The Council of Grand Justices yesterday ruled that parts of the Urban Renewal Act (都市更新條例) were unconstitutional and demanded that the relevant agencies rectify mistakes in those parts within a year or the act will be abolished.
However, the verdicts in four related controversial cases, including one concerning the forced demolition of houses in the Wenlin Yuan (文林苑) area of Taipei’s Shilin District (士林), will not be affected, as the grand justices did not order an immediate termination of the controversial articles that they deemed unconstitutional.
According to Constitutional Interpretation No. 709, handed down yesterday, Article 10, Section 1 of the act did not set up a proper body to review cases. It also did not guarantee that individuals involved in cases had access to relevant information and had the opportunity to voice their opinions.
The grand justices singled out Article 13, Section 3 of the act and said that it did not demand the authorities deliver all relevant information to all legal property owners involved in cases, or demand that a public hearing be held where all parties involved can state their opinions.
The grand justices said that Section 3 also did not require relevant authorities to send a finalized version of all the pros and cons for urban renewal projects to all legal owners of land and buildings.
The grand justices ruled that all the sections under the two articles did not comply with the constitutional requirement of legally sanctioned administrative procedure.
Meanwhile, the grand justices denied a request to review the legality of the Taipei City Government’s forced demolition of the Wang (王) family house in the Wenlin Yuan area, saying that because the case was still being heard at the Taipei High Administrative Court, they could not accede to the request.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
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