Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) International Affairs Department Director Hsaio Bi-khim (蕭美琴), who has been leading a volunteer effort in Tainan County, said yesterday that on Thursday 20 volunteers were stopped by the police from distributing goods to the residents in badly affected Pitou Borough (埤頭) in Tainan County’s Madou (麻豆) Township because President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) was visiting the area.
“It was ridiculous that we couldn’t go inside the borough to give the victims what they need because Ma was there,” she said.
She said that more than 10 police formed a human wall to block them from entering even though they were delivering much needed water and cleaning agents, she said.
Meanwhile, the military was forced to temporarily suspend relief work and stood in full salute in strong heat for 40 minutes on Wednesday to welcome Minister of National Defense Chen Chao-ming (陳肇敏), who arrived in Taitung to survey the disaster areas.
To expedite the rebuilding process, the Hualien-Taitung Defense Command Center dispatched more than 40 soldiers to build a Bailey bridge to allow access for 18-tonne vehicles to Jhihben Township (知本).
On Wednesday at 10am, while the troops were setting up the steel frame, their commander ordered them to stop work and stand in formation to welcome Chen, who spent 40 minutes listening to briefings and talking to the press.
One witness said many of the soldiers had complained privately that they would have rather worked than stand and listen to the defense minister.
On Wednesday, flood victims hurled angry insults at Minister of Justice Wang Ching-feng (王清峰), who went to the main rescue center and shelter in Cishan Township (旗山), Kaohsiung County, to pass out lunch boxes.
The victims told Wang there were enough volunteers and they did not need her to pass out food.
Wang jokingly responded that her purpose for being there was so that the victims could unleash their anger.
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
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GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
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