FULL  STORY]

Want China Times
Date 2015-07-11
By: CNA

The first indigenous case of Japanese encephalitis infection in Pingtung county this

year was confirmed Friday, indicating a spread of the disease to Taiwan’s southernmost county.

The patient, a 50-year-old woman residing in Pingtung, is being treated at a general ward in a Pingtung hospital, the county’s Public Health Bureau said in statement.

The woman developed a headache on June 12 and went to the emergency room of a local hospital for treatment and returned home afterwards, the county said.

But she went back to the hospital on June 15 with a fever and was admitted. Four days later she was put into the intensive care ward after falling in and out of consciousness.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/07/11
By: Christie Chen

Taipei, July 11 (CNA) Hundreds of demonstrators protested Saturday in front of the headquarters of the two major political parties in Taiwan and the Legislative Yuan to express anger over what they perceive to be lawmakers’ delay in reviewing a same-sex marriage bill.

Led by the Taiwan Alliance to Promote Civil Partnership Rights, the demonstrators protested in front of the ruling Kuomintang’s (KMT’s) headquarters in Taipei before marching to the headquarters of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and ending the rally at the Legislative Yuan.

In front of the police-guarded KMT headquarters, the protesters shouted slogans such as “KMT, don’t be the stumbling block in equal marriage rights” and held rainbow flags, as well as placards reading “I want to get married. I am gay.”     [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date:  Jul 11, 2015
By: Abraham Gerber  /  Staff reporter

The Taipei City Government was conflicted about yesterday’s decision to declare a

typhoon day, halting work and closing schools, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) said yesterday, with the halt to school and work announced later than announcements by past city administrations.

“I was scared that after we made the announcement, we’d find the next morning had perfect weather for an outing,” Ko said after hearing a report at Taipei’s Emergency Operations Center on Typhoon Chan-Hom, adding the lack of rain last night made him feel worried.

Ko said the decision to call the typhoon day was made to respect the “expert opinion” of the Central Weather Bureau, whose weather report predicted that wind speeds would reach the legal threshold for halting work and classes by noon yesterday.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/07/10
By: Page Tsai and Elizabeth Hsu

Taipei, July 10 (CNA) The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) said Friday that it will keep trying

to have the British citizen Zain Taj Dean extradited to Taiwan to serve a jail sentence for a hit-and-run accident that killed a newspaper delivery man.

The ministry reiterated its determination for the extradition after a local newspaper reported on Friday that the British government has proposed allowing the time Dean has been detained in the United Kingdom to count toward his sentence in Taiwan.

The ministry declined to confirm whether or not there was such a proposal, but an MOJ official, who refused to be named, disclosed that in theory, the idea can be carried out.     [FULL  STORY]

Want China Times
Date: 2015-07-10
By: CNA

Taiwan’s National Palace Museum (NPM) saw an unexpected power outage at about

1:30pm Thursday, but power was restored as of 4:25pm.

The emergency power system was activated successfully, enabling the display areas to operate normally, said Ho Chuan-hsing, deputy director of the NPM.

The power supply line to 249 households and businesses in that area of Taipei’s Shilin district had been disconnected at about 1:31pm, Taiwan Power said. It estimated earlier that operations will return to normalcy around 4pm.

Quite a few visitors were crammed in the entrance area after the blackout, as a press conference celebrating the 90th anniversary of the museum and the opening of its southern branch had to be postponed and held in the dark.     [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Jul 11, 2015
By: Staff writer, with CNA

President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) upcoming three-nation Latin America tour slated to

start today would not be affected by Typhoon Chan-Hom, although a land warning for the typhoon was issued late on Thursday, Presidential Office spokesman Charles Chen (陳以信) said.

Chen said that the government has to strike a balance between dealing with domestic and foreign affairs.

He said Ma always attaches great importance to disaster prevention and preparedness and has directed the Executive Yuan to be well-prepared for the coming typhoon.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ma is set to depart today for an eight-day trip to Taiwan’s diplomatic allies which would take him to the Dominican Republic tomorrow, the Republic of Haiti on Tuesday next week, and the Republic of Nicaragua on Wednesday next week. He is scheduled to return to Taiwan on Saturday next week.     [FULL  STORY]