Ma tours Lanyu, promises quick relief

DISASTER TOUR:The president said reconstruction plans for the typhoon-hit island should strike a balance between tradition and modernization for its development
By Mo Yan-chih and Chris Wang  /  Staff reporters

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday promised to speed up the recovery work in Lanyu (蘭嶼) as he toured the island in the wake of Typhoon Tembin, adding that the government would loosen restrictions to provide better compensation to disaster victims.

Accompanied by officials from the ministries of transportation and economic affairs and other agencies, Ma said the government had sent a task force to assist with reconstruction and recovery plans on Lanyu.

Aboriginal activist claims threats over his activism

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Aboriginal activist Lin Shih-wei (林世偉) yesterday said he had been threatened by property developers because of his advocacy of land preservation in Hsinchu County’s Jianshih Township (尖石).

Lin told a press conference that he received warning notes reading “Mind your own business, Lin” at his Jianshih home on Tuesday and was threatened by unknown men on an MRT train in Taipei on Wednesday.

Government’s budget ‘messy, careless’: DPP

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

A simple glance at the Executive Yuan’s budget plan for next year was enough to show that the plan was “messy, careless and irresponsible,” the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus said yesterday.

The caucus has only received about one-quarter of the budget statement, which was required by law to be submitted before today, but it has seen many incredible items in the documents, DPP Legislator Tuan Yi-kang (段宜康) told a press conference.

Anti-media protest organizers visit political parties

By Chris Wang and Shelley Shan  /  Staff reporters
Fri, Aug 31, 2012 - Page 1

Organizers of an anti-media monopoly protest yesterday visited major political parties and received positive responses to their advocacy and their call for legislation to regulate media company’s market shares.

Journalists, journalism professors and associations, students and NGOs gave letters to the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) and the People First Party (PFP) asking for their support at a protest scheduled for tomorrow in Taipei.

The demonstration, which was sparked by the conditional approval of a NT$76 billion (US$2.54 billion) deal allowing the Want Want China Times Group (旺旺中時集團) to acquire some of the cable TV services owned by China Network Systems (CNS, 中嘉網路), was organized to fight media monopolies. It also calls for respecting professional journalism standards and stricter monitoring of media operations by the National Communications Commission (NCC).

Ex-president writes of ‘death in prison’

‘DESTINY’:Chen Shui-bian wrote that regulations allowing medical parole only for dying inmates would not be releasing a person for treatment, but to wait for death
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

Former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) talked about his possible death in prison and criticized regulations on medical parole in his weekly column published yesterday.

“It would not be a surprise if the headline ‘Chen Shui-bian dies in prison’ appears on every media outlet someday,” Chen, who is serving a 17-and-a-half-year sentence for corruption, wrote in his weekly column, titled “Death of a president,” for the Chinese-language weekly Next Magazine.

Su stumps for DPP in Jiaosi by-election

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter, in Yilan County

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday campaigned in Jiaosi Township (礁溪), Yilan County, hoping to secure the first election victory since he assumed the party helm in May.

Su campaigned for Lin Hsi-chung (林錫忠), the DPP candidate in the three-way township chief by-election on Sept. 8, saying that Jiaosi needs a “new dress” to end the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) decade-long political domination in the town.

“While this town has been a KMT stronghold, we are confident of winning this election,” Su said.

DPP caucus says lawsuit against NCC not ruled out

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

In the event of the National Communications Commission (NCC) failing to void the conditional approval of a deal allowing the Want Want China Times Group to acquire the cable TV services owned by China Network Systems, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) does not rule out filing a lawsuit against the commission for corruption and malfeasance, a DPP official said yesterday.

The three executives of the DPP caucus — convener Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘), director-general Pan Men-an (潘孟安) and chief secretary Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) — as well as DPP Deputy Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊毅) are scheduled to meet NCC Chairman Howard Shyr (石世豪) tomorrow and will repeat the call, Lee told reporters.

Ma distorted medical parole facts, Su says

PRISON TERMS:The DPP chairman said that by implying former president Chen’s medical parole would in effect result in his release, Ma was misleading the public
By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) distorted the facts when he said granting former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) medical parole would “actually mean him being released from prison,” Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said yesterday.

Ma’s comments, published in an interview with the Central News Agency on Monday, were interpreted as his rejection of Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin’s (郝龍斌) recommendation that the government consider medical parole for Chen, who is serving a 17-and-a-half-year sentence for corruption.

Academics blast government over worsening budget

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration has ignored the severity of Taiwan’s worsening fiscal situation, while the discrepancy shown in the draft budget plan for next year poses major concerns for the administration’s fiscal outlook, academics said yesterday.

“Our suggestion is that not only are financial reforms necessary, but a new budget drafting process and method might be equally as important,” said Chen Jin-ji (陳錦稷), a researcher at the Taiwan Brain Trust think tank which organized a forum to examine next year’s budget.

Taiwanese have multiple identities: poll

By Chris Wang  /  Staff reporter

A majority of Taiwanese have multiple self-identities, a phenomenon which has been consistent since 2008, but an increasing number of young people identify themselves with China, a survey has found.

The Taiwan Indicator Survey Research (TISR) examined the attitude of Taiwanese toward themselves and China with the survey and found that their views have not changed much.