Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) and city officials yesterday said that the city government has opened an account to receive donations from the public for typhoon-battered regions in the Philippines.
The Taipei City Government’s Department of Social Welfare is to donate the funds from the account to “recognized multinational relief groups,” department head Chiang Yi-wen (江綺雯) said.
Those interested in contributing can transfer any denomination to account number 188-98514, which is under the Department of Social Welfare’s Chinese name.
Chiang announced the fund drive during a visit with Hau to St Christopher’s Church, a popular place of worship for Catholic Filipino workers and residents in Taipei.
Churchgoers and concerned individuals gathered at the Zhongshan North Road location in the morning to collect material aid for victims of Typhoon Haiyan, which tore through the central Philippines on Nov. 8, leaving thousands dead and tens of thousands displaced.
Chiang, a devout Catholic, and Hau joined a mass at the church, where they prayed for Taiwan’s neighbor as it picks up the pieces left by one of the strongest storms ever recorded.
Thanking Filipino workers for their contribution to Taiwan, Hau called on all Taipei residents to show neighborly love for the Philippines in its time of need.
“Saving lives and giving humanitarian aid knows no borders,” the mayor said, asking Taiwanese to put aside their hard feelings over a shooting incident that left a Taiwanese fisherman dead at the hands of Philippine Coast Guard personnel in May.
Extending a helping hand to those in need is an “exceptional tradition” of Taiwanese, he added, encouraging the public to make donations to supply people with basic life necessities.
Quoting the Book of Matthew, Chiang said: “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”
As of noon yesterday, the death toll from Haiyan had risen to nearly 3,700 and was expected to keep climbing, according to Philippine news network ABS-CBN.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,900) for advertisements that exceeded its approved business scope and ordered the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license would be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter supervision of Chinese e-commerce platforms and more stringent measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan as US President Donald Trump’s administration cracks down on origin laundering. The legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday met to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report on the matter. Democratic Progressive Party
Taiwan and its Pacific ally Tuvalu on Tuesday signed two accords aimed at facilitating bilateral cooperation on labor affairs, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). The governments inked two agreements in Taipei, witnessed by Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) and visiting Deputy Tuvaluan Prime Minister Panapasi Nelesone, MOFA said in a news release. According to MOFA, the agreements will facilitate cooperation on labor issues and allow the two sides to mutually recognize seafarers’ certificates and related training. Taiwan would also continue to collaborate with Tuvalu across various fields to promote economic prosperity as well as the well-being of their
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
NEW WORLD: Taiwan is pursuing innovative approaches to international relations through economics, trade and values-based diplomacy, the foreign minister said Taiwan would implement a “three-chain strategy” that promotes democratic values in response to US tariffs, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said. Taiwan would aim to create a “global democratic value chain,” seek to capitalize on its position within the first island chain and promote a “non-red supply chain,” Lin was quoted as saying in the ministry’s written report to the Legislative Yuan submitted ahead of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee meeting slated for today. The Ministry would also uphold a spirit of mutual beneficial collaboration, maintaining close communication and consultations with Washington to show that Taiwan-US cooperation
RSS