Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/07/09
By: Zoe Wei and Christie Chen

Taipei, July 9 (CNA) Taiwan’s Executive Yuan on Thursday announced that it will relax regulations to allow foreign caretakers to be hired to take care of people aged 85 and over with mild disabilities.

Under the current regulations, foreign caretakers can only be hired to take care of individuals with grave physical or mental diseases.

Foreign workers can also be hired to care for those aged 80 and over who have been assessed and determined to require heavily dependent care, as well as elderly people under the age of 80 who have been determined by a medical institution as requiring all-day care.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/07/09
By: Sofia Yeh and S.C. Chang

Taipei, July 9 (CNA) A leading social democrat on Thursday criticized Democratic Progressive Party chairwoman and presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen for shying away from seriously reforming Taiwan’s pension system that is vastly in favor of public sector employees.

As the presidential candidate of the main opposition party – and “the most likely” national leader next year – Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) should not have just put forth a pension reform proposal that does not tackle the issue head-on, said Fan Yun (范雲), convener of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).     [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Jul 09, 2015
By: Shih Hsiu-chuan  /  Staff reporter

A student leader yesterday asked President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to withdraw

controversial curriculum guideline changes at a meeting held at National Taiwan University. Ma rejected the appeal, saying that “people on the other side” would oppose such a move and the demand is “out of proportion.”

Taipei Private Yan Ping High School student Lin Yen-ting (林彥廷), spokesperson for an alliance of students in schools in northern Taiwan who oppose what they call a set of “China-centric” adjustments to high-school curriculum guidelines, presented the alliance’s demands to the president.

Saying that the Ministry of Education made the proposed changes in an opaque, undemocratic way and that the contents were controversial, Lin asked Ma whether he could promise to have the proposed guidelines abolished and open the revision process to public discussion to represent pluralistic historical representations.      [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/07/08
By: Sunrise Huang and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, July 8 (CNA) The New Taipei government may use some of the donations it has received to help burn victims of explosions at a water park on June 27 as living stipends for the families of some of the victims.

The move is being considered to compensate burn victim family members who have taken unpaid leave from work to look after their loved ones, a New Taipei spokesman said.

Civil servants have already been allowed to take 20 days of paid leave to care for family members injured in dust explosions at the Formosa Fun Coast water park in New Taipei on June 27.

The city government had previously provided living allowance for all burn victims regardless of their nationality.      [FULL  STORY]

Want China Times
Date: 2015-07-08
By: CNA

Singer-songwriter David Tao on Tuesday apologized to his family and fans for his

extramarital affair with Chinese entertainment agent Yang Ziqing, over a week after Yang revealed the affair to a celebrity news app and microblogging site.

“Even though the incident is not that simple, one thing is for sure and that is I was unfaithful after marriage,” Tao, who married his Taiwanese wife Penny Chiang last year, said in a press conference.

“I am very ashamed of it. I have made a mistake,” the 45-year-old said.

“I would like to offer my deepest apologies to my wife Penny, my in-laws, my mother and my family, friends and fans who have supported me all along the way,” said Tao, who choked back tears as he thanked his wife and other family members for their forgiveness.     [FULL  STORY]

Zee News
Date: July 7, 2015

Taiwan will not give up its claim over regions in the South China Sea, including over Taiping Island (Itu Aba), under occupation by Chinese troops, the Taiwanese ministry of foreign affairs announced Tuesday.

“The Republic of China (Taiwan) enjoys all rights to these island groups and their surrounding waters in accordance with international law,” the ministry of foreign affairs said in a statement.

“The South China Sea islands were first discovered, named, and used, as well as incorporated into national territory by the Chinese,” Efe news agency quoted the statement as reading.     [FULL  STORY]

Want China Times
Date: 2015-07-07
By: Staff Reporter

Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, sought to buy more than 1,000 historical documents that testify to Japanese

atrocities from a Taiwanese collector before they were donated to a Beijing museum, reports Duowei News, a US-based Chinese political news outlet.

Taiwanese artist and philanthropist Hsu Po-yih claimed Abe dispatched several envoys to procure the archive, which is said to offer proof of Japanese war crimes during Taiwan’s colonial era and Japan’s invasion of China during the 1930s and 1940s.

According to Hsu, Japanese authorities continued to attempt to contact him after learning that he intended to donate the documents to the Overseas Chinese History Museum, once sending several wealthy business executives offering a hefty payment in return fo     [FULL  STORY]