The UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has launched a new service called LOCATE, which will help it track down Britons in the event of a crisis abroad, a press release from the British Trade and Cultural Office said yesterday.
The new online service was created by the FCO in response to the changing face of travel and allows people to register details of their foreign trips as well as contacts so they can be found more easily in case of emergency, the press release said.
The FCO said the service was not tailored specifically for the recent cyclone disaster in Myanmar or earthquake in China’s Sichuan Province.
The service is of great importance, the press release said, as a survey revealed that two-thirds of Britons do not know where their loved ones are while overseas and over half of the people who took the survey said they go abroad without leaving details of their trips with friends and family.
“It’s great to get off the beaten track when we’re away from home, but things can change very quickly in any country,” Foreign Office Minister Meg Munn said. “In our survey, more than nine out of 10 Britons said they would feel reassured to know that in the event of an emergency abroad, the local embassy could quickly find their location.”
The service, which officially started last Friday, is a two-way service and in the event of an emergency, worried family members can register details of a loved one who might be caught up in an incident. Also, if the traveler confirms with the FCO that they are safe, LOCATE can match the two pieces of information and the good news can be quickly passed on to relatives, the press release said.
“The LOCATE service will give you personal peace of mind while you’re exploring far-flung places, as well as providing reassurance for friends and family if they lose touch with you that you may be located during a crisis,” said Frances Linzee Gordon, a travel editor for Lonely Planet.
The FCO advises that travelers simply add LOCATE to their usual pre-travel checklist and visit LOCATE at www.fco.gov.uk/en/traveling-and-living-overseas/Locate.
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off Taitung County at 1:09pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 53km northeast of Taitung County Hall at a depth of 12.5km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Taitung County and Hualien County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Nantou County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County, Kaohsiung and Tainan, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage following the quake.
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) is to begin his one-year alternative military service tomorrow amid ongoing legal issues, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. Wang, who last month was released on bail of NT$150,000 (US$4,561) as he faces charges of allegedly attempting to evade military service and forging documents, has been ordered to report to Taipei Railway Station at 9am tomorrow, the Alternative Military Service Training and Management Center said. The 33-year-old would join about 1,300 other conscripts in the 263rd cohort of general alternative service for training at the Chenggong Ling camp in Taichung, a center official told reporters. Wang would first
RSS