Members of a taxi drivers’ union yesterday protested outside the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office before filing charges against Uber Taiwan general manager Gu Li-kai (顧立楷) for violations of the Company Act (公司法), as controversy continues over how to respond to the ride-hailing app.
“We are here today because the government has disappointed us with its lack of action, and we hope that the courts can provide us and consumers with appropriate guarantees,” Taipei City Professional Drivers’ Union president Cheng Li-chia (鄭力嘉) said.
“The Ministry of Transportation and Communications says they will not allow Uber to continue operating as long as it is illegal, but it has already been four years since the firm’s entrance — what the hell are they doing?” he said, while criticizing the ministry’s plans to loosen taxi regulations to allow for “diversification.”
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
“They came up with these plans only after Uber’s entrance and have not paid much attention to our voice in discussions,” he said. “What they have repeatedly said is that they want to help us compete with Uber — but how are we supposed to compete with something that is illegal?”
Taxi drivers say that the firm’s operations violate the Highway Act (公路法), adding that tax avoidance and exemptions from insurance requirements give Uber drivers unfair advantages, leading to predatory pricing.
Cheng also condemned reports that the Executive Yuan was considering freezing a possible revocation of Uber’s investment permit by the Investment Commission as it considers legal amendments to facilitate legalization.
“If the license is not revoked before Friday next week, we will act immediately and take to the streets,” he said, adding that some drivers suggested blocking major arteries in protest.
“Our position is that Uber’s current mode of providing services is illegal. We will continue to investigate and fine the firm,” Minister of Transportation and Communications Hochen Tan (賀陳旦) said, denying the ministry’s position had changed.
Investment Commission Executive Secretary Emile Chang (張銘斌) denied that a decision has been made on whether to revoke the firm’s investment permit, saying a decision would be made next week.
Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China when traveling in countries with close ties to Beijing, Taiwan Association of University Professors deputy chairman Chen Li-fu (陳俐甫) said on Friday. Chen’s comments came after China on Friday last week announced new judicial guidelines targeting Taiwanese independence advocates. Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Djibouti are among the countries where Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China, he said. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday elevated the travel alert for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange” after Beijing announced its guidelines to “severely punish Taiwanese independence diehards for splitting the country and inciting secession.” Extradition treaties
Taiwan and Thailand have signed an agreement to promote and protect bilateral investment and trade, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations (OTN) said on Friday. The agreement on “Promotion and Protection of Investments” was signed by Representative to Thailand Chang Chun-fu (張俊福) and Thailand Trade and Economic Office in Taipei executive director Narong Boonsatheanwong on Thursday, the OTN said in a news release. Thailand has become the fifth trading partner to sign an investment agreement with Taiwan since 2016, following earlier agreements with the Philippines, India, Vietnam and Canada, the OTN said. The deal marks a significant milestone in the development of
The entire Alishan Forest Railway line is to reopen for the first time in 15 years on Saturday, with tickets to go on sale at 2pm today. The historic railway from Chiayi to Alishan (阿里山) is finally set to reopen after the completion of the final No. 42 tunnel, Alishan Forest Railway and Cultural Heritage Office Deputy Director-General Chou Heng-kai (周恆凱) said. It is to run on a new timetable, with four trains daily, he said. The 9am train is to depart from Chiayi Railway Station bound for Shizilu Station (十字路), while the 10am train departing from Chiayi is to go all the
CROSS-BORDER CRIME: The suspects cannot be charged with cybercrime in Indonesia as their targets were in Malaysia, an Indonesian immigration director said Indonesian immigration authorities have detained 103 Taiwanese after a raid at a villa on Bali, officials said yesterday. They were accused of misusing their visas and residence permits, and are suspected of possible cybercrimes, Safar Muhammad Godam, director of immigration supervision and enforcement at the Indonesian Ministry of Law and Human Rights told reporters at a news conference. “The 103 foreign nationals stayed at the villa and conducted suspicious activities, which we suspect are activities related to cybercrime activities,” he said, presenting laptops and routers at the news conference. Godam said Indonesian authorities cannot charge them with conducting cybercrime. “During the inspection, we