The National Police Agency (NPA) has launched a pilot project for online language interpretation, aiming to help foreign residents report crimes and deal with judicial procedures, the agency said yesterday.
The project would be conducted in six local jurisdictions from next month to February next year, said Yu Jen-pai (游任白), an officer in the agency’s International Affairs Division.
The project is a collaboration of the police departments in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as Nantou, Pingtung, Hualien and Taitung counties, Yu said.
Interpreters would provide assistance through an online system to foreigners, helping them report crimes, fill out judicial documents and when being questioned as part of an investigation, he said.
“The service will ensure that foreigners’ language rights are guaranteed,” Yu said. “It will also protect the rights of crime victims and of those being questioned as part of an investigation, as well as criminal suspects. It will improve communication and case handling by law enforcement officers when dealing with foreigners.”
The scarcity of interpreters at rural police precincts makes the project necessary, the agency said.
The project would also include classes for police officers, judicial interpreter testing and work on telecommunication links, it said.
It would also help officers deal remotely with people with unknown COVID-19 infection status during the pandemic, it added.
However, the agency still prefers in-person interpretation, if possible, Yu said.
NPA data showed that there are 1,384 police interpreters in Taiwan, including 1,096 for Southeast Asian languages such as Vietnamese, Thai, Bahasa Indonesia and local languages of the Philippines.
While most other interpreters speak English, French, Spanish or Italian, the pool also includes native speakers of Russian or other eastern European languages, Yu said.
The project would be evaluated next year, and the NPA hopes that it can expand the service and attract more interpreters to join, Yu said.
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
EVA Airways on Saturday said that it had suspended a pilot and opened an investigation after he allegedly lost his temper and punched the first officer several times as their plane was taxiing before takeoff at Los Angeles International Airport. According to a report published on Thursday by The Reporter, the incident occurred after the flight’s Malaysian first officer tried to warn the Taiwanese pilot, surnamed Wen (文), that he was taxiing faster than the speed limit of 30 knots (55.6kph). After alerting the pilot several times without response, the first officer manually applied the brakes in accordance with standard operating
The New Taipei City Social Welfare Department on Thursday celebrated Paralympic competitor Chen Tzu-wei (張孜維), who received last year’s national Golden Eagle award for exemplary achievement by Taiwanese with disabilities. Chen, who suffers from childhood-onset muscular dystrophy, did not attend the first award ceremony held by the Ministry of Health and Welfare in November due to illness. Chen was formally presented with the award at the department, where he gave thanks to government workers for supporting his education and livelihood, the department said in a statement. Chen was raised by the Ai-hsin Home for Persons with Disabilities in the city’s Bali District (八里)
RSS