Smoker rights groups yesterday protested outside the legislature in Taipei against a proposal to ban e-cigarettes.
Holding signs that read: “Consumers have rights, too,” “Give me the freedom to choose” and “Do not force me to smoke cigarettes,” protesters said the government should not impose a blanket prohibition against e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products (HTPs).
The government must respect the rights of smokers, they said, adding that it should offer people choices, instead of instituting an outright ban.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
The protest was in response to the legislature’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee considering changes to the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (菸害防制法) that would ban e-cigarettes and limit HTPs. Amendments to the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act (毒品危害防制條例) to restrict e-cigarettes are also be considered by the Judiciary and Organic Laws and Statutes Committee.
One protester said that vaping devices, HTPs and flavored cigarettes should be regulated like regular cigarettes, with taxes and age restrictions for purchase.
“HTPs and e-cigarettes should be classified as tobacco products, just like the cigarettes sold at convenience stores,” said the protester, who asked that their name not be used. “We agree that the government should impose restrictions and rules, not permit sale to minors, no advertising, no online purchase and have health warnings.”
Separately, while discussing amendments to the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act at the legislature, Deputy Minister of Justice Tsai Pi-chung (蔡碧仲) was asked about recent calls by advocates urging the government to permit medicinal cannabis.
Tsai said there is no plan to decriminalize cannabis, which remains classified as a category 2 narcotic.
Tsai said the judiciary is cracking down on all illegal drug use, including cannabis, and said it is illegal in Taiwan for YouTubers to post videos teaching how to grow marijuana.
A Keelung high school on Saturday night apologized for using a picture containing a Chinese flag on the cover of the senior yearbook, adding that it has recalled the books and pledged to provide students new ones before graduation on Thursday. Of 309 Affiliated Keelung Maritime Senior High School of National Taiwan Ocean University graduates, 248 had purchased the yearbook. Some students said that the printer committed an outrageous error in including the picture, while others said that nobody would notice such a small flag on the cover. Other students said that they cared more about the photographs of classmates and what was
GOING INTERNATIONAL: Rakuten Girls squad leader Ula Shen said she was surprised that baseball fans outside of Taiwan not only knew of them, but also knew their names Major League Baseball’s (MLB) Oakland Athletics on Saturday hosted its first Taiwanese Heritage Day event at the Oakland Coliseum with a performance by Taiwanese cheerleading squad the Rakuten Girls and a video message from Vice President William Lai (賴清德). The Rakuten Girls, who are the cheerleaders for the CPBL’s Rakuten Monkeys, performed in front of a crowd of more than 2,000 people, followed by a prerecorded address by Lai about Taiwan’s baseball culture and democratic spirit. Taiwanese pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸), who was signed by the Athletics earlier this year, was also present. Mizuki Lin (林襄), considered a “baseball cheerleading goddess” by Taiwanese
WAY OF THE RUKAI: ‘Values deemed worthy often exist amid discomfort, so when people go against the flow, nature becomes entwined with our lives,’ a student said “Run, don’t walk” after your dreams, Nvidia cofounder and chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) told National Taiwan University (NTU) graduates yesterday, as several major universities held in-person graduation ceremonies for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic. “What will you create? Whatever it is, run after it. Run, don’t walk. Remember, either you’re running for food, or you are running from becoming food. Oftentimes, you can’t tell which. Either way, run,” he said. Huang was one of several tech executives addressing graduating students at Taiwanese universities. National Chengchi University held two ceremonies, with alumnus Patrick Pan (潘先國), who is head of Taiwan
A 14-legged giant isopod is the highlight of a new dish at a ramen restaurant in Taipei and it has people lining up — both for pictures and for a bite from this bowl of noodles. Since “The Ramen Boy” launched the limited-edition noodle bowl on Monday last week, declaring in a social media post that it had “finally got this dream ingredient,” more than 100 people have joined a waiting list to dine at the restaurant. “It is so attractive because of its appearance — it looks very cute,” said the 37-year-old owner of the restaurant, who wanted to be
RSS