Taipei needs to continue to promote itself as a Muslim-friendly city so that it can be ready to welcome Muslim visitors when international tourism resumes, Taipei Deputy Mayor Tsai Ping-kun (蔡炳坤) told a news conference yesterday.
“Once our borders open for tourists, we need to have sufficient facilities for Muslim tourists,” Tsai said. “Even though we do not have many Muslim friends here at the moment, we are committed to building a foundation.”
If efforts to develop a Muslim-friendly city stop because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Taipei would not be ready when borders open for tourism, he said, adding that he understands the pandemic has heavily affected the tourism industry.
Photo courtesy of the Taipei City Government Department of Information and Tourism
Despite the lack of tourists, efforts have not gone to waste, he said.
Taiwan this year was ranked the second most attractive nation among those that are not Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) destinations for Muslim travelers as listed by the Global Muslim Travel Index, Tsai said.
The index, which was released in July, showed Taiwan and the UK tied for second among the top non-OIC destinations for Muslims, with a score of 57, trailing Singapore’s 69.
“We want to compete with Singapore for the No. 1 spot, especially as almost every visitor to Taiwan visits the capital,” Tsai said.
Taipei has been working with the Chinese Muslim Association for the past three years on the accreditation of Muslim-friendly places or tourist sites, he said.
Forty-nine hotels in Taipei have been certified, as have 16 sights in the city, he said.
“Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) hopes to make Taipei the world’s most Muslim-friendly tourist spot, and we are approaching that goal step by step,” Tsai said.
Separately, Chinese Muslim Association vice president Salahuding Ma (馬超彥) told reporters that he has noticed the efforts of Taipei to make itself Muslim-friendly, commending Taiwan’s friendly environment for making it possible.
“Taiwan is a very safe, very friendly and convenient place,” Ma said.
Ma said that a Muslim told him that while traveling in Taiwan, he was allowed to pray in convenience stores, which was not possible in some Western countries.
“Taiwan touches hearts, which visitors tell others when they return home,” Ma said.
The association provides advice and evaluates premises, such as making sure hotels signify the kiblah — the direction of Kaaba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, toward which Muslims pray — in prayer rooms and that alcoholic beverages are not provided in minibars.
Novi Irmania, a 31-year-old Indonesian doctoral student who has lived in Taiwan for seven years, said that Taipei is her second home, because it has many Muslim-friendly facilities.
“In many of the prayer rooms, they have kiblah for Muslims and also provide prayer mats, schedules and other items,” she said. “It is really touching.”
Malaysian Mohamad bin Mos, who has lived in Taiwan for five years and has cycled around Taiwan twice, said he is impressed with Taipei’s efforts to become a Muslim-friendly city.
It is convenient and safe to find a place to pray, while halal food is plentiful in Taipei, he said. “It is very safe, you can perform your prayers and rituals without any difficulties.”
CHANGING LANDSCAPE: Many of the part-time programs for educators were no longer needed, as many teachers obtain a graduate degree before joining the workforce, experts said Taiwanese universities this year canceled 86 programs, Ministry of Education data showed, with educators attributing the closures to the nation’s low birthrate as well as shifting trends. Fifty-three of the shuttered programs were part-time postgraduate degree programs, about 62 percent of the total, the most in the past five years, the data showed. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) discontinued the most part-time master’s programs, at 16: chemistry, life science, earth science, physics, fine arts, music, special education, health promotion and health education, educational psychology and counseling, education, design, Chinese as a second language, library and information sciences, mechatronics engineering, history, physical education
The Chinese military has boosted its capability to fight at a high tempo using the element of surprise and new technology, the Ministry of National Defense said in the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) published on Monday last week. The ministry highlighted Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) developments showing significant changes in Beijing’s strategy for war on Taiwan. The PLA has made significant headway in building capabilities for all-weather, multi-domain intelligence, surveillance, operational control and a joint air-sea blockade against Taiwan’s lines of communication, it said. The PLA has also improved its capabilities in direct amphibious assault operations aimed at seizing strategically important beaches,
‘MALIGN PURPOSE’: Governments around the world conduct espionage operations, but China’s is different, as its ultimate goal is annexation, a think tank head said Taiwan is facing a growing existential threat from its own people spying for China, experts said, as the government seeks to toughen measures to stop Beijing’s infiltration efforts and deter Taiwanese turncoats. While Beijing and Taipei have been spying on each other for years, experts said that espionage posed a bigger threat to Taiwan due to the risk of a Chinese attack. Taiwan’s intelligence agency said China used “diverse channels and tactics” to infiltrate the nation’s military, government agencies and pro-China organizations. The main targets were retired and active members of the military, persuaded by money, blackmail or pro-China ideology to steal
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty