The Central Election Commission (CEC) has announced five rules governing photography and filming during the ballot-counting process, which will be allowed for the first time after Saturday’s presidential and legislative elections.
Commission Deputy Chairman Chen Wen-sheng (陳文生) said that members of the public cannot use flashes or other sources of light when taking photos or filming; go beyond the observation areas either physically or with their equipment; block the view of other people with their equipment; attempt to direct, interfere or stop the ballot counting processes verbally or by gestures; or take photos of personnel at specific ballot booths.
“We understand that there may be a large crowd of people who are eager to ‘oversee’ the ballot counting process, so these rules are detailed so that people can avoid unintentional violations,” Chen said.
Given that the ballot counting does not begin until after at least 4pm, which might affect visibility, people who unwittingly use their camera flash to take a picture will be asked by staff members to turn off their flashes, Chen said.
If the warnings are disregarded, the staffers would ask the photographer to leave the ballot-counting area, he added.
He also reminded the public that while the commission agreed to allow photography and filming during ballot counting, neither is allowed during the voting phase.
The commission has notified its branches nationwide and there is to be a poster at each voting booth reminding the public not to take photos, Chen said.
There are 77 incidents of Taiwanese travelers going missing in China between January last year and last month, the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) said. More than 40 remain unreachable, SEF Secretary-General Luo Wen-jia (羅文嘉) said on Friday. Most of the reachable people in the more than 30 other incidents were allegedly involved in fraud, while some had disappeared for personal reasons, Luo said. One of these people is Kuo Yu-hsuan (郭宇軒), a 22-year-old Taiwanese man from Kaohsiung who went missing while visiting China in August. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office last month said in a news statement that he was under investigation
‘JOINT SWORD’: Whatever President Lai says in his Double Ten speech, China would use it as a pretext to launch ‘punishment’ drills for his ‘separatist’ views, an official said China is likely to launch military drills this week near Taiwan, using President William Lai’s (賴清德) upcoming national day speech as a pretext to pressure the nation to accept its sovereignty claims, Taiwanese officials said. China in May launched “punishment” drills around Taiwan shortly after Lai’s inauguration, in what Beijing said was a response to “separatist acts,” sending heavily armed warplanes and staging mock attacks as state media denounced newly inaugurated Lai. The May drills were dubbed “Joint Sword — 2024A” and drew concerns from capitals, including Washington. Lai is to deliver a key speech on Thursday in front of the Presidential Office
An aviation jacket patch showing a Formosan black bear punching Winnie the Pooh has become popular overseas, including at an aviation festival held by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force at the Ashiya Airbase yesterday. The patch was designed last year by Taiwanese designer Hsu Fu-yu (徐福佑), who said that it was inspired by Taiwan’s countermeasures against frequent Chinese military aircraft incursions. The badge shows a Formosan black bear holding a Republic of China flag as it punches Winnie the Pooh — a reference to Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) — who is dressed in red and is holding a honey pot with
Celebrations marking Double Ten National Day are to begin in Taipei today before culminating in a fireworks display in Yunlin County on the night of Thursday next week. To start the celebrations, a concert is to be held at the Taipei Dome at 4pm today, featuring a lineup of award-winning singers, including Jody Chiang (江蕙), Samingad (紀曉君) and Huang Fei (黃妃), Taipei tourism bureau official Chueh Yu-ling (闕玉玲) told a news conference yesterday. School choirs, including the Pqwasan na Taoshan Choir and Hngzyang na Matui & Nahuy Children’s Choir, and the Ministry of National Defense Symphony Orchestra, flag presentation unit and choirs,
RSS