Minister of the Interior Lee Yi-yang (
Starting tomorrow, media outlets will have to apply for approval 48 hours in advance for reporters and photographers to enter the airport's restricted areas.
The airport police will forward the applications to the National Police Agency for a case-by-case assessment.
Privacy
Lee said that the decision to restrict access was made to maintain safety and order at the airport and prevent the exposure of government officials' secret visits abroad or the unannounced arrival of foreign political figures.
The changes would also reduce the discomfort of ordinary passengers who otherwise would be inconvenienced by the media.
Lee said the new regulations were written in accordance with international standards and examples, but were still more lax than in most countries.
For instance, the media in Singapore has to apply 10 days in advance for airport access, according to Lee.
48 hours
The National Police Agency originally requested that applications be filed 72 hours in advance, but the ministry decided on 48 hours, Lee said.
In emergencies, these restrictions will not apply, he said.
The interior minister added that better media facilities are now available at the airport, including special media interview areas and press rooms.
Better communication
Lee also stressed the importance of maintaining good communication between the police and the media at the airport.
Lee said that in the UK, airport personnel must supervise reporters who are conducting interviews, but the interior ministry decided against adopting such a regulation.
Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger said he does not foresee a Chinese military invasion of Taiwan in the next decade, although it is “perfectly possible” that China could seek to weaken the island’s status. “I don’t expect an all-out attack on Taiwan in, say, a 10-year period, which is as far as I can see,” Kissinger said yesterday in an interview on CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS. Kissinger, 98, who also served as national security adviser and helped pave the way for then-US president Richard Nixon’s historic 1972 visit to China, said that “everyone wants to be a China hawk” and
Taiwanese actress Big S, also known as Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛), and Chinese restaurateur Wang Xiaofei (汪小菲) officially announced their divorce yesterday, stating the decision was cordial and that they would be raising their two children together. The statement came by proxy through the couple’s legal counsel, filed by both Wang and Hsu. Hsu and Wang thanked fans for their love and support, with the couple saying that fate had blessed them with a time of happiness, and that they were grateful for their time together. They said that while they walked hand-in-hand as husband and wife, they would continue a cordial relationship as
UNUSUAL PUNISHMENTS: Tortuous and possibly criminal penalties doled out by nine officers to a napping cadet have sparked calls for standardized discipline rules Defense experts called on the Ministry of Defense to create a standard code for maintaining discipline, after local media on Saturday reported that nine officers were reprimanded for administering inappropriate punishments to a conscript in Kinmen. Earlier last week, a boot camp recruit surnamed Chung (鍾) was stripped of his shirt and had icepacks placed against his armpits and crotch as a punishment for napping during physical training, the Kinmen Defense Command confirmed on Saturday. The command cadre of the battalion, including the battalion commander, the political warfare officer and the sergeant who ordered the drill have been transferred and could face
DESTABILIZING: Beijing’s efforts to choke Taiwan, pressure its friends and hamper its democracy are a threat to the world, AIT Director Sandra Oudkirk said China’s provocative military activities near Taiwan are destabilizing and risk “miscalculation,” American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Sandra Oudkirk said yesterday, reiterating the US’ objection to any unilateral changes to the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait. Oudkirk made the remarks in a speech at the annual conference of the Association of International Relations in Taipei. “In the Indo-Pacific region, America’s effort to resolve and manage differences with the leadership of the People’s Republic of [PRC] faces distinct challenges,” she said, referencing a range of actions by China that she said run counter to the shared values and interests of the
RSS