CRIME
Cannabis seized in Taoyuan
A shipment of about 6kg of smuggled cannabis was seized by customs officials at a cargo services center near Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, the Aviation Police Bureau said on Thursday. The 6,225g of drugs were found stashed in two large boxes during a clearing inspection at Taiwan Air Cargo Terminal’s facility, one of the largest air cargo centers at the airport, the bureau said. The shipment was destined for Hualien County, it said. With the assistance of Hualien police, the find was later connected to a suspect surnamed Wu (吳), who said that he was only receiving the package on behalf of a friend in prison. The man was taken to the Taoyuan District Prosecutors’ Office for further questioning, the bureau said, adding that authorities would expand their search to see whether there are possible suspects in the case.
GOVERNANCE
Cultural center opened
The Ministry of Culture yesterday inaugurated the Mongolian and Tibetan Cultural Center, which is to take over the promotion and preservation of Mongolian and Tibetan culture from the now-disbanded Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission. The commission was disbanded last month as part of a government restructuring plan, and its tasks and budgets were distributed among the Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Mainland Affairs Council. The Mongolian and Tibetan Cultural Center, housed on the former premises of the commission, is headed by Hsu Kuei-hsiang (徐桂香), who served as chief secretary of the commission. The center is also to supervise Mongolian and Tibetan cultural foundations, organize exhibitions, preserve historical documents and artifacts, and train talent in the field, the Ministry of Culture said.
MEDIA
MOJ accused of power abuse
The Control Yuan on Wednesday issued a reprimand to the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), saying officials have been abusing their power and infringing on press freedom by investigating members of the media. According to the Control Yuan, its investigations have revealed that some ministry officials have been using lie detectors and accessing journalists’ phone records to investigate members of the media. In response, the ministry’s Agency Against Corruption issued a statement defending agency officials saying they were performing their official duties without the purview of a clear law. The agency said it would draft a law to define its duties and how its officials should carry them out independently while also protecting human rights.
IMMIGRATION
Tsai welcomes exchanges
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday stated her administration’s commitment to allow more foreign nationals to study in Taiwan at a reception for a delegation of Malaysian alumni of local universities. Tsai hosted the delegation of officers from the Federation of Alumni Associations of Taiwan Universities, Malaysia, reiterating her administration’s desire to promote more academic and cultural exchanges between both countries’ students, as part of the New Southbound Policy. The growing numbers of Malaysian students attending Taiwan’s universities have made campuses more diverse, she said. Tsai’s goal is to create a cross-national talent base in Asia that will benefit the whole region’s development, the Presidential Office said in a statement on the event. The government is working on policies to make sure that foreign nationals who want to stay and work could do so, Tsai added.
POLAM KOPITIAM CASE: Of the two people still in hospital, one has undergone a liver transplant and is improving, while the other is being evaluated for a liver transplant A fourth person has died from bongkrek acid poisoning linked to the Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, as two other people remain seriously ill in hospital. The first death was reported on March 24. The man had been 39 years old and had eaten at the restaurant on March 22. As more cases of suspected food poisoning involving people who had eaten at the restaurant were reported by hospitals on March 26, the ministry and the Taipei Department of Health launched an investigation. The Food and
A fourth person has died in a food poisoning outbreak linked to the Xinyi (信義) branch of Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in Taipei, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said on Monday. It was the second fatality in three days, after another was announced on Saturday. The 40-year-old woman experienced multiple organ failure in the early hours on Monday, and the family decided not to undergo emergency resuscitation, Wang said. She initially showed signs of improvement after seeking medical treatment for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but her condition worsened due to an infection, he said. Two others who
The long-awaited Taichung aquarium is expected to open next year after more than a decade of development. The building in Cingshui District (清水) is to feature a large ocean aquarium on the first floor, coral display area on the second floor, a jellyfish tank and Dajia River (大甲溪) basin display on the third, a river estuary display and restaurant on the fourth, and a cafe and garden on the fifth. As it is near Wuci Fishing Port (梧棲漁港), many are expecting the opening of the aquarium to bring more tourism to the harbor. Speaking at the city council on Monday, Taichung City Councilor
Taiwanese should be mindful when visiting China, as Beijing in July is likely to tighten the implementation of policies on national security following the introduction of two regulations, a researcher said on Saturday. China on Friday unveiled the regulations governing the law enforcement and judicial activities of national security agencies. They would help crack down on “illegal” and “criminal” activities that Beijing considers to be endangering national security, according to reports by China’s state media. The definition of what constitutes a national security threat in China is vague, Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) said. The two procedural regulations are to provide Chinese