In an effort to expand neighborhood networks to combat domestic violence and support victims of violence, the Taiwan Coalition Against Violence held a ceremony yesterday to welcome its first volunteers in a new campaign to educate communities.
Anyone willing to act as the alliance’s “eyes” and report domestic violence, participate in victim support programs and help raise awareness of domestic violence is welcome to contact the alliance to learn more about becoming a “friend” of the coalition.
“Domestic violence not only hurts the victims — women in most cases — the victims’ children suffer and society and the state pay high prices for such crimes as well,” coalition chairwoman Chou Ching-yu (周清玉) said at a ceremony to present certificates to the first nine people to join the drive.
Chou said that in the past, the public felt that whatever happens within a family, including violence, is a personal family matter.
“But that’s not how it works,” Chou said.
An important role for coalition “friends” will be to spread information in their communities about domestic violence and make clear that violence within the family is illegal.
“The government has made great efforts to prevent domestic violence, many non-governmental groups are also working on it, but it’s not enough,” Chou continued.
“We need more people to join us to look out for domestic violence in every corner of society and to help raise public awareness,” Chou said.
Tang Mei-yun (唐美雲), a well-known opera singer and the coalition’s first permanent member, said she signed up to volunteer because she wanted to contribute to society.
Deputy Minister of the Interior Lin Join-sane (林中森) encouraged more people to join.
“There is no place for domestic violence and sexual harassment in a civilized country like ours,” Lin said.
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
Lawmakers from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday established a friendship group with their counterparts in Ukraine to promote parliamentary exchanges between the two countries. A ceremony in Taipei for the Taiwan-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Association, initiated by DPP Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷), was attended by lawmakers and officials, including Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) and European Economic and Trade Office in Taiwan Director Lutz Gullner. The increasingly dire situation in Ukraine is a global concern, and Taiwan cannot turn its back when the latter is in need of help, as the two countries share many common values and interests,
RSS