Hong Kong's godfather of Canto-pop, Jackie Cheung (
"A drill is regarded as warfare. Everybody has to follow related regulations and there is no exception on that," said Chen Fu-hsiang (陳富祥), chief of the agency's Civil Defense Division.
On Sept. 22, Cheung arrived in Taipei to participate in an MTV show, and when he arrived at the studio, the Wan-an drill began.
All motor and other vehicles were required to pull over on the streets and pedestrians were obliged to take shelter and stay indoors during the 30-minute drill.
However, as the sirens began to sound, MTV and record company employees accompanying Cheung thought the empty streets made an unusual photo opportunity, and so the crew took advantage of it.
MTV later distributed the picture of Cheung standing alone in a street usually clogged by Taipei's routinely heavy traffic.
According to Article 21 of the Civilian Defense Law (
Chen said the police will mail the ticket after they decide who its recipient will be: Cheung, his record company or MTV.
Universal Records Promotion Manager Dai Da-wei (
"It only took us few seconds to take the picture for Cheung and there were still many people outside and on their way indoors," Dai said. "It was merely an accident and misunderstanding."
Since Cheung is not a Taiwan resident, whether foreigners are penalized for not following the military drill regulations might also be a contentious issue.
However, Chen said that foreigners are also required to follow local laws and regulations.
"We will figure out who is supposed to take the responsibility and fine the right person," Chen said.
As for Cheung, he said that he had no idea that what he did was against the law.
"It just felt so interesting that it was possible to have no vehicles on the road in Taipei in the middle of the day, so I took the picture. As a result, I do not know how to comment on the issue," Cheung said.
"I have no intention to violate the law at all," the singer 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
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
US climber Alex Honnold left Taiwan this morning a day after completing a free-solo ascent of Taipei 101, a feat that drew cheers from onlookers and gained widespread international attention. Honnold yesterday scaled the 101-story skyscraper without a rope or safety harness. The climb — the highest urban free-solo ascent ever attempted — took just more than 90 minutes and was streamed live on Netflix. It was covered by major international news outlets including CNN, the New York Times, the Guardian and the Wall Street Journal. As Honnold prepared to leave Taiwan today, he attracted a crowd when he and his wife, Sanni,
RSS