The governments of Taipei City and Taipei County yesterday exchanged accusations about the chaos surrounding Taiwan's first ever sea burial service, which took place on Monday night.
Ku Yen-ling (
The burial at sea was supposed to be held on Monday morning about 6km from Taipei County's Sanchi Township, but funeralgoers were left stranded after county government officials said that they had not yet decided on where sea burials could be legally performed. They also said that the boats did not meet safety regulations.
The families who brought their loved ones' ashes to participate in the service were disappointed about the officials' interference.
Huang Meng-king (黃滿金), one of the family members who took part in the ceremony, said the service had to be carried out on Monday, because they were afraid that the flour they had mixed with their father's ashes to feed the fish would start to go bad.
"We don't care about the political issues. We just want to follow my father's wishes," Huang said.
After negotiating with the county government and the ship owners, the service was finally held offshore from Yehliu (
"I think the Taipei County Government just found fault with us on purpose. We feel we encountered unnecessary obstacles set by the county government," Ku said yesterday at a news conference.
The county government's Bu-reau Director of Civil Affairs Chang Hung-lu (張宏陸) said yesterday that the county government's stance regarding the issue has not changed since this November, when the city government first sought cooperation with the county government on sea burials.
"We do not oppose the sea burials. On the contrary, we think it is a good alternative that meets the concept of environmental protection, since Taiwan has limited land resources," Chang said.
"But currently the relevant laws are incomplete and many issues must still be settled, such as the problems of safety and the preservation of fishery resources," he said.
He said he did not understand why the city government insisted on holding the service, since the county government has clearly expressed its position.
According to Chang the county will complete its regulations on burials at sea by March.
Taipei County Commissioner Su Tseng-chang (
"I hope our public officials could serve our people and that they will have the courage to solve their problems," Su said.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Taiwanese and US defense groups are collaborating to introduce deployable, semi-autonomous manufacturing systems for drones and components in a boost to the nation’s supply chain resilience. Taiwan’s G-Tech Optroelectronics Corp subsidiary GTOC and the US’ Aerkomm Inc on Friday announced an agreement with fellow US-based Firestorm Lab to adopt the latter’s xCell, a technology featuring 3D printers fitted in 6.1m container units. The systems enable aerial platforms and parts to be produced in high volumes from dispersed nodes capable of rapid redeployment, to minimize the risk of enemy strikes and to meet field requirements, they said. Firestorm chief technology officer Ian Muceus said
MORE FALL: An investigation into one of Xi’s key cronies, part of a broader ‘anti-corruption’ drive, indicates that he might have a deep distrust in the military, an expert said China’s latest military purge underscores systemic risks in its shift from collective leadership to sole rule under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), and could disrupt its chain of command and military capabilities, a national security official said yesterday. If decisionmaking within the Chinese Communist Party has become “irrational” under one-man rule, the Taiwan Strait and the regional situation must be approached with extreme caution, given unforeseen risks, they added. The anonymous official made the remarks as China’s Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia (張又俠) and Joint Staff Department Chief of Staff Liu Zhenli (劉振立) were reportedly being investigated for suspected “serious
RSS