The National Immigration Agency in Taipei yesterday launched an international workshop to combat human trafficking, welcoming experts from around the world to seek solutions to the issue.
“We can only combat human trafficking by having ministries work together, bringing together experts in various fields and cooperating with international partners,” Executive Yuan spokesman Lo Ping-cheng (羅秉成) told the opening of the International Workshop on Combating Human Trafficking.
The workshop’s goal is to engage experts on three issues: developing trends of human trafficking during the COVID-19 pandemic and government reactions; what role digital technology plays in human trafficking; and the confiscation of illegal proceeds generated from human trafficking.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
Developing trends of human trafficking — including establishing stations outside a base country, using the Internet for scams and prioritizing the use of digital currencies — show that criminal methods are changing rapidly, Lo said.
The government is dissuading people from traveling to Cambodia and enacting measures to locate and save people targeted by traffickers, Deputy Minister of the Interior Chen Tsung-yen (陳宗彥) said, referring to reports of Taiwanese traveling to Cambodia with the promise of high-paying jobs, but upon landing being held captive, abused and even threatened with having their organs harvested.
Investigations are being conducted into the actions of 70 people linked to such criminal enterprises, Lo said.
The incidents in Cambodia offer an opportunity for the government to sweep the nation clean of organized crime and mitigate its effects on people’s lives, Lo said.
Foreign experts, including South Korean government committee member Soung Jae-hyen, have been invited to attend the workshop, the Ministry of the Interior said, adding that more than 300 people are expected to participate.
The goal is to bolster ties with other governments and groups that tackle the issue of human trafficking, the ministry said, adding that it also hopes to increase collaboration between the private and public sectors in Taiwan.
Deputy Minister of Justice Tsai Pi-chung (蔡碧仲) and representatives from Tuvalu and the Marshall Islands also attended the launch.
CARGO LOSS: About 50 containers at the stern of the ‘Ever Lunar’ cargo ship went overboard, prompting the temporary closure of the port and disrupting operations Evergreen Marine Corp, Taiwan’s largest container shipper, yesterday said that all crew members aboard the Ever Lunar (長月) were safe after dozens of containers fell overboard off the coast of Peru the previous day. The incident occurred at 9:40am on Friday as the Ever Lunar was anchored and waiting to enter the Port of Callao when it suddenly experienced severe rolling, Evergreen said in a statement. The rolling, which caused the containers to fall, might have been caused by factors including a tsunami triggered by an earthquake in Russia, poor winter sea conditions in South America or a sudden influx of waves,
The Ministry of Culture yesterday officially launched the “We TAIWAN” cultural program on Osaka’s Nakanoshima sandbank, with the program’s mascot receiving overwhelming popularity. The cultural program, which runs from Aug. 2 to 20, was designed to partner with and capitalize on the 2025 World Expo that is being held in Osaka, Japan, from April 13 to Oct. 13, the ministry said. On the first day of the cultural program, its mascot, a green creature named “a-We,” proved to be extremely popular, as its merch was immediately in high demand. Long lines formed yesterday for the opening
The Taipei Summer Festival is to begin tomorrow at Dadaocheng Wharf (大稻埕), featuring four themed firework shows and five live music performances throughout the month, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said today. The festival in the city’s Datong District (大同) is to run until Aug. 30, holding firework displays on Wednesdays and the final Saturday of the event. The first show is scheduled for tomorrow, followed by Aug. 13, 20 and 30. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Disney Pixar's movie Toy Story, the festival has partnered with Walt Disney Co (Taiwan) to host a special themed area on
BE CAREFUL: The virus rarely causes severe illness or death, but newborns, older people and those with medical conditions are at risk of more severe illness As more than 7,000 cases of chikungunya fever have been reported in China’s Guangdong Province this year, including 2,892 new cases last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday said it is monitoring the situation and considering raising the travel notice level, which might be announced today. The CDC issued a level 1 travel notice, or “watch,” for Guangdong Province on July 22, citing an outbreak in Foshan, a manufacturing hub in the south of the province, that was reported early last month. Between July 27 and Saturday, the province reported 2,892 new cases of chikungunya, reaching a total of 7,716
RSS