Almost six months have elapsed since the Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) found a batch of railway documents dating back to the Japanese colonial era in one of its warehouses. However, nothing has been done yet to restore the documents, as two local archive-preserving organizations continue to fight over their ownership.
A specialist surnamed Chen (陳) at the National Taiwan Museum told the Taipei Times that the documents were in temporary storage at the museum, as the Council of Cultural Affairs (CCA) and the National Archives Administration (NAA) were still negotiating over who would get to keep them.
The museum cannot do anything with the documents at this point, because it has yet to ascertain who will pay for the restoration, Chen said.
Ho Ming-tsuen (
"A lot of organizations have laid claim to the documents," Ho said. "The problem is that no one has ever looked at them to see if they are entitled to own them."
Ho said the CCA considers the documents as cultural assets and that they should therefore be under its management. The NAA, on the other hand, says that any official document dating before 1949 should be placed under its management in accordance with the National Archives Act (國家檔案法).
The TRA supports the idea of having other organizations preserve the original documents, since it has neither the facilities nor the manpower to manage these valuable resources, Ho said.
Cheng Ming-chang (
"Should this be the case, the CCA should pay for the restoration," he said.
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday thanked Palau for its continued support of Taiwan's international participation, as Taipei was once again excluded from the World Health Assembly (WHA) currently taking place in Switzerland. "Palau has never stopped voicing support for Taiwan" in the UN General Assembly, the WHO and other UN-affiliated agencies, Lai said during a bilateral meeting with visiting Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. "We have been profoundly touched by these endorsements," Lai said, praising the Pacific island nation's firm support as "courageous." Lai's remarks came as Taiwan was excluded for the ninth consecutive year from the WHA, which is being held in
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
At least three people died and more than a dozen were injured yesterday afternoon when a vehicle struck a group of pedestrians in New Taipei City’s Sansia District (三峽). The incident happened at about 4pm when a car rammed into pedestrians at an intersection near Bei Da Elementary School. Witnesses said the sedan, being driven at a high speed, ran a red light, knocking scooters out of the way and hitting students crossing the road before careening into a median near the intersection of Guocheng and Guoguang streets. The incident resulted in three deaths and 13 injuries, including the driver, a 78-year-old man
RSS