A group of farmers protested the government's low purchase price for rice crops at the Legislative Yuan and the Council of Agriculture yesterday.
About 150 farmers, most of them older than 50, gathered in front of the Legislative Yuan in the morning while the legislature was holding a public hearing on the price of the crops.
"Two kilos of rice is selling for less than a packet of cigarettes. Half a kilo is not worth a marinated egg," the farmers shouted outside the Legislative Yuan.
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
The protest was organized by the Chaiyi Farmers Fighting For Existence Self-help Association. Situated on the fertile Chianan Plain, or "Taiwan's rice barn." Chaiyi County is a major agricultural region.
The government has been purchasing the crops and encouraging the farmers to stop cultivating rice at the same time.
They have asked farmers to grow something else, or switch to other jobs.
The farmers, however, do not appreciate the government's policy of terminating cultivation and insisted that the government should subsidize them with more money.
The farmers yesterday appealed to the government to purchase their rice crops at a price related to the growing cost, which they said amounted to NT$23 a kilogram. The government is paying them NT$16.6 per kilogram.
"With the current subsidies farmers would lose more than NT$26,000 per acre, instead of earning any money from their work," said Chan Chao-li (詹朝立), the organizer of a planned march for farmers and fishermen scheduled for Nov. 23.
"The current policy to encourage farmers to stop cultivation would just lead to a dead end. We are only asking the government to purchase the crops at the growing cost to allow the farmers to survive," said Yang Tsung-yao (楊宗耀), chairman of the self-help association.
Meanwhile, the public hearing taking place inside the Legislative Yuan was equally heated.
The farmers' representatives argued with Council of Agriculture officials, shouting and pounding on their desks.
The representatives accused the administration of failing to understand the farmers' difficult situation.
A threat to vote the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) out of power next year earned a round of applause from the farmers' representatives.
Council of Agriculture Vice Chairman Tai Cheng-yao (
The farmers also went to the Council of Agriculture's offices at noon to further voice their appeals.
Later in the afternoon the council issued a statement saying that it would not consider increasing the subsidy, since this would be in violation of WTO regulations, which stipulate that after joining the WTO a country must cut its domestic agricultural support by 20 percent.
The subsidy for all agricultural products also has to be reduced every year.
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
Tigerair Taiwan and China Airlines (CAL) today announced that several international flights were canceled or rescheduled due to Typhoon Ragasa. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) has maintained sea and land warnings for the typhoon. Its storm circle reached the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) on Taiwan's southern tip at 11am today. Tigerair Taiwan said it canceled Monday's IT551/IT552 Taoyuan-Da Nang, IT606/IT607 Taoyuan-Busan and IT602 Taoyuan-Seoul Incheon flights. Tomorrow, cancelations include IT603 Seoul Incheon-Taoyuan, as well as flights between Taoyuan and Sapporo, Osaka, Tokyo Narita, Okinawa, Fukuoka, Saga, Tokyo Haneda, Nagoya, Asahikawa and Jeju. On Wednesday, the IT321/IT322 Kaohsiung-Macau round-trip would also be canceled. CAL announced that today's
About nine Taiwanese are “disappeared,” detained, or otherwise deprived of freedom of movement in China each month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Between Jan. 1 last year and Aug. 31 this year, 188 Taiwanese travelers went missing, were detained and interrogated, or had their personal freedom restricted, with some questioned in airports or hotel lobbies, the council said. In a statement ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the council urged people visiting China for any reason to be highly vigilant and aware of the risks. Of the reported cases, 50 people were “disappeared” after entering China, 19 were detained and 119 had
RSS