Opposition legislators yesterday criticized the government for its ineffective reaction to intelligence it received Friday night about possible terrorist attacks somewhere in Southeast Asia because the Cabinet took no action to stop people from traveling to Bali.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not list Bali a danger area for travelers until yesterday.
"I'm deeply impressed that Premier Yu Shyi-kun was informed last Friday, but I also mark him a demerit for failing to warn Bali-bound travelers and putting their lives in jeopardy," said Shen Chih-hwei (沈智慧), convener of the PFP legislative caucus.
Although many countries told their citizens to leave Indonesia soon after Saturday night's bombings, Taiwan's government was very slow to make such a move, Shen said.
Lee Chuan-chiao (李全教), KMT legislative caucus whip, said the government's handling the incident reflects its lack of ability in crisis management.
Lee proposed that the government emulate the US and Japan and set up a crisis-management mechanism immediately, so that Taiwanese expatriates and travelers could get the best protection.
The DPP defended the government yesterday, saying the intelligence it received was intended as an alert for the government, but not the public.
DPP caucus convener Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said such intelligence would cause panic and lead to serious diplomatic problems if the government arbitrarily made public any information it received.
Ker said that during a meeting of top government policymakers hosted by President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) last month, national security authorities delivered a report on alerts received from the US that warned that Southeast Asian countries were possible targets of terrorist attacks.
Ker said the national security system has been working on efforts against terrorism since last year's Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the US, though the public may not feel them.
DPP Legislator Trong Chai (蔡同榮) suggested that the government establish a panel to coordinate between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Tourism Bureau and intelligence agencies to evaluate risks involving outbound travel.
Trong proposed that such information then be made available on an official Web site, so that people could check the information any time.
He said the government is obliged to inform people of any emergencies in foreign countries.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
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
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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