Man indicted for threatening Facebook comments after stabbing incidentBy Wang Ting-chuan and Hollie Younger / Staff reporter, with staff writerProsecutors today indicted a man for posting threatening messages on social media following a major stabbing incident in Taipei earlier this month. The man is accused of endangering public safety, threatening the public and inciting others to commit crimes, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. People lay flowers at a busy shopping center at the scene of a knife attack in Taipei on Dec. 20. Photo: Ritchie B. Tongo, EPAThe man indicted today, surnamed Lin (林) posted comments at 10pm that evening underneath a Facebook video of the incident, saying: “This is only the beginning,” “Cool” and “The knife isn’t sharp enough,” prosecutors said. He also wrote: “You voters need to bear the damage caused by the government you elected,” they added.

EU, UK, Philippines express concern over Chinese drillsStaff writer, with CNAThe EU and several countries in East Asia, including Japan, South Korea and the Philippines, yesterday voiced concerns over the latest Chinese live-fire military drills held near Taiwan and urged restraint to avoid escalating tensions. In a statement yesterday, the European External Action Service, the EU's diplomatic service, said that China's action "further increases cross-strait tensions and endangers international peace and stability." EU flags fly in front of a building at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, on April 2. Photo: EPA-EFE"Peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait are of strategic importance for regional and global security and prosperity. France expressed concern about "the scale of Chinese military exercises near Taiwan and urged all sides to refrain from escalation in order to preserve peace and stability in the region."

New ambassador to Paraguay appointedStaff writer, with CNAThe government yesterday approved the appointment of Ivan Lee (李岳融), the nation's representative to Mexico, as its new ambassador to Paraguay. Newly appointed Ambassador to Paraguay Ivan Lee is pictured in an undated photograph. Han has headed the Taiwan embassy in Paraguay, its only formal South American ally, since May 2020. Cheng is to be heading to Spain to serve as Taiwan's top representative to Madrid, a post that has been vacant since July last year, after the departure of Vivia Chang (張俊菲), who later became Taiwan's ambassador to Guatemala. The only Spanish-speaking allies are Paraguay in South America and Guatemala in Central America.

Ministry touts disaster trainingStaff writer, with CNAThe number of Taiwanese who have completed certified disaster prevention specialist training is expected to hit 110,000 this year, exceeding a target of 100,000, the Ministry of the Interior said in a statement on Saturday. Taiwan is in an earthquake and typhoon-prone region, so the government has provided disaster prevention training for borough and village wardens, housewives, military conscripts and members of non-governmental organizations in the hope of boosting social resilience, the ministry said. A woman participates in a disaster prevention specialist training session in an undated photograph. Photo courtesy of the Ministry of the Interior via CNAIt would continue to support local governments to promote the training program and gradually expand it to include foreign caregivers, long-term care workers and community volunteers, with the aim of comprehensively improving grassroots disaster preparedness and enhancing overall social resilience, the ministry said. The training curriculum, which was launched in 2018, covers disaster prevention and response, assessment of disaster situations, household protective measures, community coordination, evacuation route planning, as well as hands-on training to staunch bleeding, bandage wounds, cardiopulmonary resuscitation and use automated external defibrillators, the ministry said.

Tainan, Chiayi had more quakes this year: CWAWARMER YEAR: The average temperature in Taiwan was 24.53°C this year, the 12th-highest average temperature recorded in the nation since 1897, a CWA official saidBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterSignificantly more seismic activity was recorded in Tainan and Chiayi County this year following a major earthquake in Chiayi’s Dapu Township (大埔) in January, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The agency at a news conference reviewed this year’s significant weather and seismic events, and presented a general weather forecast for spring. Central Weather Administration Weather Forecast Center Director Huang Chun-hsi speaks at a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Photo: CNAThis year, the center detected 62 such quakes centered in the two counties, 6.9 times more than the average, Wu said. It was the 12th-highest average temperature recorded in Taiwan since 1897, he said.

Taichung explosion defendants indictedSYSTEMIC FAILURES: Shin Kong Mitsukoshi’s negligence was serious and the defendants attempted to deflect responsibility after the deadly explosion, prosecutors saidStaff writer, with CNA, TAICHUNGProsecutors yesterday indicted 13 people, including a department store manager and contractors, over a deadly gas explosion at the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang store in Taichung in February that killed five people and injured 35. Debris litters the ground outside the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang store in Taichung after an explosion on Feb. 13. The 13 defendants and Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store Co (新光三越百貨) were indicted on charges including negligent homicide, negligent injury and contraventions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法). Shin Kong Mitsukoshi said it respects the prosecution’s decision and would cooperate fully with judicial proceedings. The Taichung store resumed operations on Sept. 27 after safety upgrades following a city government-ordered suspension.

The Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) and the special defense bill, announced last month by President William Lai (賴清德), were again stopped from proceeding to the committee review stage. At the legislature in Taipei yesterday, lawmakers on the Procedure Committee vote on scheduling a special defense budget bill. The Procedure Committee is where bills are formally registered and it should not be used to block them, Shen said. Any strict oversight regarding the bill should be handled by the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, he said. The KMT’s stance is to invest in military preparedness and peace, and the one blocking the defense budget is actually Lai, as he refuses to address the legislature and answer questions, KMT caucus secretary-general Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) said.

Legislative Yuan passes bill targeting fraudStaff writer, with CNAThe legislature yesterday passed amendments to increase penalties for fraud while offering sentence reductions for offenders who surrender and fully compensate victims. The amendments also lower the threshold for high-value fraud to NT$1 million (US$31,819) from NT$5 million. Photo: Taipei TimesFraud involving NT$1 million or more carries prison terms of three to 10 years and fines of up to NT$30 million, according to the amendments. The amendments also introduce a “luxury ban” clause targeting high-profile fraud cases. Courts may take into account extravagant or wasteful spending, such as purchasing luxury homes or vehicles, if it occurs before victims are fully compensated or settlement amounts are paid.

Syphilis cases among Taiwan youth up 9%, CDC plans screening expansionStaff Writer, with CNATaiwan saw declines in HIV and gonorrhea cases this year, but syphilis infections rose, with the sharpest increase among people aged 15-24, the country’s Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said at a press conference on Tuesday. From January to November, syphilis cases among those aged 15-24 increased 9 percent year-on-year, prompting the CDC to expand free screening services for young people starting next year. Centers for Disease Control officials hold a press conference in Taipei on Tuesday. In contrast, syphilis cases rose 2 percent to 9,072 nationwide. Among those aged 15-24, new cases increased from 1,587 to 1,722 over the same period, marking a 9 percent rise, the CDC said.

Seventeen missiles were fired from Pingtan from 9am, all of which fell into the sea off northern Taiwan in a PLA-designated drill zone, outside the contiguous zone, Hsieh said. A Mirage 2000 fighter lands at Hsinchu Air Base amid Chinese military exercises around Taiwan on Monday. That was the closest that PLA rockets have ever come to Taiwan proper in recent live-fire exercises, he added. Of the 71 aircraft, 35 crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered Taiwan’s air defense identification zone, he said. Glaser and Shattuck said that the PLA needs to conduct exercises in preparation for a potential invasion of Taiwan.

Chinese watch missiles fly from Fujian’s PingtanAFP, PINGTAN, ChinaChinese tourists were milling around a small temple overlooking the glittering sea on an island near Taiwan yesterday when they heard thunderous booms from an islet in the distance. Rockets streaked across the clear blue sky over Pingtan, just 130km from Taiwan and near ongoing Chinese military drills around the nation. Chinese People’s Liberation Army rockets are launched from Pingtan island in China’s Fujian Province yesterday. “Looking from here, even if we can’t see it, it feels like we are really close,” said a woman surnamed Zhang, 59. Reporters saw two China Coast Guard ships in the waters near Pingtan yesterday, as well as two fighter jets and a military vessel the previous day.

Ministry awaits scheduled visit by European groupBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterThe Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said it welcomes a planned visit from Sunday to Friday next week of a delegation from the European Parliament. Eleven members of the European Parliament, led by Michael Gahler, chairman of the European Parliament-Taiwan Friendship Group, would be the first delegation from the parliament to visit Taiwan next year, Department of European Affairs Director Eric Huang (黃鈞耀) said. Member of the European Parliament Michael Gahler, chairman of the European Parliament-Taiwan Friendship Group, speaks at a news conference in Islamabad on July 28, 2018. “Serving as the chair of the European Parliament-Taiwan Friendship Group and cochair of the Formosa Club in Europe since the previous European Parliament term [2019 to last year], Gahler has been a long-standing supporter of Taiwan,” Huang said. Gahler has been dedicated to promoting parliamentary exchanges between Taiwan and the EU, and assisting Taiwan to expand its network of supporters within the European Parliament, he said.

Taiwan’s military highlights Chinese disinformation during large-scale drillStaff Writer, with CNATaiwan’s military on Tuesday warned the public about a wave of Chinese disinformation circulating online amid Beijing’s ongoing large-scale military exercise around the island, urging people not to fall for false claims aimed at undermining public morale. The MND has been monitoring Chinese disinformation and issuing clarifications where necessary, Chu said. Although drone activity was detected during the exercise, none entered Taiwan’s contiguous zone, which extends 24 nautical miles (44.4 kilometers) from the coastline, Hsieh said. Earlier in the day, President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) urged the public in a social media post to be mindful of disinformation accompanying the exercise. “At this critical moment, unity between the military and civilians in countering misinformation and disinformation constitutes the strongest defense of our democratic homeland,” Lai wrote.

Exercises force the cancelation of 36 domestic flightsBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterChina’s military exercises in the Taiwan Strait forced 36 domestic flights to be canceled, while some international flights could not transit in Taiwan, the Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. People at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport walk under a board showing flight details amid Chinese military drills around Taiwan yesterday. As of midday yesterday, no international flights had been canceled, although some canceled stopovers in Taiwan, CAA data showed. It coordinated with airlines to add 10 extra flights on the Kinmen route after the drills ends, including originally scheduled flights that were delayed, it said. As a result, 26 delayed flights on the Kinmen route would take off after the exercises conclude, it said.

Labor law changes passedBy Lee Ching-hui and Fion Khan / Staff reporter, with staff writer and CNAThe Legislative Yuan yesterday passed the third reading of proposed amendments to the Labor Insurance Act (勞工保險條例) to institutionalize government funding support. Lawmakers hold placards to mark the passage of amendments to the Labor Insurance Act at the legislature in Taipei yesterday. The central government is required to allocate annual budgetary appropriations based on its fiscal capacity and the financial status of labor insurance, the proposed changes say. The Bureau of Labor Insurance may temporarily withhold benefits in such cases until all outstanding fees are settled, the proposed amendments say. The revisions stabilize the labor insurance fund from three directions to safeguard insured workers’ rights, Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) said.