CECC confirms 364 cases; Japan sends 1.24m doses
CECC confirms 364 cases; Japan sends 1.24m dosesTIMELY DONATIONS: The ‘Liberty Times’ has reported that 1.24 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine donated by Japan are to arrive in Taiwan todayBy Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporterThe Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday reported 364 new domestic cases of COVID-19, 219 backlogged cases and 17 deaths, while more than 1 million vaccine doses donated by Japan are to arrive today. A boy gives the thumbs up yesterday to billboards in Pingtung County’s Kenting admonishing people for being outside. Of the cases reported outside Taipei and New Taipei City, 77 had known sources of infection, 14 had unclear connections with other cases and three were under investigation, it said. Members of the Army’s 33rd Chemical Corps disinfect an area in New Taipei City’s Banciao District yesterday. As of yesterday, Taiwan had recorded 9,974 confirmed cases of COVID-19: 1,143 imported cases, 8,778 domestic cases and 166 deaths, center data showed.
Source:Taipei Times
June 03, 2021 15:56 UTC
Expanded relief to benefit 7.3 million
Expanded relief to benefit 7.3 millionNEAR-TERM AID: Premier Su Tseng-chang said those who applied for relief last year and qualify under this year’s conditions might receive their money todayBy Jonathan Chin / Staff writer, with CNAThe Executive Yuan yesterday approved a NT$260 billion (US$9.38 billion) expansion to the COVID-19 relief program known as “Stimulus 4.0,” which would funnel subsidies to 7.3 million Taiwanese. First-time applicants for pandemic relief should apply remotely via the Ministry of Labor’s Web site (https://edesk.bli.gov.tw/aa/) or by mail from Monday next week, Su added. The inclusion of those who are self-employed and childrearing households expanded the relief program 80 percent, Kung said. The Ministry of Labor said that the relief would benefit 1.85 million self-employed workers and workers without a definite employer. Qualified workers would, depending on their income, receive a subsidy of NT$10,000 or NT$30,000, the labor ministry said.
Source:Taipei Times
June 03, 2021 15:56 UTC
Germany is helping in BioNTech talks: Prinz
Germany is helping in BioNTech talks: PrinzBy Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporterThe German government has zealously helped Taiwan to negotiate with COVID-19 vaccine supplier BioNTech SE, but wrapping up a deal depends on the two signatories, the German Institute Taipei said yesterday, as vaccine procurement disputes continue to roil the nation. “We have noticed the recent controversy about vaccine acquisition,” German Institute Taipei Director-General Thomas Prinz said in a Chinese-language post on Facebook yesterday. German Institute Taipei Director-General Thomas Prinz is pictured in front of the German Institute Taipei in an undated photograph. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration has been reluctant to acquire vaccine doses through BioNTech’s Chinese representative, Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group (上海復星醫藥集團). China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) on Tuesday urged the DPP to stop politicizing vaccine procurement, saying that it is ready to help Taiwan.
Source:Taipei Times
June 02, 2021 16:00 UTC
TSMC unveils layout of Arizona fab
TSMC unveils layout of Arizona fabEXPANSION DRIVE: To expedite manufacturing of advanced chips, the chipmaker would transform domestic research centers into initial production facilities, TSMC saidBy Lisa Wang / Staff reporterTaiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday unveiled the layout of its new fab in Arizona and reiterated its determination to ramp up advanced 5-nanometer chip production in 2024. “As we expect demand for 5-nanometer [chips] will be strong and sustainable in the long term, we have made the Arizona fab, Fab 21, one of the 5-nanometer manufacturing sites,” TSMC chief executive officer C.C. The first phase of the Arizona fab would have an installed capacity of 20,000 wafers a month, TSMC said. Its fabs in Tainan would be its major manufacturing sites for 3-nanometer chips, TSMC said. TSMC in 2018 forecast that its advanced technology capacity would expand at a compound annual rate of 30 percent from 2018 to this year.
Source:Taipei Times
June 02, 2021 15:56 UTC
COVID-19 patient arrested after fleeing Taipei hospital
COVID-19 patient arrested after fleeing Taipei hospitalBy Tsai Ssu-pei and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter and staff writer, with CNATaipei police yesterday apprehended a COVID-19 patient after he allegedly escaped from a hospital isolation ward following a scuffle with officers. The man, surnamed Chen (陳), 71, was arrested at his residence in Wanhua District (萬華) hours after his flight from the hospital, a Taipei Police Department spokesman said. Photo: Chiu Chun-fu, Taipei TimesAs Chen was known to be infected with COVID-19, doctors placed him in a modular patient unit outside the hospital complex to await medical attention, he said. The hospital called the police and the responding officers subdued Chen after a short struggle, he said. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office had issued an arrest warrant for Chen in connection to an unrelated assault that occurred last month, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
June 02, 2021 15:56 UTC
China Television gets ‘passing grade’ from the NCC
China Television gets ‘passing grade’ from the NCCBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterChina Television (CTV) received a passing grade for its performance from 2016 to 2019, although it must lower its debt ratio to below 60 percent before its operating license expires in 2025 while not firing employees for adhering to its own broadcasting guidelines, the National Communications Commission (NCC) said yesterday. It was CTV’s first performance review since the network’s license renewal application was approved in 2016, the commission said. A terrestrial television license is valid for nine years, and the commission is authorized to evaluate a licenced network’s performance every three years. The passing grade was granted on two conditions, the NCC said. CTV’s management must revise its broadcasting guidelines, provide the employment guidelines and submit the revised guidelines to the commission within six months after it is officially notified about the evaluation, the commission said.
Source:Taipei Times
June 02, 2021 15:56 UTC
Chains suspend delivery of refrigerated food
Chains suspend delivery of refrigerated foodStaff writer, with CNASeveral hypermarket and convenience store chains have temporarily suspended deliveries of frozen and chilled products, as delivery service providers face skyrocketing demand amid a COVID-19 outbreak. A T-Cat employee sorts packages outside a delivery truck in Taipei yesterday. Photo: Liao Cheng-hui, Taipei TimesPresident Chain Store Corp (統一超商), which operates the 7-Eleven convenience store chain, said that refrigerated and frozen deliveries by courier service T-Cat (黑貓宅急便) would be suspended through today. The firm also said it would be unable to ensure next-day delivery of uninsured packages through June 14. HCT Logistics said that it would halt cold deliveries to Taipei, New Taipei City, Keelung, Taoyuan and Hsinchu, as well as nationwide deliveries of products from Hi-Life convenience stores through tomorrow.
Source:Taipei Times
June 02, 2021 15:56 UTC
Tiananmen event announced
Tiananmen event announcedSPURNING SILENCE: A rights advocate said that young Chinese have not learned about the events surrounding the June 4, 1989, protests and Beijing’s crackdownBy Chen Yu-fu and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe New School for Democracy is to hold an online event on Friday to commemorate the 32nd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, the organization said yesterday. “The Chinese Communist Party [CCP] cannot escape responsibility for the Tiananmen Massacre,” the organization told an online news conference, adding that the whole world was part of the resistance against China. “This year marks 32 years since the Tiananmen Massacre, but the CCP has never apologized and has not made reparations to the victims,” Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) said. The CCP still arrests Chinese democracy advocates, including those in Hong Kong and Macau, Hung said. Tibetans were disappointed that the CPP quashed the movement in a bloody crackdown, Tashi said, adding that hopefully many people would join the online event to commemorate the massacre.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2021 16:00 UTC
Chen warns against letting guard down
They began experiencing symptoms between May 20 and Monday, said Chen, who heads the Central Epidemic Command Center. The 65 backlogged cases comprised 31 males and 34 females who began showing symptoms between May 20 and Sunday, he added. Shoppers wearing face shields visit a traditional market in Taipei yesterday. Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei TimesAmong the 2,849 cases aged 60 or older, 859 people, or 30.2 percent, suffered severe COVID-19 symptoms, Lo said. With the number of backlogged cases dropping to 74 yesterday, Chen said the CECC expects to clear out the remaining cases in the next two days and would no longer report backlogged figures.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Counting the human cost of affordable electronics
Photo: Wang Min-wei, Taipei TimesForeign media eventually shifted their attention elsewhere, but labor activists have been determined to keep up the pressure. Photo courtesy of Students and Scholars Against Corporate MisbehaviorNeither Foxconn nor Apple responded when asked if they wished to comment on the issues Chan raises. PRESSURED WORKERSAccording to Chan, there are a number of reasons why Foxconn’s managers put so much pressure on their workers. Foxconn saves a considerable additional amount of money because there’s no requirement to enroll interns in state pension and benefits schemes. Our goal is to make the transnational electronics supply chain more transparent, and to give workers more dignity.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
COVID-19: Taoyuan closes beauty parlors
The call came after Taoyuan recorded 29 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases on Monday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the city to 475. The city has the third-highest number of confirmed cases in Taiwan, following New Taipei City and Taipei. Bade District Administrator Chiu Jui-chao inspects Danan Market in Taoyuan yesterday. He also said that the number of COVID-19 screening sites in the city would be expanded from 14 to 18 — 11 at hospitals and seven in communities. The Taoyuan City Government has also urged city residents to follow a voluntary ID number-based rotation system to reduce crowding at traditional markets.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Space bill passes its third reading
Space bill passes its third readingBy Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporterTaiwan’s first space development bill on Monday passed a third reading, empowering the Ministry of Science and Technology to establish a national rocket launch site. The bill would confirm the ministry as the authority to oversee local space activities, including the establishment of a launch venue and approval of launch plans. Compensation that an owner or operator of a launch vehicle would be required to pay is capped at NT$5 billion if a launch were to cause an accident. Questions have been raised over whether the development bill is tailored for space launch services firm Taiwan Innovative Space (TiSPACE) and how it could progress so swiftly after a draft was approved by the Executive Yuan on Feb. 18. Despite some differences between drafts, they all revolved around regulations for launch vehicles, Huang said, denying that the bill is designed for TiSPACE.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
Terry Gou has submitted vaccine application: CECC
Terry Gou has submitted vaccine application: CECCBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterThe Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday confirmed that the Yonglin Foundation had submitted documents, including the substantial information required, to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for approval to import the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. The CECC on Friday last week released a set of requirements for those who intend to import COVID-19 vaccines. Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou and his wife, Delia Tseng, are pictured holding an application in an undated photograph. Yonglin Foundation founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) wrote on Facebook on Saturday that the group would commission a registered pharmaceutical firm to submit an application to import vaccines along with the required documents. A police officer in New Taipei City receives a COVID-19 vaccine shot yesterday.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
COVID-19: Furloughed worker numbers rise amid virus restrictions
COVID-19: Furloughed worker numbers rise amid virus restrictionsStaff writer, with CNAThe number of workers placed on furlough by their employers has increased slightly in the past week amid a nationwide level 3 COVID-19 alert, the Ministry of Labor said yesterday. Ministry data showed that 4,125 employees were on unpaid leave, an increase of 200 from Monday last week. The number of companies implementing unpaid leave programs also rose in the past week, from 414 to 445, the data showed. However, other sectors continue to be severely affected by border controls, particularly support services, transportation, warehouse services and tourism sectors, Huang said. These unpaid leave programs typically last less than three months and involve employees taking five to eight days of unpaid leave per month, the ministry said.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2021 15:56 UTC
FSC approves Taishin bid for Prudential’s local unit
Taishin Financial later announced that it would sell its CHB shares within six years and would not nominate new CHB board members or exercise its voting rights in the state-run bank’s board elections, ending its decades-long management dispute with the Ministry of Finance. The entrance of Taishin Financial Holding Co’s headquarters is pictured in Taipei on May 23, 2019. The commission has reviewed Taishin Financial’s financial profile, and believes the firm’s financial strength should remain sound over the next three years, Tong said. Taishin Financial has promised to retain all Prudential Life Taiwan employees and protect policyholders’ rights, she said, adding that the firm’s board members must endorse its commitments before obtaining formal approval from the FSC. Prudential Life Taiwan would be renamed, he said, adding that Taishin Financial’s appointment of a new management team at the insurer has not been approved by the commission.
Source:Taipei Times
June 01, 2021 15:56 UTC