Taipei will express concern to Washington over a travel ban on three senior AU Optronics (AUO) executives, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said yesterday.
Harry Tseng (曾厚仁), director-general of the Department of North American Affairs, said Taiwan hoped the US executive branch would take a “flexible” approach and consider lifting the ban on the trio, in line with the principle of presumed innocence.
AUO vice chairman Chen Hsuan-bin (陳炫彬), CEO Chen Lai-juh (陳來助) and board member and Qisda chief executive Hui Hsiung (熊暉) were recently ordered by a US judge to surrender their passports and not travel outside California’s northern district without court permission.
A San Francisco court in June indicted the Houston-based subsidiary of AUO and six company officials, including the trio, on charges of conspiring to fix LCD panel prices from September 2001 through December 2006, an allegation made by the US Department of Justice.
“They went to the US voluntarily to appear in court, meaning they will not hide themselves. Given that they have approached the case sincerely, what’s the point of barring them from leaving [the US]?” Tseng asked.
Should the Department of Justice refuse to talk with Taipei, the ministry would consider raising the matter with the American Institute in Taiwan, he said.
“As a foreign government, there is little room to maneuver in a case under judicial review and the same applies to the US’ executive branch. Even so, we will do our best to communicate with the US government to see if we can change the situation,” Tseng said.
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
About 4.2 million tourist arrivals were recorded in the first half of this year, a 10 percent increase from the same period last year, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. The growth continues to be consistent, with the fourth quarter of this year expected to be the peak in Taiwan, the agency said, adding that it plans to promote Taiwan overseas via partnerships and major events. From January to June, 9.14 million international departures were recorded from Taiwan, an 11 percent increase from the same period last year, with 3.3 million headed for Japan, 1.52 million for China and 832,962 to South Korea,
RSS