Lisa Huang (
"Since `non-partisan' means not sharing common political ideology, the public might become confused if such a name is permitted to be registered, as the name and the group's mission do not support one another," said Huang, who is an attorney.
Independent Legislator Su Ying-kuei (
"I was in a taxi today and the cab driver asked me if I was a member of NSU. It seems the public is perplexed about the group," Su said.
The NSU was formed yesterday when Chang Po-ya (
The NSU's membership so far includes nine other members: independent Legislators Yen Chin-piao (顏清標), Tsai Hao (蔡豪), May Chin (高金素梅), Walis Pelin (瓦歷斯貝林) and Chen Chin-ding (陳進丁); former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators Lin Pin-kun (林炳坤), Lu Shin-ming (呂新民); former People First Party (PFP) legislator Chiu Chuang-liang (邱創良); and former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator Cheng Yu-cheng (鄭余鎮).
Huang cited the Social Groups Registration Regulation (
"According to this regulation, if a group's name, purpose and mission are not in accordance with one another, then the group's registration does not meet the stipulated procedural requirements," Huang said.
Huang also stated that the NSU is not in position to represent the majority of Taiwanese people who are not registered members of any political party.
"According to statistics, the total number of registered members of political parties comes to about 1.7 million, which is a small proportion of the population. Therefore, the NSU cannot be representative of all the rest," Huang said.
In response, the ministry's Department of Civil Affairs, which is in charge of political party registrations, stated that the ministry respects people's freedom of choice when it comes to selecting party names.
PROCEDURE: Although there is already a cross-strait agreement in place for the extradition of criminals, ample notice is meant to be given to the other side first Ten Taiwanese who were involved in fraud-related crimes in China were extradited back to Taiwan via Kinmen County on Wednesday, four of whom are convicted fraudsters in Taiwan. The 10 people arrived via a ferry operating between Xiamen and Kinmen, also known as the “small three links.” The Kinmen County Prosecutors’ Office yesterday said that four of the 10 extradited people were convicted in Taiwan for committing fraud and contravening the Money Laundering Control Act (洗錢防制法), and were on the wanted list. They were immediately arrested upon arrival and sent to Kinmen Prison to serve their sentences following brief questioning, the office said.
Taipei and Kaohsiung have extended an open invitation to Japanese pop star Ayumi Hamasaki after Chinese authorities abruptly canceled her scheduled concert in Shanghai. Hamasaki, 47, had been slated to perform on Saturday before organizers pulled the show at the last minute, citing “force majeure,” a move widely viewed as retaliation for Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s recent remark that a Chinese attack on Taiwan could draw a military response from Tokyo. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) yesterday said the city “very much welcomes” Hamasaki’s return and would continue to “surprise” her. Hamasaki, who has a large global fan base, including
‘REGRETTABLE’: Travelers reported that Seoul’s online arrival card system lists Taiwan as ‘China (Taiwan),’ the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday urged South Korea to correct the way Taiwan is listed in its newly launched e-Arrival card system, saying the current designation downgrades the nation’s status. South Korea rolled out the online system on Feb. 24 to gradually replace paper arrival cards, which it plans to phase out by next year. Travelers must complete the electronic form up to 72 hours before entering the country. The ministry said it has received multiple complaints from Taiwanese travelers saying that the system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in dropdown menus for both “place of departure” and “next
VIGILANT: Enterovirus activity remains in the epidemic phase, with the CDC urging caregivers of infected children to be on the lookout for signs of severe illness Influenza activity is rising in neighboring countries, and, with temperatures forecast to drop this week, flu cases are expected to increase in the next two weeks, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. Hospitals reported 87,162 visits for flu-like illnesses between Nov. 23 and Saturday, which remained about the same level as the previous week, but nine deaths and 24 cases with serious flu complications were also confirmed last week, CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said. Flu activity reached a peak in late September before declining for eight consecutive weeks, CDC Deputy Director-General and spokesman Lin Min-cheng (林明誠)