Members of the local bedding industry staged a demonstration in front of the Bureau of Standards, Metrology and Inspection in Taipei yesterday calling for the destruction of "poisonous" Chinese bedding.
Members of the Self-Help Alliance of Taiwan's Bedding Industry, accompanied by Taiwan Solidarity Union Legislator Lai Shin-yuan (賴幸媛), led the demonstration.
The demonstrators said that bedding imported from China had excessive amounts of residual chemicals that may be harmful.
"Destroy the black-hearted Chinese bedding now," dozens of demonstrators shouted outside the bureau while holding signs.
An attempt by the demonstrators to burn bedding made in China in front of the bureau was stopped by the police.
Not long after the protest began, the demonstrators and Lai were invited into the bureau for a meeting with officials.
"We [the alliance] discovered the illegal residual chemicals in May and reported our findings to you," alliance chairman Li Wen-chun (李文圳) told officials. "You didn't believe us, so you did your own tests, and the test results were similar."
Test results released by the bureau on Aug. 13 showed that some bedding imported from China contained excessive amounts of formaldehyde.
"[Bureau officials] told us you would take care of it in May. You said so again on Aug. 13, and again last week," Li said. "Another week has gone by, but we still found the same products in stores on Monday -- what exactly have you done?"
Bureau deputy director Chang Cheng-hui (張正輝) said that the bureau had already ordered a recall, and the merchandise was in the process of being returned to the wholesaler.
The Consumer Protection Law (消費者保護法) stipulates that authorities may order manufacturers or retailers to improve, recall or confiscate and burn problem products.
The bureau's response angered some alliance members.
"Such bedding is already endangering people's health, so it would be legitimate to confiscate and burn it right away," Lai said.
After a two-hour debate, the bureau finally promised to launch a complete examination of bedding at retailers today and have all illegal products burned by next Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the Cabinet said it had formed a special task force to deal with issues related to dangerous merchandise. Unsafe products can be reported at www.unsafeimports.nat.gov.tw.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is pushing for residents of Kinmen and Lienchiang counties to acquire Chinese ID cards in a bid to “blur national identities,” a source said. The efforts are part of China’s promotion of a “Kinmen-Xiamen twin-city living sphere, including a cross-strait integration pilot zone in China’s Fujian Province,” the source said. “The CCP is already treating residents of these outlying islands as Chinese citizens. It has also intensified its ‘united front’ efforts and infiltration of those islands,” the source said. “There is increasing evidence of espionage in Kinmen, particularly of Taiwanese military personnel being recruited by the
ENTERTAINERS IN CHINA: Taiwanese generally back the government being firm on infiltration and ‘united front’ work,’ the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association said Most people support the government probing Taiwanese entertainers for allegedly “amplifying” the Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda, a survey conducted by the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association showed on Friday. Public support stood at 56.4 percent for action by the Mainland Affairs Council and the Ministry of Culture to enhance scrutiny on Taiwanese performers and artists who have developed careers in China while allegedly adhering to the narrative of Beijing’s propaganda that denigrates or harms Taiwanese sovereignty, the poll showed. Thirty-three percent did not support the action, it showed. The poll showed that 51.5 percent of respondents supported the government’s investigation into Taiwanese who have
South Korean K-pop girl group Blackpink are to make Kaohsiung the first stop on their Asia tour when they perform at Kaohsiung National Stadium on Oct. 18 and 19, the event organizer said yesterday. The upcoming performances will also make Blackpink the first girl group ever to perform twice at the stadium. It will be the group’s third visit to Taiwan to stage a concert. The last time Blackpink held a concert in the city was in March 2023. Their first concert in Taiwan was on March 3, 2019, at NTSU Arena (Linkou Arena). The group’s 2022-2023 “Born Pink” tour set a
A Philippine official has denied allegations of mistreatment of crew members during Philippine authorities’ boarding of a Taiwanese fishing vessel on Monday. Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) spokesman Nazario Briguera on Friday said that BFAR law enforcement officers “observed the proper boarding protocols” when they boarded the Taiwanese vessel Sheng Yu Feng (昇漁豐號) and towed it to Basco Port in the Philippines. Briguera’s comments came a day after the Taiwanese captain of the Sheng Yu Feng, Chen Tsung-tun (陳宗頓), held a news conference in Pingtung County and accused the Philippine authorities of mistreatment during the boarding of