Eye On Taiwan

Virus Outbreak: Britons’ pan of quarantine to BBC ‘not true’ Posted: 26 Mar 2020 07:25 PM PDT FALSE INFORMATION: The report quoted the mother of a British woman quarantined in Taiwan as saying that her daughter and the daughter’s partner are ‘in prison-like conditions’ Taipei Times Date: Mar 27, 2020 By: Sherry Hsiao and Lin Chia-nan / Staff reportersA BBC report that quotes Britons’ complaints A room at the Hualien County’s quarantine center is pictured in an undated photograph. Photo provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about quarantine conditions they experienced in Taiwan is not true, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, expressing regret over damage done to the nation’s reputation for competent disease-prevention measures. The BBC report published on Wednesday quoted the mother of a British woman quarantined in Taiwan as saying that her daughter and the daughter’s partner were quarantined on Wednesday last week and are being kept “in prison-like conditions.” “The room is filthy. She has no hot water and nowhere to wash her clothes,” the mother was quoted as saying, without naming the location of her quarantine. Refuting the report at a news conference in Taipei yesterday, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the Central Epidemic Command Center, said that the center “did not mistreat” the couple.    [FULL  STORY]

Why Taiwan Hasn’t Shut Down Its Economy Posted: 26 Mar 2020 02:07 PM PDT Mises Wire Date: March 26, 2020 By: Javier Caramés SanchezWilliam Hongsong Wang As the Austrian school of economics demonstrates in the calculation theory of socialism, no central planning body has the capacity to organize society based on coercive mandates. The main reason is that the central planner is unable to obtain all the necessary information to organize society in this way, as information has subjective, creative, dispersed, and tacit qualities. This principle is fully applicable to the containment of a pandemic. Individual responsibility along with transparency of information are crucial to stopping a pandemic. Taiwan makes a very good case for how individualism and voluntary corporation work effectively in resisting the coronavirus pandemic. Close to the Chinese Mainland, but Relatively Few People Infected At the moment in Taiwan, the infection has been completely contained despite being one of the countries with the highest risk of suffering a pandemic, given that the Republic of China (ROC) is very close to the Chinese mainland (the People’s Republic of China (PRC)). Until January there were flights between Taiwan’s capital, Taipei, and the epicenter of Wuhan, China. However, as of March 21 there were only 153 infected at the same time that Europe, far away from the Chinese mainland, has more than ten thousand affected by the coronavirus. However, in Taiwan and other parts of Asia, including Singapore and Hong Kong, no massive mandatory quarantine or containment has been applied so far. How did Taiwan achieve this?    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan’s Taoyuan Airport MRT reduces services due to virus Posted: 26 Mar 2020 02:01 PM PDT Service frequency changed to express train every 30 minutes during off-peak hours Taiwan News Date: 2020/03/26 By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer (CNA photo) TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taoyuan Airport MRT will reduce services and run an express train every 30 minutes during off-peak hours due to the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, CNA reported. Taoyuan Metro Corporation decided to implement the adjustment from April 6 to June 14, according to the report. Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) agreed, saying though commuters still take the airport MRT, the volume of passengers has decreased significantly, the report said. [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan shares rise, close above 9,700 points Posted: 26 Mar 2020 01:58 PM PDT Focus Taiwan Date: 03/26/2020 By: Flor Wang and Pan Chih-yi Taipei, March 26 (CNA) Taiwan shares finished above 9,700 points on the local stock market Thursday after the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose for the second day in a row. Led by computer-related shares, the weighted index, the key barometer of the Taiwan Stock Exchange, ended the day 91.61 points higher, or 0.95 percent, at 9,736.36. Turnover totaled NT$152.79 billion (US$5.04 billion). Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacture Co. (TSMC), the world's largest contract chipmaker and most heavily weighted stock on the local market, climbed 1.08 percent to NT$280. Largan Precision Co., a supplier of smartphone camera lenses to Apple Inc., soared 2.7 percent to NT$3,995, while iPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. lost 0.56 percent to finish at NT$71.    [FULL  STORY]

Intel supplier to invest US$23.1m Posted: 26 Mar 2020 01:55 PM PDT Taipei Times Date: Mar 27, 2020 By: Natasha Li / Staff reporter The Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday gave the green light to Good Way Technology Co’s (東碩資訊) application to invest up to NT$700 million (US$23.1 million) in Taiwan under a three-year program that provides incentives for overseas Taiwanese companies to invest back home. Good Way, which specializes in docking stations and counts Intel Corp among its major clients, plans to set up a manufacturing facility in New Taipei City’s Sijhih District (汐止), the ministry said in a statement. Good Way, which has a research and development facility in Taiwan and only one manufacturing plant — in Kunshan, China — decided to expand its operations in Taiwan to meet customers’ requests that it diversifies its production to lower risks amid trade tensions between the US and China, the ministry said. The ministry also approved three other companies’ investment applications: mechanical parts maker Chenming Electronic Tech Corp (晟銘電子), golf club manufacturer Juming Co (鉅明) and storage furniture maker Huei Tyng Enterprise Co (輝庭企業).   [FULL  STORY]

COVID-19: Number of Taiwan cases reaches 252 Posted: 26 Mar 2020 01:52 PM PDT Radio Taiwan International Date: 26 March, 2020 By: John Van Trieste Taiwan has confirmed 17 new cases of COVID-19. The new cases bring Taiwan’s total since the Chen Shih-chung appears in this RTI file photo. COVID-19 pandemic began up to 252. Health Minister Chen Shih-chung announced the new cases Thursday in the latest daily press conference about the pandemic. Most of the new cases are imported, brought in by patients who had recently traveled to the US, the UK, New Zealand, Spain, Malaysia, Morocco, and Mexico. Only two of the new cases are local, but in both cases, the patients are known to have been in contact with other patients who had gotten sick abroad.   [FULL  STORY\]

Coronavirus Kent: MP secures life-saving equipment from Taiwan to tackle Covid-19 Posted: 26 Mar 2020 01:49 PM PDT Kent Online Date:\ 26 March 2020 By: Chloe Holmwood The coronavirus has claimed more than 570 lives in the UK and in Kent yesterday saw the biggest spike in cases, with an extra 30 people testing positive for Covid-19. With the need for more ventilators to tackle the pandemic, tech company Dyson has pledged to MP Tom Tugendhat. Picture: Parliament TV make 10,000, while Tom Tugendhat, the chair of the foreign affairs committee, has secured life-saving equipment from Taiwan and believes we should be learning from their strict response. More than two months on from their first case, they have had just 252 people testing positive and two deaths. Mr Tugendhat, the Tonbridge and Malling MP, said: "I am very glad we have changed our tactics. The idea that we could be aiming for herd immunity, I think, was wrong and I am very glad we have changed that. "What we are now doing, I think, is right, which is protecting as many people as possible." [FULL  STORY]

Fake Facebook obituary for Taiwan vice president originated in China Posted: 26 Mar 2020 01:38 PM PDT Text with picture alleged Vice President-elect William Lai had been infected with Wuhan coronavirus Taiwan News Date: 2020/03/26 By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer A CIB spokesman with the fake obituary  (CNA photo) TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A fake obituary claiming that Vice President-elect William Lai (賴清德) had died of a coronavirus infection included expressions popular in China, indicating the origin of the posting, investigators said Thursday (March 26). After a tipoff from a member of the public, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) investigated the item and concluded the Facebook account was not Taiwanese. It used simplified characters common in China and expressions not used by Taiwanese, CNA reported.   [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan’s COVID-19 patients mainly experience mild symptoms: CECC Posted: 26 Mar 2020 01:34 PM PDT Focus Taiwan Date: 03/26/2020 By: Flor Wang, Chen Wei-ting and Yu Hsiao-han Chang Shan-chwen (Photo courtesy of the Central Epidemic Command Center) Taipei, March 26 (CNA) A majority of coronavirus COVID-19 patients in Taiwan suffer from mild symptoms, but have to be hospitalized for a long period for detox treatment, an expert with the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said Thursday. Presenting an analysis of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Taiwan, CECC advisory specialist panel convener Chang Shan-chwen (張上淳) said symptoms were mild or moderate in about 70 percent of the 235 patients across the country. In the cases examined, the youngest patient was 4 years old, the oldest 88 and women slightly outnumbered men, with a median age of 32. About 12 percent were at high risk, Chang said. Of the 235 cases, 38 were locally acquired while 197 were imported, according to Chang. [FULL STORY]

US warships in Taiwan Strait anger China Posted: 26 Mar 2020 01:31 PM PDT ODD TIMING: Taiwan has called Chinese drills around the Taiwan Strait provocative and urged Beijing to focus on combating COVID-19 rather than harass its neighbor Taipei Times Date: Mar 27, 2020 By: Ben Blanchard / Reuters, TAIPEI China yesterday accused the US of playing a dangerous game with its support for Taiwan, after a US warship passed through Taiwan Strait. China has been angered by the administration of US President Donald Trump stepping up support for the nation, such as through more arms sales, US patrols near Taiwan and last month’s visit to Washington by former premier and vice president-elect William Lai (賴清德). US Seventh Fleet spokesman Lieutenant Anthony Junco said the guided-missile destroyer USS McCampbell conducted “a routine Taiwan Strait transit” on Wednesday, in line with international law. “The ship’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the US’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” he said. “The US Navy will continue to fly, sail and operate anywhere international law allows.”    [FULL  STORY]