The use of Chinese drones for anti-China events while the same drones were banned for life-saving operations, such as firefighting, was preposterous and a clear case of getting one’s priorities wrong, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Liao Wei-hsiang (廖偉翔) said on Friday.
The drone used to capture the aerial photo of the Kuma Civil Defense Education Association event on Dec. 8 at Taipei’s Huashan 1914 Cultural Creative Park, where 1,000 participants formed the words “Defend Taiwan,” was manufactured by Shenzhen DJI Sciences and Technologies (DJI, (深圳大疆創新科技有限公司), Liao said.
The foundation is affiliated with the Kuma Academy, a grassroots organization co-founded by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker Puma Shen (沈伯洋) and businessman Robert Tsao (曹興誠) that aims to promote civil defense.
Photo courtesy of the Kuma Academy
The Kuma Academy in a Facebook post on Thursday admitted the drone used by the contractor to take the picture was indeed a DJI drone and that it would launch a review of the incident as well as step up dialogue efforts with future partners to prevent a similar incident from occurring.
The Kuma Academy has been a proponent of blocking Xiaomi-manufactured robot vacuuming machines, claiming the China-made products posed risks to national security, Liao said.
The DPP government has also banned the use of DJI drones on similar grounds, he added, pointing to a demand by the Ministry of Digital Affairs that firefighting units nationwide shelve all drones exceeding a price of NT$12 million (US$369,079) on grounds of national security risks before demanding that the National Fire Agency budget NT$260 million to purchase drones that individually cost NT$700,000 each, Liao said.
Drones fitting the criteria for firefighting duties — portable, under 2kg and capable of transmitting their locations precisely, can be maintained and repaired quickly and can hold items via suspension — could not be obtained, even with NT$260 million, because no one could manufacture such machines.
In addition, firefighters were less willing to use expensive machinery from other brands, as it would be expensive to maintain or replace, he said.
It is a mystery why the Kuma Academy can skirt such regulations for an anti-China protest, while similar regulations have created a vacuum in the National Fire Agency’s ability to do its job, Liao said.
Liao also questioned why the National Fire Agency has to budget NT$260 million for drones that may not meet its operational criteria when the Kuma Academy could so easily flout regulations for a protest.
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