This month is shaping up to be a busy one protest-wise for the Executive Yuan, with marches and rallies against everything from proposed legal reforms and working hours to the state of the economy.
On the heels of Saturday’s protests by public-sector retirees against what they call the “stigmatization” of public-sector pensioners, Taiwan Power Co employees yesterday launched a protest against planned amendments to the Electricity Act (電業法).
A chapter of the Taiwan Power Labor Union is urging its members to fight for their rights by joining a march from Pingtung County’s Hengchun Township (恆春) to the doors of the Executive Yuan and the Ministry of Economic Affairs in Taipei, where they hope to arrive by Sept. 19.
Minister Without Portfolio Chang Ching-sen (張景森) has been in touch with the union about the amendments, the Executive Yuan said.
Meanwhile, unhappy with the decline in Chinese tourists visiting Taiwan since President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) inauguration, 10,000 people representing 12 tourism-industry associations are planning a protest on Ketagalan Boulevard on Monday next week.
The organizers said the protesters plan to unite under the banner: “Our industry faces a perilous autumn — this must not be ignored by the government.”
Chang on Friday last week met with General Chamber of Commerce chairman Lai Cheng-i (賴正鎰) and other industry representatives, telling them that the government would take steps to resolve the short-term problems created by the drop in arrivals from China. Lai has interests in hotels, theme parks and high-end merchandise — businesses that have traditionally profited from Chinese tourists.
The Executive Yuan has already taken steps to deal with the impact, such as working with banks to assist in financing for tourism-related businesses and taking steps to boost tourism from other areas, Chang told the meeting.
In addition, the government is concerned about the impact that Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) employees taking their legally mandated holidays during the long Mid-Autumn Festival weekend might have on travelers during the holiday.
The railway union has said its members would take their leave during the Sept. 15 to Sept. 18 weekend to avoid being overworked.
An Executive Yuan official who declined to be named said that train tickets for the holiday are already sold out and said legislators are working with the Ministry of Transportation and Communications and the Ministry of Labor in the hope of coordinating with the railways agency.
The Executive Yuan hopes travelers will not be inconvenienced, but the Cabinet respects the interests of TRA employees and will “do its best to communicate” [with the union], the official said.
“There is no shortage of protests taking place this month, but the Executive Yuan is responding and communicating accordingly,” the official said.
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
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
RSS