The number of unwanted pregnancies in Taiwan is high and the number of abortions carried out is “beyond imagination,” an obstetrics and gynecology doctor said.
Taipei Medical University Hospital obstetrics and gynecology doctor Chen Ching-hui (陳菁徽) said that according to statistics compiled by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, only 70 percent of married women aged between 20 and 49 practice birth control.
She said that in her outpatient experience, more than 60 percent of married couples plan their first pregnancy, but up to 80 percent did not expect their second.
Chen said that some couples give birth to a second child reluctantly, while 40 percent choose abortion.
The medical establishment estimates that up to 500,000 fetuses are disposed of each year.
Another obstetrics and gynecology doctor, Lin Si-hong (林思宏), said Taiwan has about 200,000 newborns a year, but the number of people taking the RU486 “morning after” pill to prevent conception is about 400,000, indicating that 30 percent of pregnant women opt for giving birth, while the rest choose abortion.
The high unwanted pregnancy rate is related to failure to use condoms, or mistakes in “safe period” calculations, Chen said.
Some women’s lack of initiative in using condoms, as well as some men’s reluctance to use them, also contributes to unwanted pregnancies.
Lin said that Taiwanese should change their concept of abortion, noting that contraceptive devices implanted into women’s wombs do not necessarily make women uncomfortable or their partners unhappy.
Lin said the concept is wrong and that the devices are easy to install without side effects.
Taiwan’s birth rate is one of the lowest in the world.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) earlier this month said that he was overjoyed when he heard that there was a higher-than-expected number of newborns last year.
The number last year was previously estimated at 195,000, but hit 213,000.
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
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central
RSS