■ CRIME
He Yi-hang posts bail
TV entertainer He Yi-hang (賀一航) was released on NT$60,000 bail yesterday, after he admitted using and possessing drugs and selling them to prostitutes. He was arrested by Taoyuan police at his Taipei residence on Wednesday. Police discovered amphetamines and ketamine in his house. He told prosecutors he bought the drugs from a “heavyweight in the entertainment business.” Prosecutors and police are trying to determine whether more entertainers are involved in the case, either as dealers or clients, Taoyuan Prosecutor Yeh Yi-fa (葉益發) said. He’s involvement in the drug business was discovered when Taoyuan prosecutors and police were investigating the “Tsai-shen,” a major brothel in northern Taiwan. Police established that He was close to Yeh Ching-feng (葉青峰) and Hsu Lung-hsien (許龍仙), managers at the brothel. Yeh and Hsu were detained after prosecutors discovered they were engaged in loan sharking and allegedly “controlled” their prostitutes by feeding them drugs. Kuo was also released on NT$60,000 bail.
■ SOCIETY
Improve childcare: NGOs
Several non-governmental organizations said at a press conference yesterday that the nation’s low birth rate has much to do with its lack of a childcare system. In comparison to some Northern European countries where birth rates have been on the rise because of well-established childcare systems, Taiwan’s birth rate has dropped 37 percent in the last 10 years, said Liu Yu Hsiu (劉毓秀), head of the Coalition for Childcare Policy. Young couples have stopped wanting children, she said, linking the issue to the cost of daycare centers, which she described as profitable businesses that charge fees unaffordable for most parents. The government should draw up an affordable childcare plan to meet the needs of working class families and set up an autonomous committee to monitor childcare, she said.
■ HUMAN RIGHTS
Anti-trafficking event held
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Kaohsiung branch office and the Kaohsiung City Government hosted a press event yesterday to highlight the role that local governments and organizations play in fighting human trafficking. AIT Kaohsiung branch chief Chris Castro said he hoped that people around the world could work together to stop human trafficking wherever it occurs and to punish perpetrators. He said the AIT held the event in Kaohsiung because it was a city that has played a key role in defending democracy in Taiwan’s history. Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) said the city government respects the human rights of the more than 20,000 foreign workers in the city, adding that there was a 24-hour hotline service available if any problems arise.
■ ATHLETICS
Summer marathon to be held
For the first time ever, a marathon will be held at Yangmingshan National Park (陽明山) in suburban Taipei, tomorrow. About 5,000 runners, including 32 foreign participants, will compete in the Yangmingshan Summer Marathon on a scenic 42km route up and down hills, secretary-general of the Chinese Taipei Road Running Association Sunny Chen (陳華恒) said. The Yangmingshan marathon is the second in a series of four Ministry of the Interior-sponsored seasonal international marathons held in the country’s major national parks this year in a bid to attract more people to the country to experience its natural beauty.
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
REASONS FOR TRAVEL: An assistant professor said that proposed amendments to penalize drivers if they used drugs overseas would not deter people from traveling People who operate a motor vehicle under the influence of marijuana would have their driver’s license revoked, even if they used the substance while overseas, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday, citing proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例). The amendments would also authorize the government to revoke the licenses of people determined to have used Category 1 or Category 2 narcotics, even if they were not operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs, as well as ban them from taking the license test for three years, the ministry said. People aged 18 or
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
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