Taiwan Railway Corp (TRC) today said it is to implement a “cross-jurisdictional train protection” program and stricter law enforcement to safeguard employees, following three separate attacks on TRC trains yesterday.
One conductor was beaten on a platform at Sanyi (三義) Station in Miaoli County by a drunk passenger, while another was slapped in the face by a passenger on a train traveling through Hualien County.
Later yesterday evening, a passenger boarded a TRC train at Shulin (樹林) Station in New Taipei City with a box cutter before being apprehended by police.
Photo courtesy of Taiwan Railway Corp
The TRC condemned the attacks, while TRC president Feng Hui-sheng (馮輝昇) yesterday personally checked in on the affected employees, instructing the company’s occupational safety department to continue follow-up care and support.
Feng today convened a news conference titled “Zero Tolerance for Violence,” where he announced that the railway company would cover all legal costs for affected employees.
Following a detailed investigation, both of the injured conductors have been discharged from hospital and are recovering at home, he said.
The TRC would work with the National Police Agency’s Railway Police Bureau and local police to increase police patrols and visibility on trains, while engaging local police forces to ensure rapid response in case of future incidents, Feng said.
The company would also be stricter in enforcing the law, he said, as yesterday’s incident in Hualien saw police relocate the disruptive passenger once he had calmed down without taking further legal action, which later led to the attack on the conductor.
The TRC is also discussing equipping staff with body cameras, which would be rolled out once a consensus is reached on usage regulations, he added.
The Railway Police Bureau has also recommended the use of personal defense sprays, such as pepper spray, he said.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today said that if South Korea does not reply appropriately to its request to correct Taiwan’s name on its e-Arrival card system before March 31, it would take corresponding measures to alter how South Korea is labeled on the online Taiwan Arrival Card system. South Korea’s e-Arrival card system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “point of departure” and “next destination” fields. The ministry said that it changed the nationality for South Koreans on Taiwan’s Alien Resident Certificates from “Korea” to “South Korea” on March 1, in a gesture of goodwill and based on the
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
RSS