Anyone who makes discriminatory comments to others based on nationality, race, color of skin, class, or place of birth could face a fine of between NT$5,000 (US$160) and NT$30,000 as early as June, a National Immigration Agency (NIA) official said yesterday.
The agency has drafted an anti-discrimination bill for all people living in Taiwan and submitted the bill to the Ministry of the Interior for review, NIA official Tsao Ku-ling (曹顧齡) told the Taipei Times during a telephone interview yesterday.
According to the draft, "discrimination" is defined as insulting, threatening or intimidating a person through verbal, written, televised, radio broadcast or other forms of communication based on race, nationality, skin color or birthplace, Tsao said.
Arguing that people of a certain nationality, race, skin color or birth place are superior or inferior would also constitute a violation, she said.
Although the draft was initially designed to protect the rights of immigrants, the new version applies to everybody.
"We will create a panel with 15 to 21 people from the government, academics and non-governmental organization [NGO] representatives to assess complaints of discrimination," Tsao said.
If the accusations are found to be true, "panel members would require corrections within a certain period of time. If no correction is made, the wrongdoers will be fined," she said.
PLA MANEUVERS: Although Beijing has yet to formally announce military drills, its coast guard vessels have been spotted near and around Taiwan since Friday The Taiwanese military is on high alert and is closely monitoring the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) air and naval deployments after Beijing yesterday reserved seven airspace areas east of its Zhejiang and Fujian provinces through Wednesday. Beijing’s action was perceived as a precursor to a potential third “Joint Sword” military exercise, which national security experts said the PLA could launch following President William Lai’s (賴清德) state visits to the nation’s three Pacific allies and stopovers in Hawaii and Guam last week. Unlike the Joint Sword military exercises in May and October, when Beijing provided detailed information about the affected areas, it
Five flights have been arranged to help nearly 2,000 Taiwanese tourists return home from Okinawa after being stranded due to cruise ship maintenance issues, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced yesterday. China Airlines Ltd (中華航空), and EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空) have arranged five flights with a total of 748 additional seats to transport 1,857 passengers from the MSC Bellissima back to Taiwan, the ministry said. The flights have been scheduled for yesterday and today by the Civil Aviation Administration, with the cruise operator covering all associated costs. The MSC Bellissima, carrying 4,341 passengers, departed from Keelung on Wednesday last week for Okinawa,
US president-elect Donald Trump said he would “never say” if Washington is committed to defending Taiwan from China, but “I would prefer that they do not do it [ an attack],” adding that he has a “good relationship” with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). “I never say because I have to negotiate things, right?” Trump said in an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press host Kristen Welker after saying he would not reveal his incoming administration’s stance on Taiwan’s defense in the event of an attack. Asked the question again, Trump, in a reference to China, said: “I would prefer that they
CROSS-STRAIT TENSIONS: MOFA demanded Beijing stop its military intimidation and ‘irrational behavior’ that endanger peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region The Presidential Office yesterday called on China to stop all “provocative acts,” saying ongoing Chinese military activity in the nearby waters of Taiwan was a “blatant disruption” of the “status quo” of security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. Defense officials said they have detected Chinese ships since Monday, both off Taiwan and farther out along the first island chain. They described the formations as two walls designed to demonstrate that the waters belong to China. The Ministry of National Defense yesterday said it had detected 53 military aircraft operating around the nation over the past 24 hours, as well
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