title: Laos moves ahead with latest Mekong dam

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A local villager on Wednesday rows a boat on the future site of the Luang Prabang dam on the Mekong River on the outskirts of Luang Prabang province in Laos.Photo: Reuters
On a wide bank of the Mekong River, yellow markers and visits by surveyors show preparations underway to build Laos’ third and largest dam on Southeast Asia’s most vital waterway.

About an hour downstream, in the laid-back tourist center of Luang Prabang, the dam’s developers heard this week from citizens groups arguing for a delay to the 1,400-megawatt (MW) hydropower project.

Skeptics say the Lao government and its Vietnamese and Thai partners should wait to assess any impact on downstream fishing and farming from the recently completed Xayaburi Dam, Laos’ first mainstream Mekong hydropower project.

Faced with growing pressure from dams, pollution and sand mining, concerns are mounting about the health of Southeast Asia’s greatest river and those whose livelihoods depend on it.

Construction on the Luang Prabang project is slated to begin later this year, but some nearby villagers said they still do not know when or if they would be relocated.

“We have not heard anything, but if it happens there is no choice for us,” said a farmer interviewed near the dam site, who gave his name only as Somphorn.

The past year has been fraught for the 2,390km Lower Mekong, which supports 60 million people as it flows from China into Laos, past Myanmar and Thailand and through Cambodia and Vietnam.

Water levels hit lows not seen for 50 years, as residents worried about the effects of climate change and 11 dams that China has built in its territory, which many believe are holding back waters.

China’s embassy in Bangkok says a severe drought has impacted the region since early last year and it has increased the outflow of water from upstream at Thailand’s request.

In the past four months, Laos has also opened the first two dams on the Lower Mekong — the 1,200MW Xayaburi and the smaller Don Sahong — after years of opposition from environmentalists.

Laos’ unprecedented dam-building boom has seen around 50 dams built in the last 15 years, with at least 50 more under construction and a further 288 planned for its hundreds of rivers and streams.

If all the projects are built, they would bring the landlocked country’s hydropower capacity to 27,000MW, from just 700MW in 2005, according to data compiled by the Stimson Center in Washington.

This week’s forum in Laos was to report on the Luang Prabang project’s consultation process, and the hosts assured doubters their concerns would be heard.

“Your participation is not just a hoop we have to jump through. It is not a rubber stamp of the process,” Mekong River Commission (MRC) chief executive officer An Pich Hatda said.

Others are not so sure.

“It’s like they half-heartedly listen to our concerns,” said Pittipat Puangpan, a 56-year-old Thai farmer who attended another consultation last month in Thailand.

Chief among those concerns is the effectiveness of the sediment gates and complicated sets of locks called fish elevators or lifts at Xayaburi, which the Luang Prabang project uses as a model.

Efforts to reassure sceptics have sometimes fallen flat.

Showing animated designs for the proposed dam in Luang Prabang this week, an official paused at a complicated depiction of fish navigating one of the fish elevators.

“Maybe sometimes we should be training the fish how to use the lift,” Ministry of Energy and Mines deputy director Vithounlabandish Thommabout said, drawing only scattered chuckles.

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Virus Outbreak: ‘Small three links’ to be suspended

‘SUPERSTAR AQUARIUS’:The liner, which is due at the Port of Keelung today, is to become a quarantine zone if anybody onboard tests positive for the coronavirus
A ferry is docked in Kinmen County yesterday. The government announced that it is to suspend “small three links” services to combat the spread of the 2019 novel coronavirus.Photo: CNA
The “small three links” connecting Penghu, Kinmen and Lienchiang counties with China’s Fujian Province are to be suspended from Monday to safeguard against the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak in accordance with instructions from the Central Epidemic Command Center, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday.

It is the second time the nation has suspended the “small three links” for disease prevention reasons under the Regulations Governing the Trial Operation of Transportation Links Between Kinmen/Matsu/Penghu and the Mainland Area (試辦金門馬祖澎湖與大陸地區通航實施辦法) — which gives the Executive Yuan authority to suspend the links in part or in full over safety or other major concerns — after they were halted during the SARS outbreak in 2003.

After the center on Tuesday announced a ban on cruise ships that have docked in ports in China, including Hong Kong and Macau, in the 14 days prior to their scheduled arrival in Taiwan, the number of ferries arriving via the “small three links” had declined, averaging 425 and 28 per day in Kinmen and Lienchiang counties respectively from Saturday last week to Wednesday, council statistics showed.

The links would be resumed depending on developments in containing the outbreak, it said.

The Lienchiang County Government yesterday implemented a “departure only” policy for residents using the “small three links,” meaning that residents traveling to China would not be allowed re-entry until the links are restored.

In related news, the SuperStar Aquarius cruise ship carrying more than 1,700 Taiwanese passengers is scheduled to dock at the Port of Keelung today after initially being set to arrive last night.

Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said that as more than 40 passengers on the ship had visited China after the outbreak, disease prevention personnel would board after it docks to screen passengers and crew for the disease.

If those who had visited China during their voyage and those who have a fever test negative for the virus, everyone would be allowed to disembark, with instructions to monitor their health for 14 days, Chen said.

However, if anyone tests positive for the virus, all passengers and crew would be quarantined on the ship, he said.

Additional reporting by Lin Hsin-han

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taiwan-subdivisions: 金門 澎湖


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Virus Outbreak: Whistle-blower doctor dies; cases on liner increase

People hold signs at a Hong Kong Hospital Authority staff strike outside the hospital’s headquarters in Hong Kong yesterday. The protesters are urging the territory to seal the border with mainland China to protect it from the coronavirus outbreak.Photo: EPA-EFE

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A Chinese doctor who was punished after raising the alarm about the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) yesterday died from the pathogen, sparking an outpouring of grief and anger over a worsening crisis that has killed more than 630 people.

At least 31,000 people have been infected by a virus that ophthalmologist Li Wenliang (李文亮) and colleagues first brought to light in late December.

The disease has since spread across China, prompting the Chinese government to lock down cities of tens of millions of people, and panic has spiraled around the globe as more than 240 cases have emerged in two dozen countries.

Li, 34, died early yesterday, Wuhan Central Hospital said in an online post, an announcement that triggered grief on social media — over a doctor who was hailed a hero — and anger over the government’s handling of the crisis.

“He is a hero who warned others with his life,” a fellow Wuhan doctor wrote.

“Those fat officials who live on public money, may you die from a snowstorm,” wrote a netizen in a comment that has since been censored.

In a sign that the criticism has shaken the government, its anti-graft agency announced that it was sending a team to Wuhan to “conduct a comprehensive investigation into issues involving Dr Li Wenliang reported by the masses.”

Li’s death has also highlighted the enormous risks that front line doctors have taken to treat people in overwhelmed and under-equipped hospitals in Wuhan, the quarantined city of 11 million people where the virus emerged.

Li on Dec. 30 sent out a message about the virus to colleagues in Wuhan, but was later among eight whistle-blowers summoned by police for “rumormongering.”

He later contracted the disease while treating a patient.

In Japan, at least 61 people onboard a cruise ship have tested positive for 2019-nCoV, the Japanese government said, as thousands of passengers and crew face a two-week quarantine.

An additional 41 passengers yesterday were found to have contracted the virus.

Japanese authorities had tested 273 people onboard the Diamond Princess, which was quarantined after a former passenger, who disembarked in Hong Kong last month, was diagnosed with the virus.

“The results of the remaining 171 tests came out and 41 tested positive,” Japanese Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare Katsunobu Kato told reporters. “Today [yesterday] they will be sent to hospitals in several prefectures, and we are now preparing for that.”

Those newly diagnosed included 21 Japanese, as well as Americans, Canadians, Australians, an Argentine and a Briton. A Taiwanese was among the passengers earlier confirmed to have the virus.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare as of yesterday had reported 16 cases in Taiwan.

The viral outbreak had infected more than 31,400 people globally, health authorities in Beijing said yesterday.

In China there were 636 deaths and 31,161 confirmed cases on the mainland, with 22 cases, including one death, in Hong Kong and 10 cases in Macau.

Cases elsewhere were Japan (86); Singapore (30); Thailand (25); South Korea (24); Australia (14); Germany (13); Malaysia (14); the US and Vietnam (12 each); France (six); Canada and the United Arab Emirates (five each); the UK and India (three each); the Philippines (three cases, including one death); Russia and Italy (two each); and one each in Belgium, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Spain, Cambodia and Finland.

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The spy who loved tahini

An Israeli intelligence scandal erupted after an agent was sent to buy tahini from a Palestinian village in the West Bank
A chef in August last year places coriander on croquettes made with Black soldier fly larvae, flour and chickpea flour served on a bed of mopane worm tahini hummus at the Insect Experience Restaurant in Cape Town, South Africa.Photo: REUTERS
A prize so valuable that a lieutenant colonel sent an agent on not just one mission to secure it, but two. The item? A box of tahini.

An agent from Israel’s military intelligence service was tasked with buying jars from a Palestinian village in the West Bank for, reports the Jerusalem Post, “non-operational needs.”

It led to a military police investigation, with the senior official who gave the order discharged and others reprimanded, including a prison sentence for one.

It isn’t known from which village the sesame paste was procured, but Nablus, in the occupied West Bank, is famous for its tahini.

“It has been for hundreds of years,” says Joudie Kalla , chef and author of the cookbooks Palestine on a Plate and Baladi.

“I think it is the most amazing tahini because it is not mass-produced. They don’t use modern technology, they are using 150-year-old machines that grind it, almost by hand, so the texture is far superior to many other brands — even other Palestinian brands that use more modern methods.”

The small batches mean the producers — often small family firms — can keep the quality high.

“It should be 100 percent sesame seeds, but other brands use other nuts to get that flavour [and] to bulk it up.”

Although it is more expensive, it is bought by ordinary Palestinians, says Kalla, although because of the political situation, she hasn’t seen it exported around the world.

“I have not seen it here in the UK. I think the only way you can get it is if you have someone going there and bringing it back. My family brings it back for me and it really is very different. It’s got a nuttier, creamier consistency. The tahini I buy here is quite watery. The ones from back home are slightly thicker, a bit more smoky, a caramel color, they have a peanut-buttery texture.”

She uses it, she says, on everything.

“I did a cooking class the other day and we used it for falafel. I use it to make tahini brownies, I use it on fish with lemon, yoghurt, tomatoes and parsley. We mix it in salads, on meat. It’s healthy, a good fat and it tastes great.”

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title: The spy who loved tahini


title: Stone, Fleury lead Vegas over Florida

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Mark Stone scored two goals and had three assists, while Marc-Andre Fleury recorded the 460th win of his career as the Vegas Golden Knights beat the Florida Panthers 7-2 on Thursday night.

Max Pacioretty scored two goals and had an assist. Nate Schmidt scored a goal and had an assist, while Shea Theodore and Jonathan Marchessault each also scored goals.

Fleury stopped 23 shots to pass the New York Rangers’ Henrik Lundqvist for sole possession of fifth place on the NHL all-time list for victories.

Vincent Trocheck had a goal and an assist, while Mike Hoffman also scored for the Panthers. Sergei Bobrovsky allowed six goals on 29 shots before being relieved by Sam Montembeault with 11 minutes, 7 seconds left in the third. Montembeault made nine saves. Jonathan Huberdeau had two assists.

Leading 3-2, the Golden Knights put the game away with four goals in the third. They stretched their lead to 4-2 when Schmidt’s shot from the blue line bounced off Bobrovsky and went into the net 17 seconds in.

Theodore scored a shorthanded goal at 4 minutes, 11 seconds to make it 5-2. Marchessault’s goal at 8 minutes, 53 seconds made the score 6-2. Pacioretty’s second goal with 4 minutes, 44 seconds left made it 7-2.

Stone gave Vegas a 1-0 lead at 2 minutes, 15 seconds, when he grabbed a rebound in the low slot and poked the puck past Bobrovsky.

Hoffman tied it at 1-1 on a power-play goal. Trocheck passed from in front of the crease out to Hoffman in the right circle and his shot beat Fleury at 16 minutes, 22 seconds of the first. Vegas challenged for goalie interference by Trocheck, but the goal stood.

With the score tied at 1-1, Stone’s second goal gave the Golden Knights a 2-1 lead. Stone used some slick stickwork in the slot and put the puck high into the net at 1 minute, 49 seconds of the second.

Trocheck tied it at 2-2 on his wraparound goal at 11 minutes, 52 seconds of the second, when he came from behind the net and tucked the puck just inside the post during a power play.

Vegas answered 26 seconds later on Pacioretty’s goal. Pacioretty grabbed the puck in the slot and pounded it against Bobrovsky’s pads until it trickled through to make it 3-2.

Florida’s Brett Connolly missed a penalty shot at 6 minutes, 40 seconds of the second.

Fleury became the second goaltender to make at least 20 penalty-shot saves, joining Roberto Luongo (29).

In other results, it was:

‧ Devils 5, Flyers 0

‧ Canadiens 3, Ducks 2

‧ Islanders 5, Kings 3

‧ Lightning 4, Penguins 2

‧ Red Wings 4, Sabres 3

‧ Avalanche 4, Senators 1

‧ Wild 4, Canucks 2

‧ Jets 4, Blues 2

‧ Predators 3, Flames 2

‧ Hurricanes 5, Coyotes 3

‧ Sharks 6, Oilers 3

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title: PBOC vows to step up support in crisis

content_text:
PBOC vows to step up support in crisis

VIRUS-HIT ECONOMY:Given the context of the outbreak and downward pressure on the economy, sustaining economic growth is more important, a central bank official said
Paramilitary police officers stand outside the headquarters of the People’s Bank of China in Beijing yesterday.Photo: EPA-EFE
China’s central bank would step up support for the economy to cushion the blow from the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak, but activity is expected to recover once the virus is brought under control, one of its deputy governors said yesterday.

The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) is closely watching the effects of the outbreak on the world’s second-largest economy and is preparing policy tools to offset the pressure, People’s Bank of China Deputy Governor Pan Gongsheng (潘功勝) told a news conference.

“In terms of monetary policy, the next step is to strengthen countercyclical adjustments, maintain reasonable and ample liquidity, and provide a sound monetary and financial environment for the real economy,” Pan said. “In the context of the outbreak and the downward pressure on the economy, it is more important to maintain economic growth.”

Widespread travel and public health restrictions are taking an increasing toll on tourism, restaurants and other parts of the services sector, while many factories have suspended operations until next week or longer, as authorities try to contain the virus’ spread.

Still, the death toll from the epidemic rose to 636 as of the end of Thursday, with 31,161 people confirmed to be infected.

Chinese policymakers are preparing measures, including more fiscal spending and interest rate cuts, amid expectations that the outbreak would have devastating effects on first-quarter growth, sources said.

Analysts have said that growth could decelerate by 2 percentage points or more from 6 percent in the fourth quarter, with business disruptions increasingly spilling over into the global economy.

However, they have said that business and consumer activity could rebound sharply if the outbreak peaks soon, much like the pattern during the SARS epidemic in 2003.

Pan reiterated that China has sufficient policy tools to cope with the pressure, saying that the central bank has more room to support growth than in other major economies.

The bank would use tools such as targeted reserve requirement cuts, relending and rediscounting to support key sectors, he said.

The bank’s liquidity injections have helped lower market interest rates, which could affect China’s key lending rate: the loan prime rate (LPR), when it is next set on Feb. 20, Pan said.

The cost of special relending, at 300 billion yuan (US$42.95 billion), from the PBOC to commercial banks is relatively low, Pan added.

The central bank has also told banks to cap rates on loans for selected firms at 3.15 percent, 1 percentage point lower than the latest LPR.

Earlier this week, the PBOC injected 1.7 trillion yuan via reverse requirement cuts to shore up confidence and cut some key money market interest rates.

The government would also cut taxes and fees, Chinese Deputy Minister of Finance Yu Weiping (余蔚平) said at the news conference.

Weighed down by weak demand globally and US-China trade tensions, China’s economic growth last year slowed to 6.1 percent, the weakest in nearly three decades.

Beijing needs growth of about 5.6 percent this year to fulfil its goal of doubling GDP and incomes over the past decade.

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Locusts boiled, baked or dried? Kuwait serves up a swarm

Locust consumption is dwindling, particularly among the younger generation, many of whom are disgusted by the nutritious delicacy
A locust vendor shows a bag full of edible insects last month at a market in Al-Rai, northwest of Kuwait City.Photo: AFP

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Some people like them baked, others prefer them dried. Locusts are surprisingly nutritious and considered a delicacy by many in Kuwait but not everyone is enamoured by the crunchy culinary offering.

“I love their flavour, it’s one of my memories of childhood and reminds me of my grandparents and my father,” enthused Moudi al-Miftah, a 64-year-old journalist who writes a weekly newspaper column.

Miftah awaits winter every year to stock up on locusts, which she cooks herself, with a preference for crispiness.

In her kitchen, she tipped a bag of the insects into boiling stock where they quickly turned red, filling her kitchen with an aroma similar to stewing mutton.

After simmering for half an hour, the locusts are ready to eat but they can be baked for added crunch, or dried so they can be enjoyed year-round.

But most of Miftah’s loved ones stopped eating the bugs long ago.

Locust consumption is dwindling across Kuwaiti society, particularly among the younger generation, many of whom are disgusted by the prospect.

Ali Saad, a man in his twenties who was shopping for groceries, was visibly repulsed by the idea of snacking on insects.

“I’ve never thought of eating locusts,” he said. “Why would I eat an insect when we have all kinds of red and white meats?”

TASTY FLESH

Locusts are consumed in many parts of the world and are a staple of some cuisines. Experts say they are an excellent, energy-efficient source of protein.

In Kuwait, they retain a sturdy fan base among older citizens.

The first shipments, imported from Saudi Arabia, arrive in markets in January, transported in distinctive red bags weighing 250 grams.

They are stocked alongside white desert truffles, another delicacy sought by Kuwaitis in winter at the Al-Rai market nestled in an industrial area in the northwest of Kuwait City.

Abou Mohammed, 63, is originally from Ahvaz in Iran and normally sells fish at the market.

But when the season arrives, he becomes a locust and truffle salesman.

“The locusts are caught during the winter nights (when they are not flying) and we import them from Saudi Arabia,” he said.

He described the bugs as “like a shrimp” and enthused that “the flesh is very tasty — especially the females which are full of eggs”.

The larger females are known as “el-Mekn” in Kuwaiti dialect, while the smaller males are called “Asfour.”

Abou Mohammed says he sells almost a dozen bags a day at between three and five Kuwaiti dinars (US$8 and US$16) each.

“I sell some 500 bags over the season, which is from January to April,” he said.

STOCKPILING

Mohammed al-Awadi, a 70-year-old Kuwaiti, has delivered locusts to retailers for many years and keeps a handy supply of the dried insects in his pocket for snacking.

Dubbed “the king of the market,” the salesman demonstrated how to eat the bug — snacking on a first locust, then another and another.

“It’s the best of dishes. I’m full, so I don’t need to eat lunch today,” he said.

“The drier they are the better. My father always had a supply in his pocket.”

Authorities have sought in vain to ban the consumption of locusts over fears they could be contaminated.

Locusts can rapidly multiply and form swarms that damage crops, forcing some countries to tackle them with pesticides.

Adel Tariji put his stock of two black sacks beside his vehicle and prospective clients pulled up alongside to examine his produce and haggle over prices.

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Virus Outbreak: Health officer vacancies filled within a day: CDC

Hospital nurses crew a quarantine station at a boarding gate at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday, collecting passengers’ health declarations and conducting health checks.Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
Vacancies for airport health inspection officers posted by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on Thursday were filled within a day, the centers’ Northern Regional Center said yesterday.

A notice was posted on Facebook and the Ministry of Health and Welfare Web site to recruit 96 people to work at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport’s Plant and Animal Quarantine Station.

The position offered a monthly wage of NT$34,916 to NT$40,901 and required applicants to be graduates of domestic or foreign universities, the centers said, adding the primary role is to assist in taking health declarations from and assessments of people passing through customs.

The Northern Regional Center praised the public’s patriotism, noting that the positions were filled overnight.

Interviews of the applicants began yesterday, it added.

One of the applicants, who wished to be known only as Ilsa, said that she applied for the position out of patriotism, hoping to serve her nation in its time of need.

Ilsa was originally due to fly to the UK yesterday in pursuit of higher education.

“My family asked me to consider delaying my travel plans given the [2019 novel] coronavirus outbreak,” she said, adding that she had not hesitated in applying for the position when it first became available on Thursday night.

As a health worker who has taken the Nightingale pledge, Ilsa said that she hoped to do her part in contributing to the nation’s disease prevention efforts.

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GERMANY

Output falls most since 2009

Industrial output suffered its biggest fall in December last year since the recession-hit year of 2009, a shock drop highlighting the weakness in manufacturing that risks dragging Europe’s largest economy into contraction again. Industrial production tumbled by 3.5 percent monthly, undershooting expectations for a 0.2 percent fall, Statistics Office data showed. That was the biggest drop since January 2009 and came after an upwardly revised 1.2 percent increase in November. The country’s export-dependent manufacturers are struggling with sluggish demand from abroad, as well as business uncertainty linked to trade disputes and Britain’s decision to leave the EU. The services sector is in better shape. The the Munich-based Ifo Institute for Economic Research on Thursday said that the 2019 novel coronavirus could also cost the country growth. The output figures came a day after the release of data showing industrial orders unexpectedly plunged in December on weaker demand from other eurozone countries, suggesting that there is no let-up in sight for the manufacturing sector.

SELF-DRIVING CARS

US grants Nuro approval

In a first-of-its-kind approval by regulators, a federal agency on Thursday gave permission for autonomous vehicle start-up Nuro Inc over the next two years to deploy up to 5,000 low-speed electric delivery vehicles without human controls such as mirrors and steering wheels. The rollout of the R2 vehicle would take place in Houston, Texas, with plans for it to deliver items such as pizza and groceries. It is about half the width of a regular car, has no steering wheel or seating positions and boasts gull-wing cargo doors reminiscent of the time-traveling car in the Back to the Future films. Nuro, a privately held robotics company based in Mountain View, California, called the regulatory approval by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration “a milestone for the industry.”

CASINOS

Melco drops Crown buy-in

Melco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd has pulled the plug on a stake purchase in Australia’s Crown Resorts Ltd citing plunging traveler numbers and casino closures brought about by the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak. The US-listed casino operator dropped the second tranche of a 19.99 percent buy-in of Crown from billionaire James Packer, which was earlier valued at A$1.76 billion (US$1.18 billion). The deal has been far from plain sailing with concerns raised by regulators from the outset over links with Stanley Ho (何鴻燊), Lawrence Ho’s (何猷龍) father, who was previously under investigation by authorities in Australia and the US.

AUSTRALIA

Central bank skirts rate cut

Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe signaled that his board is firmly on hold, saying that further cuts to the nation’s historically low interest rate risk doing more long-term damage to the economy than the short-term benefit they would create. “While it’s plausible that we can move toward our goals, at least right at the moment the risks have slightly tilted to outweigh the benefits,” Lowe told a parliamentary panel in Canberra yesterday. He warned of “significant areas of uncertainty,” including the viral outbreak in China, the nation’s largest trading partner. The bank kept the cash rate unchanged at a record low 0.75 percent as the labor market holds up and amid resurgent property prices.

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title: World Business Quick Take


title: EDITORIAL: What’s in a name?

content_text:
As Juliet mused in Shakespeare’s tale: “’Tis but thy name that is my enemy … What’s in a name?”

However, offstage or on, names matter, as has been hammered home over the past week as Taiwanese found themselves caught up in a widening global paranoia about Chinese travelers amid the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak, with what their nation is called proving to be their own worst enemy.

Given that the UN, its agencies and many nations consider Taiwan just a province of China, it should have come as no surprise that several nations barred flights to and from Taiwan as part of their efforts to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Thailand, Singapore and South Korea have more confirmed cases of the coronavirus than Taiwan, and the UK on Thursday said that its first national with a confirmed case of the coronavirus had arrived from Singapore, so the absurdity of blocking Taiwan just because of its nomenclature is clear.

Meanwhile, bureaucrats at the WHO continue to damage the organization’s credibility by pandering to Beijing and with their inability to call a rose a rose, or in this case, identify Taiwan as “Taiwan,” and separate from China.

Over the past two weeks, the WHO Novel Coronavirus Situation Report has gone from listing the number of coronavirus cases in Taiwan on the tables of confirmed cases reported by cities, provinces and regions in China as “Taiwan, China,” to “Taipei municipality” to “Taipei” to “Taipei and environs,” while the actual number of local cases was incorrect in one report.

Yet the WHO this week complained that it is not getting accurate data about the number of coronavirus cases from its members, warning that this is hampering efforts to combat the outbreak.

If the WHO wants accurate data, then, as the US and Japanese ambassadors to the UN in Geneva, Andrew Bremberg and Ken Okaniwa, told a meeting of the WHO executive board on Thursday, it needs to talk directly to Taiwan.

Bremberg said it was a “technical imperative that WHO present visible public health data on Taiwan as an affected area and engage directly with Taiwan public health authorities on actions,” while Okaniwa said: “We should not make a geographical vacuum by creating a situation where a specific region cannot join WHO even as an observer.”

Chinese delegate Qi Daihai (齊大海) responded by dismissing concerns for the well-being of Taiwanese — and the rest of the world — as a “hyping-up of the so-called Taiwan issue” and a “waste of our time.”

Qi’s claim that there has been ample cooperation and that the “Chinese central government can say it is very sincere in protecting the health and well-being of Taiwan compatriots” was shown for the lie it is by Beijing’s handling of a charter flight from Wuhan.

Not only did Beijing ignore the list of passengers provided by the Taiwanese government and refuse to allow Taiwanese health personnel to evaluate passengers before they boarded the plane, its Taiwan Affairs Office blamed Taipei for “ignoring the Taiwan compatriots’ interests.”

Dismissing the need for Taiwanese to be included in global health efforts as “hyping up” is callous in the extreme, but no surprise for a regime that has proven to be so deadly to its own people.

It is too bad that there are not more global leaders such as former Norwegian prime minister and WHO director-general Gro Harlem Brundtland, who as head of the WHO during the 2003 SARS outbreak saw it as her responsibility to work with Taiwan to help prevent the spread of that coronavirus.

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Vladimir Leka lights a gas cylinder in his quake-damaged house in Thumane, Albania, on Jan. 31.Photo: AFP
When a powerful earthquake struck Albania more than two months ago, buildings collapsed like houses of cards atop sleeping families. As the country struggles to put the pieces back together, it is facing a structural reality that the disaster exposed: the scourge of illegal construction that has allowed unsafe homes to sprout up across the poor Balkan country.

For decades, builders, engineers and officials have flouted safety codes, piling story upon story on top of homes that were not built to support such weight.

When the magnitude 6.4 quake shook the country on Nov. 26 last year, nearly 90 buildings were reduced to rubble, while more than 80,000 were damaged, with 51 lives lost.

While not all of the devastation could be blamed on illegal construction, experts say it was a key factor in the extent and deadliness of the disaster.

Two months on in the town of Thumane, one of the hardest-hit areas, Vjollca and Meleq Mesiti consider themselves lucky to be alive, but are still grappling with the loss of their home and bakery, which was turned into a pile of bricks.

“A whole life’s work collapsed in a matter of seconds,” said Vjollca Mesiti, 49, as the couple search through the rubble for expensive equipment.

“We’re still in shock,” 53-year-old Meleq Mesiti said.

After hurling brick after brick out of the rubble, Vjollca Mesiti starts pulling out dozens of baking pans, some still brimming with baked loaves covered in dust.

“Life goes on!” she said.

The Mesitis, who are staying with relatives, were among 17,000 people made homeless overnight by the earthquake.

About 10,000 of those are still living in tents in the heart of winter, according to official figures.

Albanian authorities say they are finally cracking down on those who have shirked building laws, a practice that dates back to the unbridled construction boom that followed the fall of communism in the early 1990s.

Regulations could not keep up with the crazed urbanization as developers rushed to scoop up land and erect buildings.

“One thing is certain, in the majority of cases, the loss of human lives is due to the violation from A to Z of all building regulations,” said Luljeta Bozo, an engineer and university lecturer in the capital, Tirana.

Since the earthquake, more than 80 people have been arrested, including builders, engineers, officials and former mayors, said Elisabeta Imeraj, Tirana’s chief prosecutor.

“We’ve been able to prove that in some cases there was not even the minimum amount of documentation needed to issue a building permit,” Imeraj told reporters.

Some applications had no earthquake risk assessments at all, she said, adding that in some cases buildings had up to four extra floors illegally tacked on.

In a country with a widespread corruption problem, experts say bribes have helped get some illegally constructed buildings made “legal” after the fact.

The government has pledged to toughen penalties for those who ignore regulations, for example by seizing or demolishing illegal property — generally not easy to carry out.

The government has costed out a 1 billion euro (US$1.10 billion) rebuilding effort ahead of a donor conference in Brussels on Feb. 17.

Authorities have chosen 18 sites where new housing blocks are to be erected for those made homeless by the quake.

However, in a country still emerging from its communist past, when private property was banned, some are strongly attached to their land.

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title: Albania quake exposes construction dodges


content_text:
Formosa Plastics Group’s units post revenue of NT$116bn despite outbreak

Formosa Plastics Group’s (台塑集團) four major units on Thursday reported a combined revenue for last month of NT$116.92 billion (US$3.88 billion), 0.1 percent higher than the previous month, but down 15.3 percent from a year earlier, as the Lunar New Year holiday shortened the number of working days, and the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak affected transportation and logistics.

Among the units, Formosa Plastics Corp (台灣塑膠) saw revenue last month fall to a 40-month low, while Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp (台灣化學纖維) hit a low of nearly 47 months, prompting the two firms to revise first-quarter projections downward, which they attributed to the outbreak.

Formosa Plastics Corp said in a regulatory filing that revenue last month was NT$13.85 billion, down 11.4 percent from December, as a result of declining sales and product prices.

“Due to the holiday, most downstream processing customers halted and reduced purchases, which reduced the number of shipping days. In addition, the coronavirus outbreak extended the holiday and caused a transportation shutdown ... and decreasing downstream demand,” Formosa Plastics Corp said.

Compared with December, sales of polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene and polypropylene products fell, the company said, adding that product prices also declined across Asia.

Revenue fell 28.9 percent from a year earlier due to the impact of the week-long holiday, the US-China trade dispute, a global economic slowdown and greater capacity among regional peers, it said.

Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp’s revenue decreased 7.1 percent month-on-month to NT$22.65 billion from December, as the holiday reduced the number of working days. On an annual basis, revenue fell 28.8 percent, as both sales and prices were lower than a year earlier.

Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) posted revenue of NT$58.11 billion, an increase of 10 percent from December, as revenue in its refining business rose 13.7 percent and its naphtha cracking business grew 0.9 percent, a company filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange said.

However, compared with a year earlier, revenue fell 6 percent due to a 3.9 percent decline in sales at the refining business and a 3.1 percent decline in sales at the naphtha cracking business, it said.

Considering the downward trend in oil prices and weak downstream demand, the earnings momentum of Formosa Plastics Group’s units will remain lackluster in the first quarter, Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co (元大投顧) said in a note.

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title: CCP chews up lives to retain grip on power

content_text:
The 2019 novel coronavirus that has been spreading from Wuhan, China, has developed into a global crisis, another “yellow peril” emanating from China.

The Chinese public is innocent and helpless; the problem is that the nation is ruled by the inhumane Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which stops at nothing to retain its hold on power.

To strengthen its hold, the CCP tells lies, hides facts and ignores human life.

Some say the outbreak was developed by humans.

The CCP initially planned to deceive the world by blaming the outbreak on the consumption of wild animals, but when France revealed that it assisted China in the establishment of the National Biosafety Laboratory in Wuhan, it exposed a possible source of the virus.

The spread of the coronavirus could be a result of attempts to expand China’s biological weapons capability and the opaque operations at the Wuhan lab.

The CCP trumps all and public opinion has no significance.

As the coronavirus began to spread, the CCP wanted to trivialize it and had no intention of handling the outbreak in compliance with the WHO’s infection prevention procedures.

The virus was more contagious than the CCP expected, so the party was forced to reveal the outbreak to the world.

However, Beijing seems to have downplayed the number of cases involved, because the party trumps all, while public opinion is ignored.

Human life has little value for the CCP, while power is everything.

Wuhan Mayor Zhou Xianwang (周先旺) did not give a public briefing on the outbreak until the coronavirus had spread across China and to a number of other nations.

He clearly said that the briefing was delayed because he had to wait for authorization from Beijing.

This process once again proved that, despite the CCP’s claim that it serves the public, it only cares about maintaining its rule.

Since gaining power, the CCP has been China’s master.

Human life has less importance than power, so the CPP regards the death toll as just a number — just like Mao Zedong (毛澤東) looked on the millions of Chinese who died during the decade-long Cultural Revolution.

The party has no feelings and does not believe in acting humanely. It only sees power and benefits, not justice or morality.

Beijing should return to a people-oriented approach and revitalize China through democracy.

Even in the face of this disaster, Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has stuck with the CCP’s old ways: spouting empty sound bites, while stressing the importance of “unified leadership, unified command and unified action” within the party.

The implication is that Xi aims to further strengthen China’s one-party rule, making people believe in an authoritarian and incompetent communist government.

However, China has always been unruly under the irrational and inhumane CCP.

The lives of Chinese will never be valued unless the nation focuses on people and implements a system in which the government is for the people.

Otherwise, China’s top-down leadership will continue, keeping the attention of local governments at the top of the hierarchy, while they ignore public opinion and neglect people’s lives.

Chen Chi-nung is principal of Shuili Junior High School in Nantou County.

Translated by Eddy Chang

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content_text:
Virus Outbreak: NHRI working on virus vaccine

LAB TO MARKET:The agency said it could produce results within two to three months, but researchers said it could take a year or more to reach the market
The National Health Research Institutes (NHRI) yesterday said it is working “night and day” to develop a vaccine against the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), but a market-ready solution would likely come too late for use in the current outbreak.

The government-funded agency is researching four types of vaccines, one of which could produce results within two to three months, it said in a statement.

Researchers are aiming to create within two months a vaccine that produces a high level of immunity against 2019-nCoV in rats, before beginning clinical trials within six months, NHRI Chairman Lin Tzou-yien (林奏延) said.

However, Institute of Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology director Liao Ching-len (廖經倫) said that as genome sequencing of the virus had only recently been completed, it was too early to discuss how effective a possible vaccine might be.

From the laboratory to the market, the vaccine development process usually takes one to three years, even in the US, so this vaccine would not be used in the current outbreak, he said.

The first of the NHRI’s vaccine types, a peptide vaccine, uses protein components to engineer targeted immune responses and could be developed within a few months, Liao said.

A second type, a recombinant vaccine, takes a virus that is safely and effectively used in other vaccines and modifies it to include gene coding for immunity to other viruses, and would likely take three to five months to develop, he said.

Liao did not provide a time frame for the third and fourth approaches — DNA and subunit vaccines.

Liao said that epidemic prevention measures must consider all possible contingencies, and the institute’s current vaccine development work would have an important role to play if the coronavirus becomes a public health concern in the long term.

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content_text:
The European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan (ECCT) has urged authorities in Europe and globally to grant Taiwan observer status in the WHO and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), saying that the nation’s meaningful participation is crucial to fighting an ongoing coronavirus outbreak.

The chamber has consistently called for Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations, and the rapid spread of the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in China to multiple nations, including Taiwan, renders the plea especially urgent, said the foreign trade group, which represents more than 900 members from 400 companies and organizations.

“Keeping Taiwan out during the outbreak of 2019-nCoV, which has been declared a public health emergency of international concern, puts Taiwan and the world at risk and cannot be justified for any reason,” ECCT chairman Giuseppe Izzo said in a statement on Thursday.

Taiwan’s exclusion from the WHO and World Health Assembly (WHA) activities leaves a serious gap in global efforts to address global health concerns, he said.

Allowing Taiwan to participate in the WHO and ICAO as an observer would ensure that Taiwan does not remain a blind spot in the battle against the epidemic and future global health crises, he added.

Participation in both organizations is especially crucial in a global health crisis, such as the coronavirus, which is spreading from person to person and is exacerbated by global air travel, Izzo said.

In a world where disease knows no borders, Taiwan has much to offer the world in enhancing global efforts to safeguard human health, the chamber said.

“Excluding Taiwan from the WHO and WHA denies Taiwanese access to essential global health information and resources, and ignores the potential contribution Taiwan can make to the WHO, given its excellent healthcare system and medical expertise,” Izzo said.

Participation in WHO and WHA meetings is necessary for Taiwanese authorities to give and receive frequent and comprehensive briefings on global health matters, while participation in ICAO is necessary to stay abreast of developments in international aviation, safety and security, the chamber said.

European firms collectively comprise the largest group of foreign investors in Taiwan, with more than US$55 billion in direct foreign investment.

The ECCT has been active in addressing specific concerns and keeps the European Commission and the European Parliament, as well as the governments of individual European countries, informed about Taiwan’s business environment.

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title: ECCT calls for Taiwan to take part in WHO, ICAO


title: HK government needs to wake up

content_text:
The 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, China, has caused serious concern across the world.

Hong Kong, as a special administrative region of China and a close neighbor, is gravely affected and in deep water.

Twenty-four cases have been confirmed in the territory, compared with 16 in Taiwan.

To say that Hong Kong is in a state of panic and hysteria is not an overstatement, and anger has been escalated by the first death being reported on Tuesday.

While frustration over a shortage of masks is nothing new in Hong Kong, like in Taiwan, more radical actions are on the way to respond to the approach adopted by the Hong Kong government in controlling the outbreak.

Thousands of hospital workers this week went on strike to protest the government for overburdening the hospital sector and to demand a complete closure of the border with China.

Similar mobilization for strikes has been circulating on social media, calling for workers from different sectors to go on strike to press the government for stricter segregation from China, at least in terms of epidemic control.

As reported by the South China Morning Post, explosives were found at Lo Wo train station, which is on the border between Hong Kong and China, and protesters targeted road and rail to protest against the government’s decision to keep the Hong Kong-China border open.

Facing mounting public discontent and radicalization of protests, the government finally announced the closure of three more border control points, leaving the airport and another two Hong Kong-China connecting points open.

Whether these sluggish preventive measures and incomplete quarantine from China can effectively control the spread of the coronavirus and calm the public is still a serious question to answer.

It is crystal clear that the public in Hong Kong is deeply dismayed about the government’s handling of the outbreak, but the government seems to have disconnected with the public mood characterized by anxiety and fear.

First there were empty reassurances given by senior officials while Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam (林鄭月娥) was out of town, whereby the government not only offered no concrete action, but rejected any proposal to exercise a health declaration at the border.

As a matter of fact, there is a huge inflow and outflow of population between Hong Kong and China, day in, day out, for private as well as commercial purposes.

It needs no expert knowledge to realize that interflow of population would rapidly increase during the Lunar New Year holiday, so the inaction has given the public an extremely negative impression that the Hong Kong government was somewhat daydreaming and totally ill-prepared.

A huge expectation gap between the government and the public has appeared, where simultaneously a strong sense of mistrust had developed.

The anxiety turned to genuine fear that the government was incapable of protecting Hong Kongers.

Although later the chief executive introduced a series of measures to prevent a local outbreak, the measures were regarded to be too little, too late, or completely missing the target.

Public discontent swiftly ended up in fierce protests, and fear and frustration originating from government health protection failure has quickly become anger and political mistrust.

Politically, in terms of Hong Kong-China relations, there is a suggestion that the local government has relinquished its autonomy promised by the Basic Law, and the refusal to close the Hong Kong-China border implies Hong Kong-China integration, which many Hong Kongers fear, because it essentially contradicts “one country, two systems.”

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title: US claims killing of al-Qaeda leader Qassim al-Rimi

content_text:
An undated photograph made available on Dec. 19 shows Qassim al-Rimi, the former leader of al-Qaeda in Yemen.Photo: EPA-EFE
US President Donald Trump on Thursday said that the US at his direction had conducted a counterterrorism operation in Yemen that killed Qassim al-Rimi, an al-Qaeda leader who claimed responsibility for last year’s deadly shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida, where a Saudi Arabian aviation trainee killed three US sailors.

Al-Rimi is a founder of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. The affiliate has long been considered the global network’s most dangerous branch for its attempts to carry out attacks on the US mainland.

The US and its allies are safer as a result of his death, Trump said.

“We will continue to protect the American people by tracking down and eliminating terrorists who seek to do us harm,” Trump said.

While Trump confirmed reports that al-Rimi had been killed, he did not say when the US operation was conducted or offer any details about how it was carried out.

Al-Rimi had said in an 18-minute video that his group was responsible for the Dec. 6 shooting at the base.

Al-Rimi called the shooter, Royal Saudi Air Force second lieutenant Mohammed Alshamrani, a “courageous knight” and a “hero.”

The shooter opened fire inside a classroom at the base, killing three people and wounding two sheriff’s deputies before one of the deputies killed him. Eight others were also hurt.

The shooting focused public attention on the presence of foreign students in US military training programs and exposed shortcomings in the screening of cadets.

The US last month sent home 21 Saudi Arabian military students, saying that the trainees had posted jihadist or anti-US sentiments on social media pages or had “contact with child pornography,” including in Internet chat rooms.

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title: Prosecutors rest case in Harvey Weinstein’s trial

content_text:
Film producer Harvey Weinstein, center, leaves a criminal courthouse in Manhattan, New York, on Thursday.Photo: Reuters
Prosecutors in Harvey Weinstein’s rape trial rested their case on Thursday after more than two weeks of testimony punctuated by harrowing accounts from six women, including some who said he ignored pleas of “no, no, no,” and justified his behavior as the cost of getting ahead in Hollywood.

Weinstein’s lawyers were to start calling witnesses of their own, as the landmark celebrity trial moves one step closer to a verdict. They have not said whether Weinstein himself will testify.

Weinstein attorney Donna Rotunno immediately asked the judge to dismiss the case, saying that testimony from the woman he is charged with raping “does not in any way show a forcible act by Mr Weinstein.”

The judge rejected the request.

Among the witnesses the defense is expected to call is a psychologist who specializes in human memory. The defense is looking to raise doubts about the women’s recollections of encounters, which in some cases are more than a decade or two old.

The criminal charges at the trial in New York City are based on two allegations: that Weinstein raped a woman in March 2013 and that he forced oral sex on another woman in 2006.

The allegations against Weinstein helped fuel the #MeToo movement. If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.

Weinstein, 67, maintains that any sexual encounters were consensual but taking the witness stand to say so could be risky.

“I tell my clients once you take the stand you have lost your shield, which is me, and you are on your own,” said defense lawyer Brian McMonagle, who helped secure a mistrial in Bill Cosby’s first sexual assault trial in 2017.

Cosby was later convicted.

“In my experience as a prosecutor and defense attorney, it is rare to see a client take the stand,” he said. “The problem is that some jurors do hold that against you.”

Prosecutors ended their case after the last of the other accusers allowed to testify finished telling jurors about an encounter with the disgraced movie mogul in 2013.

Lauren Marie Young, a model from suburban Philadelphia, testified that Weinstein invited her to his Beverly Hills hotel room, lured her to the bathroom, stripped off his clothes, pulled down her dress and groped her breast.

Her allegation is part of a criminal case that was filed against Weinstein in California just as this trial was getting under way.

Additional women, including Young, have been allowed to testify in the New York case as prosecutors attempt to show there was a practiced method to Weinstein’s attacks, including inviting women to his hotel room to discuss business, then disrobing and demanding sexual favors.

Her testimony bookended that of the first accuser to testify, actress Annabella Sciorra, who alleges Weinstein barged into her apartment in the mid-1990s, threw her on a bed and raped her as she tried to fight him off by kicking and punching him.

The defense planned to open its case on Thursday by calling two men who knew Sciorra: the director of a early 1990s film she starred in for Weinstein’s movie studio and a former agent who Weinstein later enlisted to figure out if the actress was speaking to reporters about his alleged misconduct.

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content_text:
China’s economic power shapes global response to coronavirus

For many nations dependent on China there is a risk: Once travel restrictions are in place,
it could prove very difficult to reverse them and that could have huge consequences
As nations around the world enact measures to stop the spread of 2019 novel coronavirus, there is an additional factor shaping their response: China’s enormous economic clout.

While wealthy nations such as the US and Australia — both key trading partners of China — are barring entry to all non-resident travelers from China as the coronavirus spreads and fatalities rise, less developed nations that rely on Beijing are taking a softer approach as they balance public health concerns, the potential economic fallout and domestic political consequences.

Particularly in nations where China is the biggest trading partner and the largest source of inbound tourists, moves that restrict the flow of Chinese visitors could end up hurting growth.

Restrictive measures also risk angering officials in Beijing as they battle the outbreak and try to avoid further damage to China’s global image.

“Countries imposing travel restrictions on China will try to carefully manage any potential political tensions,” said Kaho Yu, a senior Asia analyst at risk consultancy Verisk Maplecroft. “A serious pandemic threat — a potential outbreak in these countries — will have an impact on their domestic politics, such as elections, and would transcend geopolitics, but these countries are also very careful with how they present the travel restrictions, in order to avoid upsetting Beijing and having geopolitical consequences.”

China has already made its displeasure known over some travel restrictions, which have not been advised by the WHO.

The acting Chinese ambassador to Israel compared the nation’s travel restrictions on Chinese visitors to Jews being turned away at borders during the Holocaust. The Chinese embassy later apologized, The Associated Press reported.

After the US Department of State issued its highest do-not-travel alert for China — on a par with Iraq and Afghanistan — Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Hua Chunying (華春瑩) said: “The US’ comments and actions are neither based on facts, nor helpful at this particular time.”

At a news conference on Monday, Hua criticized the US for being the first to withdraw consulate staff from Wuhan and announce a travel ban on Chinese citizens.

“The WHO doesn’t approve of, and even rejects, travel and trade bans on China,” Hua said. “In the face of a public health crisis, countries should work together to overcome the difficulties, rather than resort to beggar-thy-neighbor practices — let alone take advantage of others’ difficulties.”

Some poorer nations with close relations with China, such as Cambodia, have explicitly emphasized the potential economic and diplomatic damage from a ban on Chinese visitors.

As Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) most reliable partner in Southeast Asia, the Cambodian government has attracted about US$8 billion of investment from China between 2016 and August last year, more than a third of total foreign investment, Xinhua news agency reported.

Banning flights to China would “destroy the kingdom’s economy and affect the good relationship between the two countries,” Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen’s office said in a statement.

Cambodians “who are currently working or studying in China, including those in Wuhan, have to remain there and join the Chinese people to fight this disease,” Hun Sen said in a speech in Phnom Penh on Thursday last week, Voice of America reported. “Don’t run away from the Chinese people during this difficult time.”

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content_text:
By Chien Li-chun,
Dennis Xie
and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writers
The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office has indicted a man for allegedly abusing and killing a pet rabbit, which he said was affectionate to his wife, but often ignored him.

The man, surnamed Chen (陳), said the rabbit was indifferent to him and sometimes bit him, the office said.

“To teach the rabbit a lesson,” the man would drop it from a high place or pinch its neck with the door or its iron cage, the office quoted him as saying.

The rabbit was found dead by social workers, who visited the man’s house in May last year to investigate allegations of domestic violence, the office said.

Chen’s wife said he has a bad temper and was abusive toward her and the rabbit, it said.

The Taipei City Animal Protection Office conducted an autopsy and found that the rabbit had multiple internal and external injuries — enough evidence for the office to indict the man on Monday, it said.

According to the Animal Protection Act (動物保護法), people convicted of killing, intentionally hurting or causing injury to an animal, resulting in mangled limbs or vital organ failure, would face imprisonment of less than two years or a fine of between NT$200,000 and NT$2 million (US$6,639 and US$66,389).

In a separate case, Taipei prosecutors on Tuesday charged a medical intern surnamed Huang (黃) with unlawful entry and attempted burglary for allegedly entering the apartment of a former girlfriend to retrieve his cat.

The two broke up in 2018 and the woman, an intern at the same hospital, changed the lock to her rental apartment, they said.

To retrieve the cat and some personal belongings, Huang allegedly stole the key to her apartment from her bag when she was on duty, they said.

He made a copy of the key before returning it to her bag, they said, adding that Huang used the key to enter the apartment and encountered the woman’s sister inside.

Huang said he was not trying to steal anything and only wanted to retrieve his cat and other personal effects.

As Huang has yet to return his copy of the apartment key, the office charged him with unlawful entry and attempted burglary.

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title: Taipei man says he killed rabbit for ignoring him


title: Pingtung County to expand Lili River solar project

content_text:
By Lo Hsin-chen and Dennis Xie / Staff reporter, with staff writer
A green embankment solar panel project along a 2km section of the Lili River in Pingtung County is pictured on Tuesday.Photo: Lo Hsin-chen, Taipei Times
The Pingtung County Government on Tuesday said that its pioneering green embankment project is to be expanded following the venture’s initial success.

The county government launched the 2 megawatt (MW) project last year, installing solar panels along a 2km section of the Lili River (力力溪) embankment. The installation can generate 6,500 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity per day, enough to power 650 households.

“The Lili River solar project makes the county the first in Taiwan to produce energy on an embankment,” Pingtung County Commissioner Pan Men-an (潘孟安) said.

The county has built solar farms at sea, promoted power generation from biomass and ocean currents, and placed solar panels in detention basins in an effort to support the central government’s renewable energy policies, Pan said.

With the aim of relying solely on renewable energy, the county in 2016 joined the Global 100% Renewable Energy Cities and Regions Network, an international organization that assists regional governments with environmental sustainability, Pan said, adding that the county is the only local government in Taiwan participating in the network.

Other network participants include Hawaii, Vancouver and South Korea’s Jeju City, he added.

Although other local governments have worked on green embankment projects, most of them have ground to a halt due to the technical complexities involved, Pingtung Department of Water Resources Director-General Chiang Kuo-feng (江國豐) said.

The planned expansion would increase the installation of solar panels to a 2.4km section of the embankment, with a total power generation capacity of 2.5MW, Chiang said.

Once completed, it would generate 8,500kWh of electricity per day, or enough to power 850 households, he said.

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content_text:
Legislative Speaker Yu Shyi-kun, left, visits former speaker Wang Jin-pyng at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday.Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) have agreed to hold a round of cross-caucus negotiations on Friday next week to decide on the starting date of the new legislative session, Legislative Speaker Yu Shyi-kun (游錫堃) said yesterday.

KMT caucus whip Lin Wei-chou (林為洲) discussed the issue with DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) at a closed-door meeting at the legislature in Taipei that Yu also attended.

New legislative assistants are to receive training from Wednesday to Friday next week, so it is the caucuses’ hope that negotiations can be held on the Friday to decide when the new session would commence, Yu said.

The Constitution mandates that the upcoming session must begin before next month. As Feb. 28 and 29 are national holidays, the latest date on which the session must start is Feb. 27, Yu said.

There are many new legislators and many of their offices need to be renovated, Yu said, adding that it is his job as the speaker to ask the KMT caucus whether it has such needs so that they can be taken care of before the start of the new session.

At the meeting Lin told Yu, who was elected speaker on Friday last week, that he hoped the speaker would create more opportunities for cooperation between the ruling and opposition parties by giving more importance to the opinions of smaller parties.

KMT caucus secretary-general Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said that there is an urgent need to discuss a draft act on relief funds for industry, as the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak negatively affects the nation’s economy.

The draft bill should be the first item on the agenda when the new legislative session opens, he said.

The KMT caucus would finalize its version of the proposal as soon as possible, he said, calling on the other caucuses to sponsor their own versions.

The Temporary Provisions for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Prevention and Relief (嚴重急性呼吸道症候群防治及紓困暫行條例) in 2003 skipped committee review, and advanced to a second and third reading as it was time-sensitive, he said.

He recommended that the draft bill for the coronavirus outbreak follow a similar procedure to expedite its passage.

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title: Political Developments: Caucuses agree to talks on new legislative session

people: 蔣萬安 柯建銘 林為洲 游錫堃


title: New Taipei police raid Vietnamese fraud ring

content_text:
New Taipei City police have arrested 11 Vietnamese nationals and three Taiwanese for allegedly operating a telephone investment scam targeting Vietnamese.

Police on Monday raided a large metal shed next to a busy night market in Shulin District (樹林), where they arrested seven Vietnamese men and four Vietnamese women, and seized computers, mobile phones and other items used in the operation, Criminal Investigation Bureau officer Hsu Yi-hsiang (許益祥) said on Tuesday.

Hsu said that many of the Vietnamese involved were migrant workers operating illegally.

Investigators believe a Taiwanese man, surnamed Kao (高), 26, was the principal figure in hiring the Vietnamese to work for him and operating the telephone investment scam targeting people in Vietnam, Hsu said.

The group allegedly raked in about NT$20 million (US$663,878) from the scheme over three months, Hsu said.

Kao and the other two Taiwanese suspects paid their Vietnamese employees NT$30,000 per month, he added.

“The 14 suspects are facing pending charges of money laundering, fraud and illegal gambling, along with breaches of the Banking Act (銀行法),” Hsu said, adding that investigators were attempting to verify money transferred into accounts controlled by the group.

The group allegedly used the Vietnamese messaging app Zalo, along with Facebook and other social media, to target Vietnamese, investigators said.

The Vietnamese women working as part of the scheme would then tell their victims how to make money by trading cryptocurrency, playing gambling games and using other fraud techniques to transfer money to accounts controlled by the group, investigators said.

New Taipei City prosecutors and bureau officers said they are cooperating with their counterparts in Vietnam to identify victims of the fraud.

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title: World News Quick Take

content_text:
UNITED STATES

Democrats to push gun ban

Democratic lawmakers in Virginia yesterday planned to try to advance legislation to ban assault weapons, despite pushback from members of their own party. A state House of Representatives committee was to take up legislation, backed by Governor Ralph Northam, that would ban the sale of certain semi-automatic firearms, including popular AR-15 style rifles. However, the bill would not require current owners of assault weapons to turn them in or register them with state police, as some earlier proposals required. “This is a compromise that takes into account folk’s concerns and is still a good bill that will help reduce mass murders in the commonwealth,” said Delegate Mark Levine, a Democrat sponsoring the legislation.

UNITED STATES

Sanders, Buttigieg tied

Democratic presidential candidates Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders were neck and neck on Thursday in the chaotic Iowa caucuses, with 100 percent of precincts reporting, but no winner declared following technical issues. The tally comes hours after Democratic Party Chairman Tom Perez ordered a review of the results following technology problems that prevented a complete vote count in the nation’s first nominating contest on Monday and some doubts were raised about the accuracy of the process. Sanders, the leftist senator from Vermont, and Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, are separated by a razor-thin margin in the final results, which come three days after the caucuses. Perez stepped in earlier on Thursday, demanding a review of the caucuses. With returns in from all of the 1,765 precincts in Iowa, Buttigieg was leading by 26.2 percent to Sanders’s 26.1 percent in the delegate totals. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren was next with 18 percent, followed by former vice president Joe Biden with 15.8 percent and Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar with 12.3 percent.

UNITED STATES

Louisiana crash kills three

A small plane crash in Louisiana on Thursday afternoon has left three people dead, authorities said. Jackson Parish Sheriff Andy Brown told news outlets the plane was heading from Jackson to Shreveport and crashed north of Chatham on Louisiana 34. The Monroe Regional Airport tower lost contact with the plane at about 2:10pm. Brown said there were three people on the plane. He later confirmed that all three were killed. The plane was a Cessna. Further details regarding the crash were not immediately known.

UNITED STATES

Deputies detain man, puppy

A Florida man and his furry “accomplice” were taken into custody by authorities who said the man shoplifted from a store. Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said Logan Wilson was arrested on Wednesday, and charged with petit theft and possession of meth, WTSP-TV reported. Wilson admitted to stealing US$259 worth of items from Bass Pro Shops, deputies said. He was arrested during a traffic stop after he was seen leaving the store. Deputies also took Wilson’s four-legged friend into custody. A sheriff’s office Facebook post showing an officer holding a small puppy said deputies took care of the “cutest accomplice” before handing him over to Hillsborough County Animal Services. Animal services will care for the dog until his owner is released from jail. Animal services has listed the puppy as “pre-adopted.” Deputies said that if the owner does not claim the dog, it will go up for adoption.

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content_text:
Virus Outbreak: Lawsuit alleges evacuee list fraud

SPEAKING OUT OF TURN:The KMT said that Vincent Hsu did not represent the party when he made comments about the virus and would be suspended
Taiwan Republic Office director Chilly Chen, left, at the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office yesterday files a suit against Vincent Hsu, who represents a self-help group of Taiwanese in Wuhan and helped arrange the passenger list for the first charter flight from Wuhan on Monday.Photo: Chien Li-chung, Taipei Times
A member of a pro-Taiwan independence group yesterday filed a complaint with the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office accusing Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) central committee member Vincent Hsu (徐正文) of doctoring the passenger list of the first charter flight of Taiwanese evacuees from Wuhan on Monday.

The flight, which landed in Taoyuan, sparked debate when it was discovered that three of the 247 people on board had not been on the priority list Taiwan provided to China.

The outcry escalated when one of the three passengers tested positive for the 2019 novel coronavirus, becoming the nation’s 11th case.

Hsu, who represents a self-help group of Taiwanese in Wuhan and helped arrange the flight, could have breached the Anti-Infiltration Act (反滲透法) and the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (兩岸人民關係條例) by helping China “smuggle” extra passengers on board the flight, Taiwan Republic Office director Chilly Chen (陳峻涵) said.

More than 10 passengers on the flight were Chinese spouses of Taiwanese, taking priority over children and the elderly, who remain at risk in Wuhan, Chen said.

“It is China’s virus, a modern Trojan horse executed jointly by the red [Chinese Communist Party] and the blue [KMT] camps,” he said. “It is unbelievable that Hsu claimed that he was unaware of the change of passengers.”

On Thursday, the KMT said in a statement, after Hsu held several news conferences and spoke to reporters about the outbreak, that his remarks did not represent those of the party.

Hsu’s comments helped to “foment panic” and “severely damaged the party’s image and reputation,” it said, adding that his party membership would be suspended.

Additional reporting by CNA and Shih Hsiao-kuang

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content_text:
Virus Outbreak: Tsai weighs in on Wuhan flights

DEALING WITH CHINA:A surgeon launched a petition to have Taipei determine passenger lists for charter flights, with those in urgent need of care to get priority
President Tsai Ing-wen, center, speaks alongside Vice Premier Chen Chi-mai, left, and Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung at the Central Epidemic Command Center in Taipei yesterday.Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Taiwan is to prioritize vulnerable people and adhere to the highest level of quarantine measures when evacuating Taiwanese from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday.

Tsai was responding to questions about a charter flight that arrived from Wuhan on Monday, on which three of the 247 passengers had not been on a priority list the government provided to Chinese authorities.

The issue escalated when one of the three passengers tested positive for the coronavirus, becoming the nation’s 11th case.

The government had communicated with Chinese authorities on the guidelines for the flight and its priorities, but they unilaterally changed the passenger list after agreeing to Taipei’s terms, Tsai said on a visit to the Centers for Disease Control in Taipei.

That resulted in some vulnerable Taiwanese being excluded from the flight and complicated the nation’s disease prevention efforts, she said.

The flights must be arranged in such a way as to give precedence to disadvantaged people and adhere to disease prevention policies, she added.

A spokesman for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office on Thursday said that a list of 979 Taiwanese waiting to be evacuated from Wuhan had been sent to Taipei via civil aviation channels earlier in the day.

Tsai yesterday said that the two sides were still communicating over the issue and that the government would adhere to its aforementioned guidelines in its communications with Beijing.

Separately yesterday, surgeon Wu Hsin-tai (吳欣岱) launched an online petition demanding that the government should solely decide passenger lists of charter flights from Wuhan and put Taiwanese in urgent need of medical attention at the top.

The flights should also include Taiwanese disease prevention officials to ensure proper precautions have been taken and they should only be conducted when there are ample local health resources, the petition says.

The petition claims that Taiwan has 1,100 beds available in quarantine facilities.

The petition had garnered more than 50,000 signatures within six hours of its launch yesterday.

Meanwhile, all passenger flights between Taiwan and China would be halted from Monday through April 29, with the exception of those to five destinations in China, the Central Epidemic Command Center announced yesterday.

From Monday, all flights across the Taiwan Strait, excluding those between Taiwan and Beijing, Pudong and Hongqiao airports in Shanghai, Xiamen in China’s Fujian Province and Chengdu in Sichuan Province, would be suspended as part of government efforts to prevent the spread of 2019-nCoV, the center said.

Additional reporting by Chien Hui-ju and CNA

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content_text:
Virus Outbreak: Taiwan seeks drug to fight virus

SHOWING PROMISE:NTU Hospital said a US drugmaker would donate doses of an antiviral medication, but it still requires government approval before it could be used
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung speaks at the Central Epidemic Command Center at the Centers for Disease Control in Taipei yesterday.Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
Taiwan has asked the US-based drugmaker Gilead Sciences to reserve the nation doses of its new drug remdesivir, amid reports that the antiviral medication might be effective in treating the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said on Thursday.

Chen confirmed the request, and said that the drug — which is not yet licensed or approved in any nation — still requires government approval before it could be used.

Developed for use against the Ebola virus, remdesivir has garnered attention as a possible treatment for 2019-nCoV, following positive results from US and Chinese doctors who have administered the drug in clinical trials.

On Friday last week, Gilead said it was working with Chinese authorities to test the drug on coronavirus patients.

National Taiwan University (NTU) Hospital last month reached out to Gilead before the Lunar New Year holiday and the company agreed to send doses of the drug as a charitable donation, NTU vice president Chang Shan-chwen (張上淳) said on Thursday.

Chang said the hospital then prepared application documents for the drug’s experimental use, including treatment plans and patient consent forms, which were submitted to the Ministry of Health and Welfare after gaining approval from the hospital’s ethics review committee.

Chang, who serves as Taipei-area director of the Centers for Disease Controls’ Communicable Disease Control Medical Network, did not give details of the agreement, such as how many doses of the drug would be sent or when they would arrive.

Some doctors have reported that remdesivir was beneficial in treating the related coronavirus Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) during a 2015 outbreak in South Korea, Chang said.

Despite its initial promise in stopping the reproduction of MERS and SARS in the respiratory tract, clinical trials ultimately found it to be less effective than other medications, and it was not developed for use on the mass market, Chang added.

As all of Taiwan’s current 2019-nCoV patients are in stable condition and only one has pneumonia, none require remdesivir at the moment, Chang said.

Doctors are treating the pneumonia patients with supportive care, which includes using supplemental oxygen to reduce breathing difficulties, Chang said.

As doctors have yet to find any drugs that are highly effective in treating the coronavirus, Chang said none of the patients have been treated with other antiviral medications.

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content_text:
Patients are checked at a community drug rehabilitation facility in Caloocan, Philippines, on Thursday last week.Photo: Reuters
Colonel Romeo Caramat oversaw the bloodiest day in the “war on drugs” in the Philippines — 32 people killed in 24 hours in the province north of Manila where he was police chief in 2017.

Now the Philippine National Police head of drug enforcement, Caramat said that ultra-violent approach to curbing illicit drugs had not been effective.

“Shock and awe definitely did not work,” Caramat told Reuters in an interview, speaking out for the first time on the issue. “Drug supply is still rampant.”

Caramat said that the volume of crime had decreased as a result of the drug war, but users could still buy illegal drugs “any time, anywhere” in the Philippines.

He said he now favored a new strategy. Rather than quickly arresting or killing low-level pushers and couriers, he wants to put them under surveillance in the hope they lead police to “big drug bosses.”

Three-and-a-half years after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte launched his war on drugs with a call to kill addicts and traffickers, his signature policy has failed in many key objectives, police officers, health professionals and government officials say.

Duterte’s spokesman, Salvador Panelo, did not respond to requests for comment on Caramat’s statements, but on Jan. 6, responding to a request from Reuters for comment on the anti-drug campaign, Panelo said: “We are winning the war on drugs.”

However, Duterte has repeatedly said in speeches and interviews that the anti-drugs campaign has fallen short, blaming endemic corruption for undermining enforcement and the absence of a death penalty for failing to deter crime.

Critics say that problems with the drug war run deeper, pointing to a failure to target high-level drug traffickers, cut the supply of drugs and invest in rehabilitation.

“Heavy suppression efforts marked by extra-judicial killings and street arrests were not going to slow down demand,” Bangkok-based UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Southeast Asia and Pacific representative Jeremy Douglas said. “There has to be a focus on prevention and public health, coupled with intelligent policing that takes on transnational crime.”

Caramat’s criticism of the tactics that marked his tenure as Bulacan province’s police chief is remarkable given the nationwide fame he enjoyed for the killings, and the rapid promotions that followed.

After news emerged of the one-day death count in Bulacan in August 2017, local media reported Duterte saying: “Let’s kill another 32 every day. Maybe we can reduce what ails this country.”

Caramat estimates “hundreds” died in Bulacan when he was police chief.

The Philippine government says 5,532 people have been killed in anti-drug police operations nationwide since the middle of 2016.

Human rights groups suspect the nationwide death toll is much higher. Amnesty International in June last year said in a report that “evidence points to many thousands more killed by unknown armed persons with likely links to the police.”

Caramat said that those killed on his watch violently resisted arrest, but agreed with critics that the anti-drugs strategy has mostly targeted low-level operatives.

“For almost three years, we are arresting the street pusher or the courier. After we have arrested the drug courier, we stopped,” he said in the interview conducted in December last year.

After a brief pause when the drug war was declared, transnational crime groups have flooded the nation with crystal meth — the most popular illegal drug in the Philippines, known locally as shabu, law enforcement officers, government officials and experts say.

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title: ‘Shock and awe’ failed: Philippine drug cop


title: Lantern Festival opens in Houli

content_text:
A lantern depicting the Wedding of the Mice is pictured in Taichung in an undated photograph.Photo courtesy of the Tourism Bureau
The main lantern for this year’s Taiwan Lantern Festival is to be lit today at Taichung’s Houli Forest Park, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said.

The ministry said in a statement that it chose the park, which was part of the 2018 Taichung World Flora Exposition, because it hopes to make global environmental protection a theme for the festival.

The design of the festival includes unique Taiwanese technological, ecological and cultural aspects, the ministry said, adding that the overall concept and design took into consideration local specialties and development needs, as well as commercial and technological viability.

The festival not only expands on existing traditional culture, but also introduces new elements, Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said in the statement.

The main lantern, titled The Guardian of the Forest — Tree of Light (森生守護-光之樹), was designed by Lin Shuen-long (林舜龍), Tourism Bureau Director-General Chou Yung-hui (周永暉) said.

The 15m-tall lantern features 22 branches symbolizing Taiwan’s counties and cities; 368 flower buds representing the nation’s townships, districts and boroughs; and 2,359 leaves embodying Taiwan’s 23 million people, the bureau said.

People can visit the main exhibit, sponsored by Chunghwa Telecom, which features an interactive balloon inside, the bureau said.

“The concept is that the flora expo’s seed has now grown into a towering tree,” Lin said, adding that it echoes the bureau’s call to be closer to nature and designation of this year as the “Year of Mountain Tourism.”

The festival grounds will be open to the public from 7pm today and the main exhibition is scheduled to feature a show every hour, the bureau said.

The event is to run until Feb. 23, the bureau said, urging people to take public transport when visiting the festival grounds to reduce traffic congestion and their effect on the environment.

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content_text:
愛因斯坦的相對論有許多奇怪結果，對高速旅行的人來說，時間走得更慢，像太陽這類巨大的星體會扭曲所在的時空，導致光行走的路徑在它們周圍「彎曲」。其中最有趣的概念是「拖曳」，當巨大的星體旋轉時，如同芭蕾舞者旋轉時，裙子也跟著旋轉，這種效應在地球這類小行星周圍比較小，但在更大、更快速旋轉的星體周圍就會很明顯。現在，天文學家已經使用「拖曳效應」進行以前不可能的測量，確認了先前關於獨特歷史的線索，並觀察一顆白矮星的旋轉速度，結果發表在 1 月 31 日的《科學》期刊。

白矮星是名為 PSR J1141-6545 的雙星系統一部分，位於南方蒼蠅座，快速旋轉的白矮星伴隨一顆中子星，這兩顆星的命運中，白矮星先形成，中子星隨後形成。這兩次恆星死亡事件之間，來自恆星的質量最終會爆炸，產生脈衝流到白矮星，導致比其他情況轉得更快。白矮星旋轉的速度到底有多快？研究人員表示這極難測量，因為微小的殘留物太微弱，天文學家無法用一般方法測量白矮星的旋轉速度，幸運的是，白矮星並不是這星系唯一的特殊天體，中子星同時也是一顆脈衝星，這意味著它自轉時，從兩極向太空發射輻射。當光束掃過地球，科學家們能用電波望遠鏡探測到它們；根據每次脈衝抵達地球的時間，研究人員可確定脈衝星的旋轉速度，以及在太空的移動方式。

▲ 雙星系統中，小顆為脈衝星、大顆是白矮星，過去我們只能直接測量脈衝星的轉速。

結果證實，脈衝星附近時空會受白矮星伴星的旋轉渦流影響，藉此，研究小組利用脈衝星在受影響時空的運動，研究白矮星的旋轉速度。科學家透過觀察地球周圍衛星的軌道如何隨時間變化，來測量地球周圍的拖曳力，我們不可能將人造衛星發射到白矮星的軌道，取而代之的，研究團隊計算自脈衝星發現以來 20 年內的所有脈衝星軌道資料，這些軌道的改變多少都需要一些拖曳力（註）。

研究人員使用原子鐘校正時間，以確定脈衝星的亮點時間，並計算軌道進動數值約偏離了 93 英哩（約 150 公里）。從這變化終於能算出白矮星的旋轉速率：一圈大約 100 秒。這證實了白矮星質量上拉動了伴星，並早在脈衝星形成前就轉了起來，也給研究人員更多關於此系統的資訊。

註：有點像用手臂轉呼拉圈──呼拉圈離手臂最近、最遠的地方可以改變，但呼拉圈的形狀和大小不會改變

A pulsar’s journey through swirling space-time shows astronomers how fast its binary companion spins

（本文由 台北天文館 授權轉載；首圖為脈衝星示意圖；來源：pixabay）

延伸閱讀：

結合三大望遠鏡建出恆星爆炸殘骸 3D 視圖，細窺蟹狀星雲複雜內部結構
磁場結構異常的中子星，只有特定角度才能觀察
銀河系中心異常伽瑪射線區域，可能是第一個暗物質與普通物質作用的證據？
J1808 脈衝星爆炸，20 秒內釋放出太陽運轉 10 天的能量
少數中子星偶爾會不規律脈動，或與內部「中子湯」流動有關

title: 脈衝星的伴星轉速有多快？時空的扭曲程度會告訴你


countries: 日本 美國

title: 日本測試用手機 App 舉報痴漢，更有效通知車站人員與警方

content_text:
東日本鐵路公司（JR 東日本）4 日宣布，將於 2 月下旬開始，測試痴漢通報手機 App 系統。乘客搭火車被騷擾時，只需按下手機 App 按鈕，即可傳送消息到售票員攜帶的平板電腦。售票員會利用車上廣播警告痴漢，也提醒其他乘客警覺。官方期望以此引起其他乘客注意，降低乘客被騷擾的機率。

痴漢警報系統示範測試分兩階段進行。第一階段由 2 月下旬至 3 月中，在 JR 埼京線大宮站及新宿站之間試行，由東日本鐵路公司的員工及監控人員執行，會預先向乘客報告測試時間，並於車內廣播提醒。官方根據第一階段的測試效果及乘客回饋，6 月起在埼京線執行第二階段測試。測試者如在火車上被騷擾，可直接以手機 App 通報，除了會在車內播放注意訊息，更會通知最近車站職員甚至向警方報案。

系統與美國國家信息學研究所合作開發，JR 東日本公司表示，目的是為海外客戶提供更安全的鐵路行程。

痴漢をスマホアプリで通報 車掌が車内放送で撃退 埼京線で実験

（本文由 Unwire HK 授權轉載；首圖來源：Unsplash）

延伸閱讀：

日本電車痴漢問題大，男女都有 App 相助
日本公司推色狼雷達，手機一鍵通報出沒地


title: 新 Xbox 自適應控制器，能讓身心障礙人士用輪椅控制器玩遊戲

content_text:
你是否也有這樣的感覺，身心障礙人士似乎只在電視和新聞出現，當在電腦系統看到「輔助朗讀」等功能時，你會否好奇真的有人用過。其實有很多身心障礙人士生活在我們周遭，同樣需要現代化生活，包括玩遊戲。

讓輪椅控制器控制 Xbox
最近，國外慈善組織 AbleGamers 與 ATMakers 聯手，製作名叫 Freedom Wing Adapter 的控制器，可用 9 針端口將 Xbox 無障礙控制器連到電動輪椅的控制器。

▲ 輪椅控制器可控制 Xbox 手把。（Source：影片截圖，下同）

這樣，讓無法脫離輪椅的高位截癱患者可用熟悉的輪椅操作桿當成遊戲手把，享受遊戲的樂趣。

ATMakers 設計這款產品，並找到一家製造印刷電路板的公司代工，需要的人可在 AbleGamers 的網站申請補助金，援助受捐者獲得這個設備。

▲ 這個盒子能連接輪椅和 Xbox 自適應控制器。

除了這種管道，ATMakers 免費公布了 Freedom Wing Adapter 設計圖，有需要的人也可以自己動手製作。為了搭配不同電動輪椅廠商的設計，購買者需根據說明圖自行焊接安裝，全部零件成本約 35 美元。

▲ 用戶可自己組裝。

因為裝置採用 9 針連接器是電動輪椅操作桿的標準配置，所以理論上來講，控制器可相容市面大部分輪椅。

值得一提的是，Freedom Wing Adapter 控制器是基於 Xbox 無障礙控制器開發的，微軟很早之前就在無障礙設備投入大量資源。

Xbox 無障礙控制早已起步
2018 年 5 月 18 日，微軟發表了專門為身心障礙人士設計的 Xbox 無障礙控制器，並宣布任何人都可在此基礎上改良，也不用貼上微軟和 Xbox 的標誌。

▲ 微軟 Xbox Adaptive Controller。（Source：Xbox）

之前身心障礙人士很難使用傳統遊戲手把玩遊戲。2014 年，微軟工程師瀏覽 Twitter 時看到 Warfighter Engaged 為身心障礙人士設計的遊戲控制器。

2015 年 Hackathon 大會，幾名微軟員工拿出為 Warfighter Engaged 設計的無障礙遊戲解決方案，並獲得當屆 Hackathon 的最高獎項。

▲ 微軟 Xbox Adaptive Controller 連接外置設備。

同時微軟還有一支團隊也設計了一套無障礙控制器，讓身心障礙人士根據習慣自由組合，團隊以此方案參加 2016 年的 Hackathon 大會。

時逢微軟提出「Gaming for Everyone」這個新 Slogan ，微軟決定將無障礙控制設備提上議程。

微軟在包容性技術實驗室（Inclusive Tech Lab）中開闢了為身心障礙人士設計的遊戲區，用以獲取身心障礙玩家的需求。

同時，為了保證計畫不會爛尾，XAC 計畫不需要考慮投資與回報的問題，只需要向微軟 CEO 匯報即可。

微軟透過大量分析身心障礙玩家的需求，並與相關專家、遊戲玩家、無障礙倡導、身心障礙玩家和各類公益組織討論，最終決定將 XAC 設計成扁平矩形，擁有按鍵，背部還有 19 個插口。

▲ 19 個插口為身心障礙玩家打開了新世界。

這些插口分別對應普通手把每個按鍵，有了這些插口，就能根據自己的需要自定義配置。這些可拓展的接口，也是 Freedom Wing Adapter 研發的基礎。

這次 Freedom Wing Adapter 研發，只是無障礙遊戲設備發展的一小步。在未來，還會有更多適合身心障礙人士的無障礙設備設計出來。

（本文由 愛范兒 授權轉載；首圖來源：Xbox）

延伸閱讀：

被譽為「搖桿大廠」的微軟 Xbox，可能要專為殘障人士做一款控制器
用遊戲轉接器改裝，國外 YouTuber 讓 Xbox 無障礙控制器也能在 Switch 使用


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最近「口罩」成為熱議話題，一些住在歐洲的人也不約而同談論自己住的地方並沒有戴口罩的習慣。事實上，如果在 Google 搜尋「wearing surgical masks」，多半會找到外國媒體關於「為什麼那麼多亞洲人愛戴口罩」的討論；如果用「口罩 歐美」來查，則會找到「歐美人怎麼都不戴口罩」的疑惑。為什麼會有這樣的差異呢？

關於歐洲人與戴口罩這回事
提到戴口罩與不戴口罩的文化差異，對一些旅居歐洲的人可說心有戚戚。現在住在瑞士的「像我這樣的一個小旅人」就在 1 月 29 日寫道：

上星期，我回到了香港跟家人短聚幾天。經過 2003 年非典型肺炎（SARS）一役，香港人對於個人及公共衛生非常敏感。早於 12 月中武漢出現一兩宗零星個案的時候，有一些港人已經自動地把警惕性提高到最高級別，開始在外戴口罩。上星期在香港的街上，大部分人都已經戴上口罩，更不用說口罩和衛生用品已經斷貨了，我和媽媽跑了好多家超級市場，萬寧、屈臣氏和便利店也找不到想要買的酒精搓手液。在回歐洲的飛機上，我和大部分乘客都全程戴上口罩，只有在進食的時候才把它脫下。

但回到歐洲後，我好像進入了另一個世界，一個平行時空。繼同機的乘客各散東西，我進入了申根區以後，變成了唯一戴口罩的異類。突然，我感受到最近海外港人群組都在熱烈討論的那種在歐洲各國戴口罩的壓力。最後，我敵不過自己的心魔，即使在回瑞士的飛機上附近有 3 個沒有戴口罩的中國人，也脫下了口罩，屈服於「歐洲文化」之下。

類似的狀況並不是冰山一角，「倫敦男子日常 london.nanzhi」也談到當自己身邊的英國人怎麼看待戴口罩這回事，寫道：

A 先生說他人生中唯一一次戴口罩是在香港看醫生時，護士拿給他一個口罩，起初他完全不知道那該怎麼戴。他說，許多英國人其實不喜歡有東西罩著口鼻的感覺，加上從古至今，政府也未曾宣導這樣的行為。

究竟，為什麼在歐洲許多國家，「不戴口罩」是個很普遍的現象呢？

（Source：pixabay）

「有戴有保佑」這裡不適用
整體來說，比起東亞社會普遍有「戴口罩避免自己把病毒傳染給其他人，也能避免自己被感染」、「有戴有保佑」的想法，德國媒體 The Local de 談到戴口罩的作用時，認為口罩的作用並不在保護自己，而是「不要把病傳染給其他人」──但就算一般小感冒，歐洲人普遍也沒有戴口罩的習慣。

感冒了，就讓它自己好
「台灣護理師的荷蘭生活記實」便指出，對荷蘭人來說，生病感冒都是件很正常的事，如果感冒就讓它自己好──且多數病也真的會自己好。

住在荷蘭的「歐洲職涯顧問」Weiwei 也抱持類似看法，她在詢問周遭荷蘭人對「生病為什麼不戴口罩」的想法時整理道：「荷蘭人認為免疫力高，你就不會生病，所以即使附近有人生病沒戴口罩，你也不用擔心；如果你被傳染了，代表你抵抗力不佳，不要怪對方沒戴口罩。」這類想法自然不會讓他們對在公共場合頻頻咳嗽的人行注目禮，或是暗地希望這些人有戴口罩。

▲ 在一些人口密度相對低的歐洲國家，多少成為他們不擔心感染的原因之一。圖為瑞典首都斯德哥爾摩。（Source：Flickr/Ed Webster CC BY 2.0）

不戴似乎也沒問題？
人口密度相對低也是原因之一。不只是荷蘭，住在瑞典的「瑞典劉先生」提到：「瑞典地廣人稀，連排隊搭公車人和人之間都要隔 3 人的距離（不然你就會變得像癡漢），人與人之間互動冷漠、再加上沒有娛樂性生活，大家待在家裡的時間很長，除了上班之外沒什麼好出門的。」

當人少時，疾病就相對不容易傳染，再加上這幾十年來， 歐洲沒有發生過大規模的特殊傳染病，更讓人們不會產生戴口罩的想法。

「生病了就好好休息」
不過最重要的一點，還是歐洲人普遍認為：如果你生病了，就應該待在家休息，不要出門。在生病請假相對容易、也比較習慣在家工作的歐洲社會，讓這個觀念更加穩固。談到自己的職場經歷，「Ambrose@London 惡鬼的倫敦大冒險」寫道：「我有好幾次到了台灣感冒需要戴口罩上班時，就被英國同事趕回家請病假休息去了。」

▲ 今年 1 月 28 日，台灣駐奧地利代表處在貼文中談及奧地利官方目前對戴口罩的看法。（Source：Taiwan in Österreich 駐奧地利代表處）

在禁蒙面法之下……
也有些討論認為「歐洲國家不喜歡有人戴口罩」可能跟禁蒙面法、不准人民把臉遮起來有關。

以這次在中國武漢爆發的新型冠狀病毒疫情為例，Taiwan in Österreich 駐奧地利代表處在 1 月 28 日發文提到，奧地利官方認為奧地利尚未出現新型冠狀病毒確診案例，因此人們仍不能以防止感染為由在公共場合配戴口罩，否則會因違反禁蒙面法被罰──不過駐奧地利代表處接著在留言處補充，警察現在似乎不會抓戴口罩的人，顯然是因應這波疫情保持一定彈性。

習慣蒙面，戴口罩就沒問題？
話說回來，人在土耳其的「說土語的臺灣菸酒生」指出，就算是對戴頭巾和蒙面習以為常的土耳其人，也不怎麼習慣戴口罩，甚至在大街小巷咳嗽打噴嚏也沒有要遮的意思。

戴了，代表超級嚴重
總而言之，種種原因造就歐洲社會普遍沒有戴口罩的習慣、也不怎麼喜歡戴口罩，更創造出許多歐洲人關於「只有罹患絕症或是感染急性傳染力疾病的人才要戴口罩」的觀念，換句話說，如果你戴著口罩走在路上，反而會引起其他人不安甚至主動關切。

因此，對生活在歐洲的亞洲人來說，面對公共場合到底要不要戴口罩，也成為令人苦惱的問題了。

小補充：為什麼東亞社會習慣戴口罩？
東亞社會戴口罩的習慣可能是受到日本影響。1923 年，日本發生將近 60 萬人死亡的關東大地震，當時因為地震引起的火災讓空氣好幾週充滿濃濃的煙塵，讓居民開始戴口罩，在那之後，日本社會也逐漸生成「感冒時要戴口罩避免感染他人、造成其他人困擾」的觀念。

1934 年，戴口罩的習慣又隨著第二波流感大流行更鞏固，加上日本 1950 年代快速工業化帶來的空污、花粉症困擾，讓人們把戴口罩視為再普通不過的事。

這幾年，甚至有人把口罩當成項鍊、手環這類時尚配件，2014 年，中國設計師奕平（Yin Peng，音譯）在中國時裝週以「霾害時裝」為題，把口罩當作時裝搭配的一部分。

▲ 2 月 1 日，新加坡一個家庭免費發放 4 個口罩，口罩文宣強調，身體健康的人不用戴，有發燒、咳嗽、流鼻水，或是感冒正在痊癒的人才需要戴。（Source：達志影像）

口罩確實不是萬靈丹，也需要搭配勤洗手等防疫作業，關於什麼時機要戴口罩、要怎麼做比較好，可以參考台灣衛生福利部疾病管制署製作的影片。

註：本文特別感謝像我這樣的一個小旅人、倫敦男子日常 london.nanzhi、Leven in Nederland 台灣護理師的荷蘭生活記實、歐洲職涯顧問、瑞典劉先生、Ambrose@London 惡鬼的倫敦大冒險、說土語的臺灣菸酒生提供他們在歐洲的生活經驗（依文中出現順序排序），以及 Taiwan in Österreich 駐奧地利代表處提供的資訊。但要注意的是，不一定能代表所有歐洲國家的現況。
（本文由 地球圖輯隊 授權轉載；首圖來源：shutterstock）

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title: 為什麼歐洲人不喜歡戴口罩？

events: 武漢肺炎 空污 火災 地震 冠狀病毒

countries: 瑞典 中國 土耳其 台灣 日本 新加坡 德國 荷蘭 香港 奧地利 瑞士 英國 臺灣