A draft proposal by Taipei's health bureau to ban chewing betel nut in public has ignited a fierce debate over whether such an initiative is justifiable from both a legal and public health points of view.
According to a bylaw drafted by the city's health bureau -- the first of this kind in Taiwan -- violators could face fines of up to NT$3,000, and vendors found selling the mild narcotic nuts to teenagers could be fined up to NT$15,000.
Yeh Chin-chuan (
"In the West, you say tobacco is a `killer.' One could also say that of chewing betel nut. This habit definitely causes certain types of cancer -- it's a fact one cannot deny," Yeh said.
Citing statistics, Yeh said betel nut was responsible for "over 80 percent of the incidence of mouth and throat cancer in Taiwan."
Still, the initiative has come under fire from lawyers and city councilors.
Attorney Liu Shiu-luen (
While its opening article states the law intends to discourage people from chewing betel nut, many other items are unrelated to such a goal, Liu said.
"The rules forbid people from chewing betel nut in certain public areas, but if people still chew them privately, then their health would still be affected," Liu said.
Liu also pointed to the proposed fines as another legal pitfall that could spark conflicts between the central and local governments.
While the Local Autonomy Law (
"And chewing betel nut is not a violation of administrative obligations, so the fine (stated in the draft) is questionable," he said.
Several city councilors also questioned the feasibility of the draft.
City Councilor Jeffrey Y.K. Hsu (
"The draft states that health inspectors will be authorized to investigate violations, but these people lack the necessary force, such as police have, to enforce them," Hsu said.
Although a supporter of the initiative, Hsu said heated debate is be expected once the proposal is submitted to the city council.
Meanwhile, doctors said they supported the initiative.
Han Liang-chun (韓良俊), a professor of dentistry at National Taiwan University, said although everyone is free to choose whether or not they chew betel nut, related clinical studies have urged him to warn the public to avoid using betel nuts as far as possible.
betel nut, the second largest cash crop in Taiwan, is a popular stimulant that is usually taken with a mix of lime, herbs and sorghum liquor. A report of the cabinet-level Department of Health shows 2.4 million people in Taiwan -- about 10.9 percent of the island's population -- regularly chew this mild narcotic.
Over the years, doctors and scholars have urged the government to ban betel palm plantations for the sake of public health and environmental concerns. But so far, no laws have been drafted banning its use.
City officials, meanwhile, said the bylaw is due to take effect next January, pending endorsement by the municipal government, city council approval and ratification by the central government.
A Chinese aircraft carrier group entered Japan’s economic waters over the weekend, before exiting to conduct drills involving fighter jets, the Japanese Ministry of Defense said yesterday. The Liaoning aircraft carrier, two missile destroyers and one fast combat supply ship sailed about 300km southwest of Japan’s easternmost island of Minamitori on Saturday, a ministry statement said. It was the first time a Chinese aircraft carrier had entered that part of Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), a ministry spokesman said. “We think the Chinese military is trying to improve its operational capability and ability to conduct operations in distant areas,” the spokesman said. China’s growing
Nine retired generals from Taiwan, Japan and the US have been invited to participate in a tabletop exercise hosted by the Taipei School of Economics and Political Science Foundation tomorrow and Wednesday that simulates a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan in 2030, the foundation said yesterday. The five retired Taiwanese generals would include retired admiral Lee Hsi-min (李喜明), joined by retired US Navy admiral Michael Mullen and former chief of staff of the Japan Self-Defense Forces general Shigeru Iwasaki, it said. The simulation aims to offer strategic insights into regional security and peace in the Taiwan Strait, it added. Foundation chair Huang Huang-hsiung
PUBLIC WARNING: The two students had been tricked into going to Hong Kong for a ‘high-paying’ job, which sent them to a scam center in Cambodia Police warned the public not to trust job advertisements touting high pay abroad following the return of two college students over the weekend who had been trafficked and forced to work at a cyberscam center in Cambodia. The two victims, surnamed Lee (李), 18, and Lin (林), 19, were interviewed by police after landing in Taiwan on Saturday. Taichung’s Chingshui Police Precinct said in a statement yesterday that the two students are good friends, and Lin had suspended her studies after seeing the ad promising good pay to work in Hong Kong. Lee’s grandfather on Thursday reported to police that Lee had sent
BUILDUP: US General Dan Caine said Chinese military maneuvers are not routine exercises, but instead are ‘rehearsals for a forced unification’ with Taiwan China poses an increasingly aggressive threat to the US and deterring Beijing is the Pentagon’s top regional priority amid its rapid military buildup and invasion drills near Taiwan, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday. “Our pacing threat is communist China,” Hegseth told the US House of Representatives Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense during an oversight hearing with US General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “Beijing is preparing for war in the Indo-Pacific as part of its broader strategy to dominate that region and then the world,” Hegseth said, adding that if it succeeds, it could derail
RSS