Admiral Huang Shu-kuang (黃曙光), Commander of the Republic of China (ROC) Navy, yesterday issued a public apology to Chen Pi-e (陳碧娥) for the death of her son in 1995, which was allegedly due to bullying in the military.
Chen said that her son, Private Huang Kuo-chang (黃國章), who was serving on the Nan Yang, called home on June 9, 1995, before he was to leave Kaohsiung’s Zuoying Harbor, claiming that his life was in danger.
The family received a call that night claiming that Huang Kuo-chang had committed suicide, she said.
However, a letter that she later received from her son showed that he had feared for his life for quite some time, Chen said.
While enhanced photographs provided by Chen appeared to indicate that his death might not have been a suicide, Navy Command did not pursue the case in 1997 and the Kaohsiung District Prosecutors’ Office in 2015 closed the case as it had exceeded the statute of limitations in 2005.
Chen became a vociferous military rights activist and director Isaac Wang’s (汪怡昕) documentary about the incident, The Private’s Mom (少了一個之後—孤軍), premiered yesterday at the Taiwan International Human Rights Film Festival in Taipei.
“Over the past 23 years, Mrs Chen has suffered through the pain of personal loss, and the Navy owes Mrs Chen an apology,” Huang Shu-kuang said.
The apology is not to cover up the truth, he said, adding that Chen’s Military Human Rights Association has helped the military modernize and become more transparent.
Huang vowed that bullying would not be tolerated during his tenure, adding that he hoped no such incident would ever happen again.
Meanwhile, Presidential Office Secretary-General Chen Chu (陳菊), who also attended the premier, said that Taiwan still has a long way to go regarding human rights issues.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has expressed her concern about the issue, and the government is working on improving it, she added.
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Reports of Taiwanese going missing, being detained or interrogated, or having their personal liberties restricted in China increased about fourfold annually last year, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Last year, 221 Taiwanese who traveled to China were reported missing, were detained and interrogated, or otherwise had their personal freedom restricted, up from 55 the previous year, the council said. Reopening group tours to China would be risky, as it would leave travelers with no way to seek help through official channels after Beijing shut down dialogue between the associations tasked with handling cross-strait tourism, the MAC said. Taipei’s Taiwan Strait Tourism
RSS