The Life Conservationist Association yesterday said that hundreds of wild animals are sold over the Internet because they are not included in the Wildlife Conservation Act (野生動物保育法).
At a press conference held with Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ting Shou-chung (丁守中), the group said that a survey of more than 60 blogs and Internet sites revealed that more than 260 types of wild animal were being sold openly. As the animals are not part of the act, there are no laws to govern or prohibit the sale of such animals, despite their rarity and need for protection, the group said.
Chen Chien-chih (陳建志), a professor of environmental education and resources at the Taipei Municipal University of Education, said the results of the survey showed that the government should seriously consider an amendment to the act that would prohibit such sales.
“Not only are many of the wild animals being sold on the Internet rare and precious, if their owners neglect to care for them and the animals are released it would pose a serious threat to the nation’s ecosystem,” Chen said.
Ting called on the Council of Agriculture to establish a comprehensive set of mechanisms to investigate the sale of wild animals over the Internet and conduct stricter and wider inspections of animals brought into Taiwan to prevent the sale of protected species.
In response, Forestry Bureau Deputy Director-General Lee Tao-sheng (李桃生), who was present at the press conference, said the bureau is doing its best with limited resources and manpower.
“We will gather a committee of experts and academics to discuss expanding the types of species included in the Wildlife Conservation Act,” Lee said.
Lee said that because the act is outdated, the bureau has already begun the process of drafting an updated list of species that should be protected.
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
RSS