IMMIGRATION
Detention rules updated
The legislature on Friday approved an amendment to the Immigration Act (入出國及移民法) that limits the temporary detention of foreign nationals to no more than 15 days. The National Immigration Agency previously could hold foreigners for up to 120 days. The revision also stipulates that for a foreigner’s detention to be extended, the agency must seek a court order five days prior to the end of the 15-day period. The amendment states that temporary detention may not be extended beyond 45 days. It also states that foreign nationals verified to be afflicted with mental disorders, contagious diseases, life-threatening conditions, or who are under the age of 12 may not be placed under temporary detention. Women who are more than five months pregnant, or have had a miscarriage within two months also may not be temporarily detained.
FINE ARTS
Violinist wins abroad
Young Taiwanese violinist Tseng Yu-chien (曾宇謙) took first prize in the first Singapore International Violin Competition on Wednesday last week. Second-prize winner Richard Lin (林品任) is also from Taiwan, while third prize went to Sirena Huang, a US citizen of Taiwanese descent. Tseng described the competition as a rare experience and said he was very happy to be named champion. The triennial competition is hosted by the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music at National University of Singapore and is open to talented violinists under the age of 30. This year’s competition drew 35 participants from 14 nations.
DISABILITY ACCESS
Eateries now ‘barrier-free’
As many as 1,000 restaurants in Taipei, Hsinchu City and Greater Tainan have been recognized as disabled-friendly after a campaign to promote barrier-free living, the League of Welfare Organizations for the Disabled said. The barrier-free living movement was launched in Taipei in 2012, expanding to Greater Tainan in 2013 and to Hsinchu last year, the league said. Disabled people were recruited to examine restaurants to see whether they are friendly toward people who need help, including disabled people, senior citizens, pregnant women and parents with young children, it said. The league worked with Taipei to create a certification system for eateries that improve access. Smartphone apps allow users to search for such restaurants in Taipei and Hsinchu, the league said.
FOOD SAFETY
Ting Hsin cash rejected
The government will not accept a NT$3 billion (US$95.69 million) donation offered by Ting Hsin International Group to promote food safety, Minister of Health Chiang Been-huang (蔣丙煌) said yesterday. Chiang said the conglomerate should first compensate food makers and consumers affected by its substandard oil products. Ting Hsin has become the target of consumer boycotts since October last year, when it was selling cooking oils mixed with animal feed-grade fats. At the suggestion of Ruentex Group chairman Samuel Yin (尹衍樑), Ting Hsin pledged to donate NT$3 billion to fund a food safety reform committee, intended to be led by Yin himself. Yin later proposed that Ting Hsin donate the money to the Ministry of Health and Welfare instead to help the government improve food safety. Ting Hsin on Friday remitted the funds from overseas to the government. Ting Hsin said it respects the government’s decision to reject the money, but added that it is determined to promote food safety and will not change its plan.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai
Four China Coast Guard ships briefly sailed through prohibited waters near Kinmen County, Taipei said, urging Beijing to stop actions that endanger navigation safety. The Chinese ships entered waters south of Kinmen, 5km from the Chinese city of Xiamen, at about 3:30pm on Monday, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement later the same day. The ships “sailed out of our prohibited and restricted waters” about an hour later, the agency said, urging Beijing to immediately stop “behavior that endangers navigation safety.” Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) yesterday told reporters that Taiwan would boost support to the Coast Guard