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
EVA Airways today confirmed the death of a flight attendant on Saturday upon their return to Taiwan and said an internal investigation has been launched, as criticism mounted over a social media post accusing the airline of failing to offer sufficient employee protections. According to the post, the flight attendant complained of feeling sick on board a flight, but was unable to take sick leave or access medical care. The crew member allegedly did not receive assistance from the chief purser, who failed to heed their requests for medical attention or call an ambulance once the flight landed, the post said. As sick
A drunk woman was sexually assaulted inside a crowded concourse of Taipei Railway Station on Thursday last week before a foreign tourist notified police, leading to calls for better education on bystander intervention and review of security infrastructure. The man, surnamed Chiu (邱), was taken into custody on charges of sexual assault, taking advantage of the woman’s condition and public indecency. Police discovered that Chiu was a fugitive with prior convictions for vehicle theft. He has been taken into custody and is to complete his unserved six-month sentence, police said. On Thursday last week, Chiu was seen wearing a white
EVA Airways, one of the leading international carriers in Taiwan, yesterday said that it was investigating reports that a cabin crew manager had ignored the condition of a sick flight attendant, who died on Saturday. The airline made the statement in response to a post circulating on social media that said that the flight attendant on an outbound flight was feeling sick and notified the cabin crew manager. Although the flight attendant grew increasingly ill on the return flight, the manager did not contact Medlink — a system that connects the aircraft to doctors on the ground for treatment advice during medical
The Taichung District Court yesterday confirmed its final ruling that the marriage between teenage heir Lai (賴) and a man surnamed Hsia (夏) was legally invalid, preventing Hsia from inheriting Lai’s NT$500 million (US$16.37 million) estate. The court confirmed that Hsia chose not to appeal the civil judgement after the court handed down its ruling in June, making the decision final. In the June ruling, the court said that Lai, 18, and Hsia, 26, showed “no mutual admiration before the marriage” and that their interactions were “distant and unfamiliar.” The judge concluded that the couple lacked the “true intention of
RSS