On a one-day visit to Penghu, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday was greeted by protesters who called for fairer treatment from the central government for travel expenses and medical coverage.
Accompanied by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) county officials, about 100 local residents gathered outside the venue where Ma was having lunch with local dignitaries.
To shouts of “30 percent off [plane] tickets, improve medical care,” Penghu County Councilor Yang Yao (楊曜) of the DPP said Penghu residents could not keep quiet any longer.
PHOTO: LIU YU-CHING, TAIPEI TIMES
“We are taking to the streets because county commissioners, legislators and the president have turned a blind eye to our problems,” Yang said. “We are not asking much. We just want fair treatment.”
Shouting “Let’s use our ballots to support Penghu,” a female protester said Penghu had long been ignored by the central government, adding that Kinmen — another outlying island — has better benefits because it was where the Kinmen Brewery is located.
In response, Ma said his administration should be able to finalize a subsidy program for Taihwa Lun by April. Taihwa Lun is a shipping service partly subsidized by the government to carry passengers between Kaohsiung and Makung (馬公) in Penghu County.
On government subsidies for plane tickets, Ma said that at present the central government subsidizes 20 percent of travel costs, while the local governments, such as Penghu and Kinmen, cover an additional 10 percent.
However, local governments, which have been hit hard by the financial crisis, no longer had the finances to offer the 10 percent subsidy, Ma said.
Non-Partisan Solidarity Union Legislator Lin Pin-kun (林炳坤) is also planning to amend the Civil Aviation Act (民用航空法), Ma said, which would increase government subsidies for Penghu and Kinmen residents flying from certain airports from 20 percent to 30 percent.
Matsu residents receive subsidies of 30 percent and Penghu residents flying from certain airports as well as residents of Orchid Island (蘭嶼) and Green Island (綠島) receive 40 percent subsidies for air travel.
“Everyone concerned is still working to at least increase the subsidy to 30 percent,” Ma said.
Ma also reiterated his government’s resolve to develop Penghu into a low-carbon dioxide emitting island.
He said the Council for Economic Planning and Development had given the green light to the installation of submarine cables between Penghu and Taiwan proper, which would allow residents of Penghu to sell the extra power generated from wind turbines to the Taiwan Power Co.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
About 4.2 million tourist arrivals were recorded in the first half of this year, a 10 percent increase from the same period last year, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. The growth continues to be consistent, with the fourth quarter of this year expected to be the peak in Taiwan, the agency said, adding that it plans to promote Taiwan overseas via partnerships and major events. From January to June, 9.14 million international departures were recorded from Taiwan, an 11 percent increase from the same period last year, with 3.3 million headed for Japan, 1.52 million for China and 832,962 to South Korea,
REWRITING HISTORY: China has been advocating a ‘correct’ interpretation of the victory over Japan that brings the CCP’s contributions to the forefront, an expert said An elderly Chinese war veteran’s shin still bears the mark of a bullet wound he sustained when fighting the Japanese as a teenager, a year before the end of World War II. Eighty years on, Li Jinshui’s scar remains as testimony to the bravery of Chinese troops in a conflict that killed millions of their people. However, the story behind China’s overthrow of the brutal Japanese occupation is deeply contested. Historians broadly agree that credit for victory lies primarily with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)-led Republic of China (ROC) Army. Its leader, Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石), fled to Taiwan in 1949 after losing a
RSS