All public sports centers, activity centers and museums in New Taipei City are to close for 14 days, starting today, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said yesterday.
Hou made the remarks at the planned opening of a public sports center in the city’s Sinjhuang District (新莊), stressing the need to curb the further spread of COVID-19 while apologizing to the staff for the unexpected announcement, which temporarily put them out of work.
Some more renowned venues in the city that are to close for 14 days due to the new measure include the Yingge Ceramics Museum (鶯歌陶瓷博物館), the Shihsanhang Museum of Archaeology (十 三行博物館), the Gold Museum (黃金博物館), the Hakka Museum (客家文化園區演藝廳) and the Wulai Atayal Museum (烏來泰雅民族博物館), the New Taipei City Government said.
Photo: Chou Hsiang-yun, Taipei Times
Hou reiterated the central government’s orders that Taiwanese returning from countries under a level 3 “warning” travel advisory be tested for the novel coronavirus and placed in home quarantine.
The Central Epidemic Command Center on Wednesday said that people who traveled to 27 European countries, Egypt, Turkey or Dubai, United Arab Emirates, between March 5 and Saturday last week must undergo mandatory 14-day home quarantine upon their return to Taiwan.
As of 8pm on Wednesday, about 1,300 people affected by the policy registered for home quarantine, city government data showed.
The New Taipei City Education Department said that there would be no public entry or space rental at the city’s primary and secondary schools until the end of the semester as part of efforts to increase disease-prevention standards on campuses.
A video allegedly featuring retired general Kao An-kuo (高安國) calling on Taiwanese military officers to surrender to China and overthrow the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government has sparked outrage and calls for him to be charged with treason. The video, titled “A message to Taiwanese military officers,” allegedly shows Kao saying: “I call on commanding officers of our military troops to stand up for Chinese nationalism, to take up this duty under heaven’s mandate to save Taiwanese from oppression and terrible suffering.” Dressed in military fatigues and a beret, the lieutenant general called on officers to overthrow the “fraudulent DPP regime,”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday rejected the claim Beijing has been making about Taiwan’s status, while thanking US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman for raising concerns about Taiwan during her meeting with Chinese officials. Sherman met with Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) on a visit to Tianjin on Sunday and Monday, with Wang urging Washington not to infringe on China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Taiwan is part of China, a fundamental fact that would never change, and China has the right to take any action needed to restrain Taiwanese independence, Wang said, urging Washington to abide
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