DIPLOMACY
Ministry warns fishermen
With the arrival of the bluefin tuna season, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged local fishermen to avoid the Philippines’ territorial waters. Although Taiwan and the Philippines have signed an agreement on joint law enforcement in their overlapping exclusive economic zones, several differences are unresolved, MOFA Department of International Cooperation and Economic Affairs Deputy Director-General Kay Lin (林恩真) said. Taiwanese fishermen should be very cautious when operating in waters between 12 and 24 nautical miles (22km and 44km) off the Philippine coast, Lin said. He said Taiwanese fishing boats should report their positions regularly and must not enter the 12 nautical mile zone.
CRIME
Chinese asylum seeker held
A man from Zhejiang Province landed on Kinmen Island (金門) in a rubber boat early yesterday, saying that he came seeking freedom. The coast guard detected and monitored the boat being rowed toward Shuangkou Beach in Leiyu Township (烈嶼), with the man landing on the beach at about 5:15am. He was detained and taken for questioning. The 43-year-old man, surnamed Qian (錢), said he departed Xiamen at 1am and began rowing toward Kinmen, a distance of about 6km. Qian said he is unemployed, but came in pursuit of freedom and democracy. As he did not enter Taiwan legally, he is likely to be prosecuted for violating the Immigration Act (入出國及移民法), which carries a prison term of up to three years. After serving his sentence, he is expected to be repatriated to China.
DIPLOMACY
Wen Jiabao statue removed
A statue of former Chinese premier Wen Jiabao (溫家寶) erected in a private cultural park in Keelung has been removed less than one day after it was formally unveiled, with the park calling the statue a representation of a “Taiwanese hero.” Keelung Mayor Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) of the Democratic Progressive Party on Wednesday said it was “highly improper” to present a former Chinese leader as a hero of Taiwan. This gives people an “extremely bad” impression, Lin said, adding that he suggested the statue at the Embrace Cultural and Creative Park be removed as soon as possible.
CRIME
Police station, homes raided
Prosecutors conducted raids at eight locations around the greater Taipei area, including police stations, residences and businesses, to investigate alleged police corruption with officers accused of receiving bribes to protect underground gambling dens. The investigation was headed up by New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office, and units from Ministry of Justice’s Investigation Bureau. Ten people were detained in relation to the investigation, including one officer and two detectives from police stations in New Taipei City. The police officers implicated in the case are suspected of receiving NT$30,000 in bribes each month from operators of two gambling dens, one in Taipei’s Wanhua District (萬華), and the other in New Taipei City’s Banciao District (板橋). After receiving reports of corruption, prosecutors put surveillance and wiretaps on the gambling operations and other locations for just over one year, and found three police officers used mobile phone messages to alert the gambling dens to raids, along with other collusion, while receiving monthly bribes in cash during visits to the dens.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,912) for advertisements that exceed its approved business scope, requiring the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license may be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter enforcement of Chinese e-commerce platforms and measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan in response to US President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs on China. The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee met today to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said
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
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 today amid outcry over his decision to wear a Nazi armband to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case last night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and covering the book with his coat. Lee said today that this is a serious
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