Page Two

US official questions ‘one China’

‘LUDICROUS’:A US Congress member said there was ‘support across the board’ for Taiwan joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade group in the second round

Taipei Times
Date:  Jun 19, 2015
By: William Lowther  /  Staff reporter, Washington

Washington’s “one China” policy could be “unsustainable,” US House of Representatives Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific Chairman Matt Salmon said on Wednesday.

“I am wondering if it is time for us to look at tweaking that policy a little bit,” he told a subcommittee meeting on the strategic impact of China’s economic and military growth.

“Things have changed,” he said. “Taiwan is now a thriving democracy and a lot of the policies that we have toward it right now seem to be outdated,” Salmon said.

He said that Beijing’s promise to have “one China,” but two systems for Hong Kong had turned out to be a joke.

“They do not even have the ability to choose their own chief executive and there is no universal suffrage in Hong Kong,” Salmon said.     [FULL  STORY]

AIT’s Moy reaffirms US’ stance

‘DREAM ASSIGNMENT’:The new director of the American Institute in Taiwan said that Americans are fans of Taiwan, and he was looking forward to working here

Taipei Times
Date: Jun 18, 2015
By: Shih Hsiu-chuan  /  Staff reporter

Newly appointed American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Kin Moy yesterday reiterated the US’

American Institute in Taiwan Director Kin Moy yesterday speaks with journalists in Taipei. Photo: Chen Yu-hsuan, Taipei Times

American Institute in Taiwan Director Kin Moy yesterday speaks with journalists in Taipei. Photo: Chen Yu-hsuan, Taipei Times

stance that it does not take a position on any of Taiwan’s candidates for next year’s elections and looks forward to working with whomever Taiwanese choose as their new leaders in the Presidential Office and Legislative Yuan.

In a meeting with reporters, Moy said the US is proud of what Taiwan has accomplished and the role the US has played in its success.

“The relationship has never been better,” he said.

“The strong bilateral relations and solid mutual trust that now exist between us have helped facilitate recent visits by senior officials and political leaders from our two sides,” he said.     [FULL  STORY]

Vancouver Taiwanese Film Festival goes above and beyond

The Georgia Straight
Date: June 17th, 2015
By: Charlie Smith, Adrian Mack

For its ninth edition, the Vancouver Taiwanese Film Festival wants to take you “Beyond Taiwan”—or

Meeting Dr. Sun provides comedic relief with a poignant tale of poor students who want to steal a statue of the founder of modern China, Dr. Sun Yat-sen.

Meeting Dr. Sun provides comedic relief with a poignant tale of poor students who want to steal a statue of the founder of modern China, Dr. Sun Yat-sen.

maybe over top of it. One of the highlights of this year’s mini-fest, which takes place at the Vancity Theatre from Friday to Sunday (June 19 to 21), is the 2013 documentary Beyond Beauty: Taiwan From Above. The film showcases the country’s stunning natural wonders juxtaposed with images of industrial development. Canadians might be reminded of the work of Edward Burtynsky.

Vancouver Taiwanese Film Festival highlights environmental issues, loss, love, and a statue of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen

“A lot of money and time was spent on the documentary,” said William Chuang, director-general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Vancouver. He was joined at a media conference by festival partners from UBC Literature Etc. and the Taiwanese Canadian Cultural Society.

Chuang emphasized that the festival gives Vancouverites an opportunity to learn not only about Taiwan’s vibrant film industry, but also about its open and democratic society.     [FULL  STORY]

Good news: China to halt reclamation. Bad news: Because it’s finished

Want China Times
Date: 2015-06-17
By: Staff Reporter

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a press conference on June 16, the sole agenda of which was

The US secretary of defense, Ash Carter, and his wife Stephanie are met by an officer of the People's Army of Vietnam as they arrive at Cat Bi International Airport, Hanoi, May 31. (Photo/CFP)

The US secretary of defense, Ash Carter, and his wife Stephanie are met by an officer of the People’s Army of Vietnam as they arrive at Cat Bi International Airport, Hanoi, May 31. (Photo/CFP)

to answer questions on the country’s land reclamation on reefs and islands in the South China Sea, according to Duowei News, a media outlet run by overseas Chinese.

A 400-word press release published on the ministry’s website stated, “In line with the plan already in place, China will soon finish land reclamation on several reefs and islands in the Nansha [Spratly] islands.” It went on to say “After land reclamation is complete, the next stage will be construction to fulfill various functions.”

China has been producing over 100 square kilometers of land a year through land reclamation, according to Duowei.

The Spratlys are a disputed island group in the resource rich South China Sea, claimed in whole or in part by China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei and Malaysia.     [FULL  STORY]

Nantou township recruiting tree care volunteers

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/06/17
By: Hsiao Po-yang and Christie Chen

Taipei, June 17 (CNA) A township office in the central county of Nantou announced Wednesday its

Lin Ming-chen (林明溱)

Lin Ming-chen (林明溱)

plan to recruit volunteers to help carry out surveys and take care of trees in the township during summer.

Those interested in the project are required to join a three-day training camp from June 24-26 to learn about ways and means to save, trim, preserve and care for trees, said Chen Chi-heng (陳紀衡), head of Jiji Township Office.

After completing training, they can work just one day or up to two months, as volunteers in the township from July 1 to Aug. 31, Chen said.

Volunteers will be divided into two groups, with one group responsible for counting, locating and categorizing trees, and the other for revitalizing tree roots, and fertilizing and watering the trees, he said.     [FULL  STORY]

NHIA spent NT$80bn last year on cancer treatments

HEALTH CONCERNS:Data from the National Health Insurance Administration shows it spent 20.4 percent more on drugs to treat liver cancer than in 2013

Taipei Times
Date: Jun 17, 2015
By: Stacy Hsu  /  Staff reporter

With cancer diagnoses rising steadily nationwide, the National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) yesterday said that it spent nearly NT$80 billion (US$2.56 billion) on cancer treatment last year, with the majority going to therapies for colorectal cancer.

The agency’s latest statistics showed that last year alone it allocated NT$78.2 billion to cancer treatment, accounting for about 13.3 percent of its total NT$590 billion in expenses for the year.

Colorectal cancer treatment topped the spending list with NT$10.9 billion, followed by lung cancers with NT$10.8 billion, breast cancers with NT$10.3 billion, liver cancers with NT$8.4 billion and oral cancers with NT$6.6 billion, the statistics showed.

Rounding out the top 10 most expensive cancers were leukemia with NT$4 billion, non-Hodgkin lymphomas at NT$3.9 billion, prostate cancers with NT$3.1 billion, stomach cancers with NT$2.5 billion and esophageal cancers, NT$2.3 billion.     [FULL  STORY]

Two people charged with false labeling of Japanese food imports

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/06/16
By: Wang Hung-kuo and Christie Chen

Taipei, June 16 (CNA) Two business executives were charged Tuesday with illegally importing and falsely labeling food from nuclear disaster-hit areas of Japan.

The two managers of local food import companies have been found to have imported snacks and soy sauce to Taiwan from the affected areas of Japan since 2014 and 2015 respectively.

Neither of them reported their imports to Taiwan’s Food and Drug Administration or the Keelung Customs, as they are required to do, according to the authorities.

Prosecutors said the defendants knew that they were not allowed to import food products from Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma and Chiba prefectures, and purposefully hid the origin of their products from downstream firms.     [FULL  STORY]

Groups apply for injunction over curriculum furor

Taipei Times
Date: Jun 17, 2015
By Jason Pan  /  Staff reporter

Civic groups and pro-Taiwanese independence parties gathered at the Taipei District Court yesterday

Members of civic organizations and pro-Taiwanese independence parties yesterday demonstrate outside the Taipei District Court. Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times

Members of civic organizations and pro-Taiwanese independence parties yesterday demonstrate outside the Taipei District Court. Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times

to lodge a provisional injunction aimed at halting the Ministry of Education’s proposed adjustments to high-school curriculum guidelines.

The group said the adjustments are an attempt by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to use the state education system to brainwash students with China-centric textbook material.

The legal move and rally activities were organized by the Taiwanese National Congress and the Taiwan Government Party.

The groups’ leaders said the move is to support protests by high-school students aimed at blocking the amendments, adding that going through a judicial process would be the most effective way of achieving their objectives.     [FULL  STORY]

Doctors from six hospitals questioned in alleged bribery case

eTaiwan News
Date: 2015-06-16
By: Central News Agency

Taipei, June 16 (CNA) Prosecutors on Tuesday questioned 27 people, including doctors from six hospitals, in an investigation of alleged bribery by a distributor of medical products. Prosecutors and law enforcement officials on Tuesday also searched the premises of the company — Rotary Trading Co. which is the Taiwan distributor of Toshiba medical products — and its subsidiaries and affiliated enterprises, and the homes and offices of the people allegedly involved in the scandal. A total of 27 suspects and witnesses were interrogated, including doctors mostly from the departments of radiology, hepatobiliary and gastroenterology at six hospitals, prosecutors said. Rotary Trading Chairman Lin Yu-liang and seven chief physicians were among the people questioned, prosecutors said.     [FULL  STORY]

MERS: Woman hospitalized in Taipei on return from South Korea

Want China Times
Date: 2015-06-14
By: CNA and Staff Reporter

A woman returning to Taiwan from a trip to South Korea has been placed in isolation on June 14 after she sought medical treatment the previous night for fears of getting MERS at Taipei City Hospital’s Chunghsiao branch.

The woman, who presented with a high fever when admitted into the hospital, is undergoing further tests to determine whether she has contracted the deadly virus, the hospital said.

Fourteen people are known to have died out of 145 confirmed MERS cases in South Korea since the start of the outbreak in the country.     [FULL  STORY]