The Sunshine Social Welfare Foundation yesterday held events in Taipei, Taoyuan, Taichung, Kaohsiung, Chiayi and Hualien County to promote equal rights for people who have been mistreated because of their looks.
One in five people in Taiwan has been called names or criticized because of their appearance, the foundation said, citing a survey.
The most common interaction, at 19.3 percent, was being given a disparaging nickname, it said.
Photograph provided by the Sunshine Social Welfare Foundation
Being ridiculed or made fun of was next at 17.3 percent, while 15.5 percent of respondents said they were often criticized by others, the foundation said.
The survey showed that 14.9 percent were looked at more often, while 5.3 percent of respondents said people would keep their distance because of their looks.
The foundation said that 1.8 percent faced unfriendly interactions on the Internet based on their looks and 7.6 percent were made fun of or given nicknames at work.
People with facial disfigurements from injury or hereditary conditions have been dismissed from their job because of how they look, it added, citing the case of Li Cheng (立丞), who was dismissed from his job at a chain store due to facial angioma.
In another case, A-guang (阿光) was denied a job because the role required frequent interactions with clients and the firm believed that A-guang’s facial neuroma would disturb them, it said.
There is antagonism aimed at people whose external features do not conform with the mainstream idea of “normal” or “beautiful,” it said, adding the public should offer people the chance to prove that external appearances have nothing to do with professional capability.
The foundation said it conducted the poll via cellphone interviews from April 6 to 10, garnering 1,123 valid responses.
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 7pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the temblor was at sea, about 69.9km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 30.9km, it said. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County’s Changbin Township (長濱), where it measured 5 on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 4 in Hualien, Nantou, Chiayi, Yunlin, Changhua and Miaoli counties, as well as
Credit departments of farmers’ and fishers’ associations blocked a total of more than NT$180 million (US$6.01 million) from being lost to scams last year, National Police Agency (NPA) data showed. The Agricultural Finance Agency (AFA) said last week that staff of farmers’ and fishers’ associations’ credit departments are required to implement fraud prevention measures when they serve clients at the counter. They would ask clients about personal financial management activities whenever they suspect there might be a fraud situation, and would immediately report the incident to local authorities, which would send police officers to the site to help, it said. NPA data showed
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The Taipei MRT is to begin accepting mobile payment services in the fall, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said on Saturday. When the company finishes the installation of new payment units at ticketing gates in October, MRT passengers can use credit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay, the operator said. In addition, the MRT would also provide QR payment codes — which would be compatible with Line Pay, Jkopay, iPass Money, PXPay Plus, EasyWallet, iCash Pay, Taiwan Pay and Taishin Pay — to access the railway system. Currently, passengers can access the Taipei MRT by buying a single-journey token or using EasyCard,
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