Young, single mothers from economically disadvantaged households are among those at highest risk of killing their own children before taking their own lives, according to a recent poll conducted by a team at the Taiwan Associa-tion Against Depression for the Social and Economic Burden of Depression initiative.
The initiative was launched in 2002 by Norman Sartorius, the former director of the WHO's mental health program, to engage medical, economic and political figures around Asia in an effort to address the consequences of depression in the region.
Taiwanese mothers in all age groups are beleaguered with different problems and difficulties, Lai Teh-jen (
The team found that mothers in their 20s were mostly burdened by financial problems, those in their 30s and 40s were usually worried about their children's educational problems, while those above 50 were mostly concerned about their health.
Single mothers appear to carry a heavier emotional load since they have to face multiple challenges, including finances, their children's education and personal health, Lee said.
At the news conference, Lee Ming-been (李明濱), the director of the Suicide Prevention Center, highlighted the tragedy of seeing mothers killing their own children before taking their own lives because they couldn't bear the thought of leaving their young ones alone.
The past 14 years have lay witness to 198 such incidents, with 101 cases of mothers dying together with their children and 22 cases involving the deaths of entire families, Lee said.
A NT$39 receipt for two bottles of tea at a FamilyMart was among the NT$10 million (US $312,969) special prize winners in the January-February uniform invoice lottery. FamilyMart said that two NT$10 million-winning receipts were issued at its stores, as well as two NT$2 million grand prizes and three NT$200,000 first prizes. The two NT$10 million receipts were issued at stores in Pingtung County and Yilan County’s Dongshan Township (冬山). One winner spent just NT$39 on two bottles of tea, while another spent NT$80 on water, tea and coffee, the company said. Meanwhile, 7-Eleven reported three NT$10 million winners — in New Taipei
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported the first case of a new COVID-19 subvariant — BA.3.2 — in a 10-year-old Singaporean girl who had a fever upon arrival in Taiwan and tested positive for the disease. The girl left Taiwan on March 20 and the case did not have a direct impact on the local community, it said. The WHO added the BA.3.2 strain to its list of Variants Under Monitoring in December last year, but this was the first imported case of the COVID-19 variant in Taiwan, CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said. The girl arrived in Taiwan on
ANNUAL EVENT: Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in Daan Park, with an event zone operating from 10am to 6pm This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park today and tomorrow, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a themed food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm, it said. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs, it added. People could also try the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area, the department said. Three PokeStops are