※There weren＊t too many problems with the system per se that needed to be addressed. I don＊t think it was problems with rules and regulations or the system that made the relief work weak and disorganized, but the human factor. The point was whether politicians could find it in their hearts to protect people,§ Shieh said.
For example, the regulations concerning emergency evacuation of people are clearly stipulated in the Disaster Prevention and Protection Act, but eventually it depends on the authority＊s resolution to carry out a mandatory evacuation if it considers the move necessary because it might cause public complaints, he said.
※Even in a legal vacuum, to give a prompt response to help disaster victims is also possible. After the 921 Earthquake [that hit 〝Taiwan at 1:47am on Sept. 21, 1999], the Hengshan Military Command Center swung into action by 3am, the armed forces were already in quake-devastated areas by early morning, and the first foreign rescue teams from Japan arrived in the disaster areas that night, all this happened before former president Lee Teng-hui [軝崞?] declared a state of emergency, which occurred on Sept. 25,§ he said.
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