The number of reported cases of Internet cafes violating new tobacco regulations has tripled in the past month, an anti-smoking group said yesterday.
The John Tung Foundation said it received reports last month of 129 cases of Internet cafes violating the new Tobacco Hazard Prevention and Control Act (菸害防制法). This number is about equal to all reported cases from January to March, showing a steep climb in the number of Internet cafes that violate the rules, the foundation said.
CHAIN SMOKING
Yau Sea-wain (姚思遠), president of the foundation, said some of the cafes were part of large chains in the country.
“One chain of Internet cafes has 33 branches in eight counties and cities across the country, and 20 of the branches were reported by different individuals for violating [the smoking ban],” he said.
“Some of the branches provide cups or metal tubs to substitute ash trays, or provide wet towels for customers to dampen their cigarettes on,” he said.
VIOLATIONS
Yau said this violates Article 15 of the act, which stipulates that business owners may not provide cigarette-related paraphernalia, including ashtrays.
The new regulation, which went into effect on Jan. 11, states that owners who violate the article could be fined up to NT$50,000.
The foundation urged government officials to crack down on violators to protect health.
“If officials do not diligently implement the law, no matter how well-designed it is, it will have no effect,” Yau said.
TRAFFIC SAFETY RULES: A positive result in a drug test would result in a two-year license suspension for the driver and vehicle, and a fine of up to NT$180,000 The Ministry of Transportation and Communications is to authorize police to conduct roadside saliva tests by the end of the year to deter people from driving while under the influence of narcotics, it said yesterday. The ministry last month unveiled a draft of amended regulations governing traffic safety rules and penalties, which included provisions empowering police to conduct mandatory saliva tests on drivers. While currently rules authorize police to use oral fluid testing kits for signs of drug use, they do not establish penalties for noncompliance or operating procedures for officers to follow, the ministry said. The proposed changes to the regulations require
The Executive Yuan yesterday announced that registration for a one-time universal NT$10,000 cash handout to help people in Taiwan survive US tariffs and inflation would start on Nov. 5, with payouts available as early as Nov. 12. Who is eligible for the handout? Registered Taiwanese nationals are eligible, including those born in Taiwan before April 30 next year with a birth certificate. Non-registered nationals with residence permits, foreign permanent residents and foreign spouses of Taiwanese citizens with residence permits also qualify for the handouts. For people who meet the eligibility requirements, but passed away between yesterday and April 30 next year, surviving family members
China Airlines Ltd (CAL) yesterday morning joined SkyTeam’s Aviation Challenge for the fourth time, operating a demonstration flight for “net zero carbon emissions” from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to Bangkok. The flight used sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) at a ratio of up to 40 percent, the highest proportion CAL has achieved to date, the nation’s largest carrier said. Since April, SAF has become available to Taiwanese international carriers at Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport), Kaohsiung International Airport and Taoyuan airport. In previous challenges, CAL operated “net zero carbon emission flights” to Singapore and Japan. At a ceremony at Taoyuan airport, China Airlines chief sustainability
‘ONE CHINA’: A statement that Berlin decides its own China policy did not seem to sit well with Beijing, which offered only one meeting with the German official German Minister for Foreign Affairs Johann Wadephul’s trip to China has been canceled, a spokesperson for his ministry said yesterday, amid rising tensions between the two nations, including over Taiwan. Wadephul had planned to address Chinese curbs on rare earths during his visit, but his comments about Berlin deciding on the “design” of its “one China” policy ahead of the trip appear to have rankled China. Asked about Wadephul’s comments, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Guo Jiakun (郭嘉昆) said the “one China principle” has “no room for any self-definition.” In the interview published on Thursday, Wadephul said he would urge China to
RSS