INTERNET
NCC handles over 700 cases
The government has handled 729 complaints and criminal cases, mostly about online material deemed obscene, since opening a service for reporting inappropriate Web content and online crimes on Aug. 2, the National Communications Commission (NCC) said on Saturday. In a report, the commission said 54 percent of the complaints were about pornography, 19 percent about online crime and 15 percent about inappropriate advertising content. Since the report system opened, authorities have removed or imposed restrictions on 234 Web sites that were reportedly involved in online crime or carrying material deemed obscene or otherwise inappropriate, the commission report said.
HEALTH
DOH promotes dialogue
This year’s Patient Safety Awareness Week will center on building an interactive partnership between doctors and patients, the Department of Health (DOH) said. The event, an annual healthcare safety education campaign, began on Sunday and runs through Saturday. It features seminars and activities in Taipei and seven other municipalities for both patients and physicians. Wang Tsung-hsi (王宗曦), deputy director-general of the Bureau of Medical Affairs, said most patients are too shy to speak to doctors when they should be talking about their symptoms and telling doctors of any possible mistakes. “It is proven in Western countries that patient awareness campaigns can efficiently reduce false diagnoses, death rates and reinfection rates,” Wang said. Throughout the year, 50 hospitals nationwide will work to improve communication between patients and doctors, he said. Patient awareness is also one of the factors in hospital evaluations, Wang said.
DESIGN
Local firms go to Shanghai
Eleven Taiwanese design firms are scheduled to take part in Interior Lifestyle China — one of China’s leading consumer goods fairs — scheduled to take place from tomorrow through Saturday in Shanghai, the Council for Cultural Affairs said yesterday. Under the banner “Bravo Taiwan,” the group will display the cream of the latest products from Taiwan’s cultural and creative industry, a council official said. Taiwan will have a 56m2 pavilion at the exhibition, displaying the latest designs in areas including ceramics, lighting, furniture and interior decor, with an “oriental chic” theme. The council organized a similar group that attended last month’s 100% Design London — one of the world’s most important contemporary interior design exhibitions — where the Taiwanese designers won high acclaim for their products.
CULTURE
First lady flies out for troupe
First lady Chow Mei-ching (周美青) departed for Germany on Sunday in her capacity as honorary director of the Taiwanese opera troupe Ming Hwa Yuan (明華園), which has begun its European tour. Chow was all smiles when she arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport. The troupe will start its tour with its most popular production, The Living Buddha, in Berlin, and then visit six other cities — Prague, Vienna, Paris, London, Edinburgh and Amsterdam. Aside from nine performances, the troupe will also hold workshops at universities to introduce the traditional Taiwanese art form to European audiences, the troupe said in a statement.
FAST TRACK? Chinese spouses must renounce their Chinese citizenship and pledge allegiance to Taiwan to gain citizenship, some demonstrators said Opponents and supporters of a bill that would allow Chinese spouses to obtain Taiwanese citizenship in four years instead of six staged protests near the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday morning. Those who oppose the bill proposed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) demanded that Chinese spouses be granted citizenship only after renouncing their Chinese citizenship, passing a citizenship test and pledging allegiance to Taiwan. The demonstrators, who were protesting at a side entrance to the Legislative Yuan on Jinan Road, were mostly members of the Taiwan Association of University Professors and other organizations advocating Taiwanese independence. Supporters of the bill, led
SILENT MAJORITY: Only 1 percent of Chinese rejected all options but war to annex Taiwan, while one-third viewed war as unacceptable, a university study showed Many Chinese are more concerned with developments inside their country than with seeking unification with Taiwan, al-Jazeera reported on Friday. Although China claims Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to annex it, by force if necessary, 23-year-old Chinese Shao Hongtian was quoted by al-Jazeera as saying that “hostilities are not the way to bring China and Taiwan together.” “I want unification to happen peacefully,” Shao said. Al-Jazeera said it changed Shao’s name to respect his wish for anonymity. If peaceful unification is not possible, Shao said he would prefer “things to remain as they are,” adding that many of his friends feel
Taiwan has “absolute air superiority” over China in its own airspace, Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee on Monday, amid concern over whether Taipei could defend itself against a military incursion by Beijing. Po made the remarks in response to a question from Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉) on whether Taiwan would have partial or complete air superiority if Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) warplanes were to enter Taiwan’s airspace. Po, a retired pilot, said that the Taiwanese military has “absolute air superiority” over PLA
A shipment of basil pesto imported by Costco Wholesale Taiwan from the US in the middle of last month was intercepted at the border after testing positive for excessive pesticide residue, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. Samples taken from a shipment of the Kirkland Signature brand of basil pesto imported by Costco contained 0.1 milligrams per kilogram of ethylene oxide, exceeding the non-detectable limit. Ethylene oxide is a carcinogenic substance that can be used as a pesticide. The 674kg shipment of basil pesto would either be destroyed or returned to its country of origin, as is the procedure for all