Premier's jet diverted to Okinawa

"Those who fail to cooperate with the government's evacuation plans ... may face fines; similarly, [negligent officials] will also have to face consequences."

Su Jia-chyuan, interior minister

A jetliner with Premier Yu Shyi-kun on board was diverted to Okinawa yesterday to avoid Typhoon Aere.

The China Airlines flight was due to arrive at CKS International Airport yesterday morning but was diverted to Japan to avoid the typhoon, the carrier said.

"The pilots had tried to fly back as scheduled, but then they found the winds around the airport were too severe to land," China Airlines spokesman Roger Han (韓梁中) said.

After a five-hour stopover at Naha airport, Yu Shyi-kun returned to Taipei from a 13-day diplomatic tour that took him to the Dominican Republic, Honduras and Nicaragua.

Yu Vice Premier Yeh Chu-lan (葉菊蘭) from Naha to express his concern about storm damage and urge immediate relief efforts by all agencies. He also asked her to convey his regards and gratitude to relief workers, Yeh said yesterday.

In related news, Minister of the Interior Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) yesterday said that those who refuse to be evacuated despite mudslide warnings may be fined.

"Those who fail to cooperate with the government's evacuation plans and insist on staying in zones that are on mudslide alert may face fines; similarly, chiefs of city and county governments who do not execute proper preventive measures will also have to face consequences," Su said.

According to the Disaster Prevention Law (災害防救法), those who refuse to be evacuated from a warning zone may face a fine of NT$15,000.

After flooding on July 2 from Tropical Storm Mindulle, some Aboriginal representatives criti-cized the central government's inaction regarding disaster relief.

Therefore, Su yesterday told his ministry's social affairs unit as well as the Council of Indigenous Peoples and the Soil and Water Conservation Bureau to help Aboriginal communities in central Taiwan.

"So far, evacuations during this typhoon have been carried out quite smoothly ... Those who have been hurt are mostly drivers or people who happened to be walking outdoors and were hit by flying debris," Su said.

Much the country declared two typhoon days for the storm. The Council of Labor Affairs yesterday stated that employees who missed work due to the typhoon are not required to work extra hours to make up the missing days.

Employers are not required to pay employees for the two days, although if they did work, whether or not they will be paid depends on the contract or agreement between the employer and the employee.