A rally last year run to oppose the legalization of same-sex marriage may have violated government regulations, the Taiwan International Association for Gay Rights said yesterday.
The association’s spokesman Chen Chih-ming (陳志明) told a press conference in Taipei that the coalition was not registered at the Ministry of the Interior, and that funding raised by the group had gone into church coffers was also suspicious.
Chen said the Charity Donations Act (公益勸募條例) states that donations made to religious groups cannot be used for nonreligious activities, adding that the Nov. 30 rally held by the Coalition for the Happiness of Our Next Generation had been designated a “civilian movement.”
“From the accounts I received of the donations, the Taiwan Lutheran Church raised NT$20 million [US$662,799] from the event, but it was not clear where the money went,” Chen said, adding that he suspected the coalition was manipulating the anti-gay marriage subject to raise funds for the church.
The government should launch an investigation into the matter, Chen said.
Also present at the press conference was Ministry of Health and Welfare official Chiang Kuo-jen (江國仁). Chiang said he would look into the funds raised by the event organizers.
The ministry’s religion division chief Huang Shu-kuan (黃淑冠) said it was difficult to say how the event should have been classified, adding that the division would look into the matter.
Civil society groups yesterday protested outside the Legislative Yuan, decrying Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) efforts to pass three major bills that they said would seriously harm Taiwan’s democracy, and called to oust KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁). It was the second night of the three-day “Bluebird wintertime action” protests in Taipei, with organizers announcing that 8,000 people attended. Organized by Taiwan Citizen Front, the Economic Democracy Union (EDU) and a coalition of civil groups, about 6,000 people began a demonstration in front of KMT party headquarters in Taipei on Wednesday, organizers said. For the third day, the organizers asked people to assemble
Taipei is participating in Osaka’s Festival of Lights this year, with a 3m-tall bubble tea light installation symbolizing Taiwan’s bubble tea culture. The installation is designed as a bubble tea cup and features illustrations of Taipei’s iconic landmarks, such as Taipei 101, the Red House and North Gate, as well as soup dumplings and the matchmaking deity the Old Man Under the Moon (月下老人), affectionately known as Yue Lao (月老). Taipei and Osaka have collaborated closely on tourism and culture since Taipei first participated in the festival in 2018, the Taipei City Department of Information and Tourism said. In February, Osaka represented
POOR IMPLEMENTATION: Teachers welcomed the suspension, saying that the scheme disrupted school schedules, quality of learning and the milk market A policy to offer free milk to all school-age children nationwide is to be suspended next year due to multiple problems arising from implementation of the policy, the Executive Yuan announced yesterday. The policy was designed to increase the calcium intake of school-age children in Taiwan by drinking milk, as more than 80 percent drink less than 240ml per day. The recommended amount is 480ml. It was also implemented to help Taiwanese dairy farmers counter competition from fresh milk produced in New Zealand, which is to be imported to Taiwan tariff-free next year when the Agreement Between New Zealand and
IDENTITY SHIFT: Asked to choose to identify as either Taiwanese or Chinese, 83.3 percent of respondents chose Taiwanese, while 8.4 percent chose Chinese An overwhelming majority of Taiwanese, 71.5 percent, think that Taiwan should compete in international competitions under the name “Taiwan,” a Taiwan Brain Trust survey published yesterday showed. Referring to Taiwan’s victory last month at the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s Premier12, the survey results showed that 89.1 percent of respondents said that Taiwan’s exceptional performance in sporting competitions furthers national unity. Only 18.8 percent of respondents supported Taiwanese teams’ continued use of the name “Chinese Taipei” in international sporting competitions, the survey showed. Among Taiwan’s leading political parties, the name “Team Taiwan” was supported by 91.1 percent of self-identified Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) supporters,
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