A man who allegedly harassed dolphins with his yacht off Yilan County has been fined NT$20,000 for breaching the Wildlife Conservation Act (野生動物保育法), the first such case in the nation, the Ocean Conservation Administration (OCA) said yesterday.
In August, a group of tourists on a whale-watching boat reported seeing the man speeding up his vessel toward a group of dolphins near Turtle Island (Gueishan Island, 龜山島).
The dolphins, who were swimming near the surface, dived deeper, as they were seemingly scared by the yacht, the tourists reported at the time, with one of them later handing video footage of the incident to the Yilan County Government.
After an investigation by the Yilan District Prosecutors’ Office, the man was fined NT$20,000 and prosecution of the incident was deferred, the OCA said in a news release.
He contravened Article 42 of the act, which forbids harassing or abusing protected wildlife, it said, adding that all whales and dolphins are protected under Taiwanese law.
It is the nation’s first such case that resulted in a penalty, the OCA said.
The video provided by one of the witnesses was of great help to the investigation, it said, adding that in many reported incidents, the evidence is insufficient and alleged perpetrators cannot be prosecuted.
The OCA last month held a meeting with conservationists, prosecutors, and coast guard and government officials to discuss how to identify and collect evidence in alleged cases of marine wildlife harassment.
Nearly 30 of the world’s more than 80 whale and dolphin species have been reported in the waters near Taiwan, with the best season for watching the animals from April to October, the OCA said.
According to OCA guidelines, ships engaged in wildlife-watching should travel at a slow and steady speed.
Vessels should maintain a distance of at least 50m from the mammals and a distance of at least 300m to nursery groups of whales or dolphins, the guidelines say.
When seeing dolphins riding bow waves of their ships — which allows the dolphins to swim at higher speeds — vessels should keep a steady pace and not change direction abruptly, to avoid scaring or harming the animals, the guidelines say.
LOUD AND PROUD Taiwan might have taken a drubbing against Australia and Japan, but you might not know it from the enthusiasm and numbers of the fans Taiwan might not be expected to win the World Baseball Classic (WBC) but their fans are making their presence felt in Tokyo, with tens of thousands decked out in the team’s blue, blowing horns and singing songs. Taiwanese fans have packed out the Tokyo Dome for all three of their games so far and even threatened to drown out home team supporters when their team played Japan on Friday. They blew trumpets, chanted for their favorite players and had their own cheerleading squad who dance on a stage during the game. The team struggled to match that exuberance on the field, with
UPDATED TEST: The new rules aim to assess drivers’ awareness of risky behaviors and how they respond under certain circumstances, the Highway Bureau said Driver’s license applicants who fail to yield to pedestrians at intersections or to check blind spots, or omit pointing-and-calling procedures would fail the driving test, the Highway Bureau said yesterday. The change is set to be implemented at the end of the month, and is part of the bureau’s reform of the driving portion of the test, which has been criticized for failing to assess whether drivers can operate vehicles safely. Sedan drivers would be tested regarding yielding to pedestrians and turning their heads to check blind spots, while drivers of large vehicles would be tested on their familiarity with pointing-and-calling
Whether Japan would help defend Taiwan in case of a cross-strait conflict would depend on the US and the extent to which Japan would be allowed to act under the US-Japan Security Treaty, former Japanese minister of defense Satoshi Morimoto said. As China has not given up on the idea of invading Taiwan by force, to what extent Japan could support US military action would hinge on Washington’s intention and its negotiation with Tokyo, Morimoto said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) yesterday. There has to be sufficient mutual recognition of how Japan could provide
A Taiwanese man apologized on Friday after saying in a social media post that he worked with Australia to provide scouting reports on Taiwan’s team, enabling Australia’s victory in this year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC), saying it was a joke and that he did not hold any position with foreign teams or Taiwan’s sports training center. Chen Po-hao (陳柏豪) drew the rage of many Taiwan baseball fans when he posted online on Thursday night, claiming credit for Australia’s 3-0 win over Taiwan in the opening game for Pool C, saying he worked as a physical therapist with the national team and
RSS