The Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) said yesterday that individuals who receive parcels containing pork products from abroad would face fines of up to NT$1 million (US$32,160), even if the violation was unintentional, as part of strengthened efforts to prevent African swine fever (ASF) from entering Taiwan.
The revised rule, which took effect last Thursday, imposes fines of NT$200,000 for first-time offenders and NT$1 million for repeat violations, the MOA said in a report on post-ASF prevention and market adjustment measures presented at yesterday's Executive Yuan meeting.
Agriculture Minister Chen Junne-jih (陳駿季) told reporters after the meeting that in past cases, some recipients claimed they were unaware their parcels contained pork products in an attempt to avoid punishment.
Photo: Taipei Times
From now on, all violators are to be fined, whether the act was intentional or the result of negligence, he said, adding that those who believe they were wrongly penalized would be able to seek administrative relief.
According to the MOA, the new measures also include stricter border inspections, enhanced checks on cargo and travelers from high-risk areas, and tighter regulation of cross-border e-commerce platforms.
The Ministry of Digital Affairs said it would require e-commerce platforms under its jurisdiction to display disease-prevention warnings and restrict access to high-risk products. Platforms that fail to comply may face penalties, the ministry added.
Meanwhile, the Coast Guard Administration is to deploy radar and drones to monitor suspicious vessels, expand inspections to curb smuggling of animal products, and strengthen checks on crew belongings, according to the report.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) has instructed relevant agencies to strictly enforce the new measures to help Taiwan regain its ASF-free status, after African swine fever was confirmed at a Taichung pig farm last month, Cabinet spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said yesterday.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS