Control Yuan members Fan Sun-lu (笵巽綠) and Su Li-chiung (蘇麗瓊) on Tuesday said that they are petitioning to investigate if strict regulations on activities near water are infringing on the public’s right to recreational activities.
The pair said they have received complaints from the Taiwan Allow Activities on Open Waters Alliance and other organizations that their request to the Taipei City Government to hold a recursive rowing event in Dahu Park (大湖公園) in Neihu District (內湖) was denied.
Taiwan has many lakes and rivers, the Control Yuan members said, adding that it is a rising trend among international cities, such as New York, Tokyo and Amsterdam, to promote water-related recreational activities to promote economic development.
Photo: Cheng Ming-hsiang, Taipei Times
Regulations in Taiwan seem to stand in the way of popularizing recreational water activities, they said.
The Control Yuan is within reason to launch an investigation into the issue, as it believes questions on whether standing regulations are anachronistic or whether the Taipei City Government’s refusal to approve the event was targeted should be answered, they said.
Competent authorities and local city governments have differing regulations on open water activities, making it difficult for practitioners to follow the law, Fan and Su said.
The pair said they would determine whether the Taipei City Government’s decision observes the principle of proportionality and whether its standards are appropriate.
Definition of open water areas and what locations fit these criteria should be inventoried and local regulations reviewed to encourage the public to take part in aquatic activities, they said.
The Grand Hotel Taipei on Saturday confirmed that its information system had been illegally accessed and expressed its deepest apologies for the concern it has caused its customers, adding that the issue is being investigated by the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau. The hotel said that on Tuesday last week, it had discovered an external illegal intrusion into its information system. An initial digital forensic investigation confirmed that parts of the system had been accessed, it said, adding that the possibility that some customer data were stolen and leaked could not be ruled out. The actual scope and content of the affected data
A New York-based NGO has launched a global initiative to rename the nation’s overseas missions, most of which operate under the name "Taipei," to "Taiwan Representative Office (TRO)," according to a news release. Ming Chiang (江明信), CEO of Hello Taiwan, announced the campaign at a news conference in Berlin on Monday, coinciding with the World Forum held from Monday through Wednesday, the institution stated in the release. Speaking at the event, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Huang Jie (黃捷) said she believed this renaming campaign would enable the international community to see Taiwan
DEFENSE: The US should cancel the US visas or green cards of relatives of KMT and TPP lawmakers who have been blocking the budget, Grant Newsham said A retired US Marine Corps officer has suggested canceling the US green cards and visas of relatives of opposition Taiwanese lawmakers who have been stalling the review of a proposed NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.7 billion) special defense budget. The Executive Yuan has proposed the budget for major weapons purchases over eight years, from this year to 2033. However, opposition lawmakers have refused to review the proposal, demanding that President William Lai (賴清德) first appear before the Legislative Yuan to answer questions about the proposed budget. On Thursday last week, 37 bipartisan US lawmakers sent a letter to Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), the heads
DO THEY BITE IT? Cats have better memories than people might think, but their motivation is based entirely around the chance of getting fed Cats can remember the identity of the people who fed them the day before, Taipei-based veterinarians said on Friday, debunking a popular myth that cats have a short memory. If a stray does not recognize the person who fed them the previous day, it is likely because they are not carrying food and the cat has no reason to recognize them, said Wu Chou Animal Hospital head Chen Chen-huan (陳震寰). “When cats come to a human bearing food, it is coming for the food, not the person,” he said. “The food is the key.” Since the cat’s attention is on the food, it
RSS