Welfare institutions are asking the government for help as they suffer from the economic downturn, representatives from the institutions said at a public hearing hosted by Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chen Chieh-ju (陳節如) yesterday.
“Social welfare is the government’s responsibility and welfare organizations are there to help the government out,” Republic of China Association for Mentally Handicapped People chairman Wang Ping-che (王秉哲) said. “But now we’re also hit by the global financial crisis and a lot of us may have to close if the government doesn’t help us.”
According to regulations, a shelter for the mentally or physically challenged can receive NT$20,000 (US$606) per month for each person staying there.
The amount consists of the monthly payment from parents of the person in the shelter and subsidies from the Ministry of the Interior (MOI). The ratio is determined on a case-by-case basis.
Wang pointed out that the monthly average cost of caring for a mentally or physically challenged person was at least NT$30,000.
“Because of the economic downturn, most welfare organizations are facing declines in donations, while costs continue to rise,” Skill Training Center for the Mentally Handicapped director Lee Chung-hsin (李崇信) said. “We’ve also had a lot of cases in which parents can no longer afford to pay for their children’s stay in shelters.”
“In the past, some organizations could survive on interest from the money in their bank accounts,” Wang said. “But it’s no longer an option now as the interest rate has dropped to next to nothing.”
“If the Ministry of Economic Affairs can cut junior high and elementary school electricity bills by 50 percent, I don’t see why welfare groups sheltering the handicapped cannot get that discount,” Chen said.
MOI Social Affairs Department director Tseng Chung-ming (曾中明) said that the ministry would look into the groups’ demands.
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
A Japan Self-Defense Forces vessel entered the Taiwan Strait yesterday, Japanese media reported. After passing through the Taiwan Strait, the Ikazuchi was to proceed to the South China Sea to take part in a joint military exercise with the US and the Philippines, the reports said. Japan Self-Defense Force vessels were first reported to have passed through the strait in September, 2024, with two further transits taking place in February and June last year, the Asahi Shimbun reported. Yesterday’s transit also marked the first time since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office that a Japanese warship has been sent through the Taiwan
‘SAME OLD TRICK’: Even if Beijing resumes individual travel to Taiwan, it would only benefit Chinese tourism companies, the Economic Democracy Union convener said China’s 10 new “incentives” are “sugar-coated poison,” an official said yesterday, adding that Taiwanese businesses see them clearly for what they are, but that Beijing would inevitably find some local collaborators to try to drums up support. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made the remark ahead of a news conference the General Chamber of Commerce is to hold today. The event, titled “Industry Perspectives on China’s Recent Pro-Taiwan Policies,” is expected to include representatives from industry associations — such as those in travel, hotels, food and agriculture — to request the government cooperate with China’s new measures, people familiar with
RSS