The honeymoon for Minister of the Interior Su Jia-chyuan (
Hostile legislators blasted the incoming minister as incompetent as he delivered a report in the Legislative Yuan yesterday.
Without identifying Su's indiscretions, the legislators openly doubted Su's ability to maintain law and order and whether the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) would be able to identify the perpetrator of the March 19 assassination attempt on President Chen Shui-bian (
"I bet you won't be able to get to the bottom of the assassination attempt within one year. If you do, I promise to commit suicide. Are you willing to make the bet with me?" asked independent Legislator Chu Hsing-yu (
The session was meant to discuss police involvement in the pan-blue camp's April 10 rally in Taipei, which ended in violent protest and gangster infiltration, and the MOI's investigation into the assassination attempt on Chen and Lu.
People First Party (PFP) Legislator Shen Chih-hui (沈智慧), who was injured during the April 10 protest, demanded that Taipei police issue a public apology by the end of the day, complete with a press release, for causing her injuries and those of other PFP legislators, and for suggesting her driver had connections to organized crime groups.
Although the subject of the session was the assassination attempt and protest, many legislators focused instead on the robbing of Su's wife, Hung Heng-chu (
Referring to the incident, PFP legislators questioned Su's ability to maintain order on a national scale.
PFP Legislator Lee Ching-hua (
"What could be expected for national security under Su?" Lee asked.
"If I were able to fix the nation's security problems within 10 days, then surely I would be God," Su replied.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
The age requirement for commercial pilots and airline transport pilots is to be lowered by two years, to 18 and 21 years respectively, to expand the pool of pilots in accordance with international standards, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced today. The changes are part of amendments to articles 93, 119 and 121 of the Regulations Governing Licenses and Ratings for Airmen (航空人員檢定給證管理規則). The amendments take into account age requirements for aviation personnel certification in the Convention on International Civil Aviation and EU’s aviation safety regulations, as well as the practical needs of managing aviation personnel licensing, the ministry said. The ministry
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