Taiwan has been named the only country in Asia with an open civic space for the fourth straight year by human rights organization Civicus in a report released in Bangkok yesterday.
Civicus released the People Power Under Attack 2022 report under its Civicus Monitor program, an ongoing research collaboration between the group and more than 20 research partner organizations.
The research assessed the extent to which each country protects fundamental rights of freedoms of association, peaceful assembly and expression, as well as policies, laws and practices related to these freedoms.
Photo: grab from twitter.com/CIVICUSMonitor
It rates the civic space of the 197 countries and territories it surveyed as open, narrowed, obstructed, repressed or closed, the report said.
Data collected from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31 last year showed “a serious decline in civic space,” with only 3.2 percent of the global population living in open civic space, while 28.5 percent of the population, approximately 2 billion people, are living in closed civic space, the report said.
In Asia, Taiwan remained the only country rated as open, while civic space in Japan, Mongolia and South Korea was described as narrowed, it said.
Seven Asian countries and territories were rated as closed, up from four in the 2021 report, with Afghanistan, Hong Kong and Myanmar joining China, Laos, North Korea and Vietnam, the report said.
Taiwan has created an environment that allows people to enjoy civil liberties, Josef Benedict, a Civicus researcher on civic space in the Asia-Pacific region, told the Central News Agency.
The rating indicates that people in Taiwan are able to freely protest and assemble, and journalists can work free from restrictions thanks to relatively high press freedom, he said.
Taiwanese authorities allow criticism from civil groups, and create spaces and platforms for people to have dialogues, he added.
While the civic space in the Asia-Pacific region continued to shrink as incidents of repression of protesters and harassment of dissidents increased in several countries last year, Taiwan maintaining an open civic space is “a positive signal” for the region, he said.
Taiwan provides a safe haven for human rights workers, and supports dissents and journalists in the region, he said.
To further enhance the human rights environment, Taiwan can improve working and living conditions for migrant workers, enact laws against abuse and adopt broader regulations to prevent discrimination, he said.
Additional reporting by CNA
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday expressed “grave concerns” after Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) reiterated the city-state’s opposition to “Taiwanese independence” during a meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強). In Singapore on Saturday, Wong and Li discussed cross-strait developments, the Singaporean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “Prime Minister Wong reiterated that Singapore has a clear and consistent ‘one China’ policy and is opposed to Taiwan independence,” it said. MOFA responded that it is an objective fact and a common understanding shared by many that the Republic of China (ROC) is an independent, sovereign nation, with world-leading
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
RSS