Chunghwa Post yesterday announced a series of measures to prevent the delivery of dangerous items through its system.
The state-run company made the announcement after three employees of a care facility in Ulsan, South Korea, on Thursday reported that they had difficulty breathing and were taken to a hospital for treatment after opening a package that had transited through Taiwan.
The postal company traced the origin of the package and found that it was initially sent from China and transshipped to South Korea through Chunghwa Post’s delivery service.
Photo: EPA-EFE
A Criminal Investigation Bureau probe found that the package had been shipped by surface mail from China and sorted through Chunghwa Post’s freight forwarding center during a stopover in Taiwan. It was later shipped directly to South Korea by air, without passing through Taiwan’s customs.
The incident prompted Chunghwa Post to suspend delivery of packages to South Korea commissioned by the Taiwanese logistics firm that received the package from China.
Korea Post expanded its search by tracing the whereabouts of more than 2,500 packages that were sent along with the parcel.
Delivery would not to be resumed until after Korea Post completes its investigation, Chunghwa Post said.
The Taiwanese logistics firm could be fined up to NT$150,000 if it is found to have breached the terms of mail delivery contracts, the post office said, adding that it would be asked to pay additional compensation should Chunghwa Post incur additional financial losses because of the incident.
“In view of this incident, we have asked logistics firms or freight forwarders to accept only items for delivery from logistics firms and suppliers verified by cross-border e-commerce platforms. They are banned from accepting goods from individuals,” Chunghwa Post said.
To increase control over goods that are to be delivered through the mail transshipment system, the postal firm said it would add a vetting system for suspicious items, such as solid aroma compounds and liquid essences, as well as items that were frequently misrepresented on customs reports, such as lip balm and makeup cotton.
Under current regulations, eight categories of items are banned from being delivered through Chunghwa Post’s transshipment service, including sharp metals, valuables, items prohibited from importation by the destination country, live animals, obscene items, dangerous items, narcotic drugs and other prohibited items. Mail would be sent after customs X-ray the packages and confirm that they do not contain problematic content.
‘JOINT SWORD’: Whatever President Lai says in his Double Ten speech, China would use it as a pretext to launch ‘punishment’ drills for his ‘separatist’ views, an official said China is likely to launch military drills this week near Taiwan, using President William Lai’s (賴清德) upcoming national day speech as a pretext to pressure the nation to accept its sovereignty claims, Taiwanese officials said. China in May launched “punishment” drills around Taiwan shortly after Lai’s inauguration, in what Beijing said was a response to “separatist acts,” sending heavily armed warplanes and staging mock attacks as state media denounced newly inaugurated Lai. The May drills were dubbed “Joint Sword — 2024A” and drew concerns from capitals, including Washington. Lai is to deliver a key speech on Thursday in front of the Presidential Office
Taiwan was listed in 14th place among the world's wealthiest country in terms of GDP per capita, in the latest rankings released on Monday by Forbes magazine. Taiwan's GDP per capita was US$76,860, which put it at No. 14 on the list of the World's 100 Richest Countries this year, one spot above Hong Kong with US$75,130. The magazine's list of the richest countries in the world is compiled based on GDP per capita data, as estimated by the IMF. However, for a more precise measure of a nation's wealth, the magazine also considers purchasing power parity, which is a metric used to
Taipei’s Ximending (西門町) shopping area welcomed the most international visitors, followed by Taipei 101, Songshan Cultural and Creative Park and Yangmingshan National Park (陽明山國家公園), a list of the city’s most popular tourist attractions published by the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism showed. As of August, 69.22 million people had visited Taipei’s main tourism spots, a 76 percent increase from 39.33 million in the same period last year, department data showed. Ximending had 20.21 million visitors, followed by Taipei 101 at 8.09 million, Songshan Cultural and Creative Park at 6.28 million, Yangmingshan at 4.51 million and the Red House Theater (西門紅樓) in
NINTH MONTH: There were 11,792 births in Taiwan last month and 15,563 deaths, or a mortality rate of 8.11 per 1,000 people, household registration data showed Taiwan’s population was 23,404,138 as of last month, down 2,470 from August, the ninth consecutive month this year that the nation has reported a drop, the Ministry of the Interior said on Wednesday. The population last month was 162 fewer than the same month last year, a decline of 0.44 per day, the ministry said, citing household registration data. Taiwan reported 11,792 births last month, or 3.7 births per day, up 149 from August, it said, adding that the monthly birthrate was 6.15 per 1,000 people. The jurisdictions with the highest birthrates were Yunlin County at 14.62 per 1,000 people, Penghu County (8.61
RSS