■ CRIME
New child sex laws mulled
The government is considering tightening its child sex abuse laws following public outrage at three cases where defendants were controversially cleared or given a light jail sentence. In one case involving a three-year-old girl, the Supreme Court rejected an appeal by prosecutors, saying they had failed to prove the girl was opposed to the sexual activity. Another case saw a male suspect charged with molesting his two-year-old niece acquitted as judges said they believed the victim was mistaken about the time of the alleged crime. “The Ministry of Justice is considering amending a provision of the Criminal Code … so as to better protect the rights of children,” a ministry official said. The third case saw a child abuser jailed for just 38 months — less than half the sentence sought by prosecutors. The rulings drew severe criticism from child protection groups, who called for the legal authorities to do more to save youngsters from abuse. The Garden of Hope Foundation has demanded the removal of what it called “dinosaur judges” and said the call has won the support of 270,000 people on its Web site. It also threatened to launch a mass protest if the authorities did not respond to its appeal.
■ ECONOMY
Delegation to recruit
The nation’s top economic planner will lead a delegation, which will include Minister without Portfolio Chang Jin-fu (張進福), to the US and Canada on Thursday to recruit high-tech talent. The delegation, led by Chairwoman of the Council for Economic Planning and Development Christina Liu (劉憶如), will visit Los Angeles, Boston, Austin San Francisco and Toronto, where they will interview overseas Taiwanese and other professionals for positions in Taiwan’s high-tech industry. At a time when the recovery of the US economy is still slow, the delegation will highlight Taiwan’s relatively strong economy, its cosmopolitan work and living environment and career development opportunities for high-tech professionals, Chang said. During the trip, Chang will give speeches in Boston and San Francisco to promote a global investment solicitation campaign that will start in October. The Taiwanese government assembles high-tech talent recruitment delegations every year. Later this year, a delegation will head to Seattle, Boston, New York and Toronto and visit Intel, Google, Microsoft, IBM and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, on a tour aimed at recruiting professionals in the field of cloud computing, Chang said.
■ CONSUMER RIGHTS
Sunglasses lack labels
The Bureau of Standards, Metrology and Inspection recently inspected 29 types of sunglasses on the market and found that although all passed product safety tests, more than 80 percent did not have proper labeling. Bureau officials have issued warnings to the makers of the sunglasses to make improvements immediately or face fines between NT$100,000 and NT$1 million.
■ ECONOMY
NFA ready to aid New Zealand
The National Fire Agency (NFA) is closely monitoring the situation in New Zealand after a magnitude 7 earthquake occurred there on Saturday, and is ready to send a search-and-rescue team if necessary, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. After learning of the earthquake, the fire agency instructed its special search-and-rescue team to prepare to join the disaster relief work, the ministry said. New Zealand told the OCHA there was no immediate need for international assistance, the ministry added.
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)
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