Smoker rights groups yesterday protested outside the legislature in Taipei against a proposal to ban e-cigarettes.
Holding signs that read: “Consumers have rights, too,” “Give me the freedom to choose” and “Do not force me to smoke cigarettes,” protesters said the government should not impose a blanket prohibition against e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products (HTPs).
The government must respect the rights of smokers, they said, adding that it should offer people choices, instead of instituting an outright ban.
The protest was in response to the legislature’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee considering changes to the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (菸害防制法) that would
Taiwan and the US have a close working relationship in judiciary and legal assistance matters, and enhanced the partnership at a meeting with US attorneys general in Washington in December last year, Deputy Minister of Justice Tsai Pi-chung (蔡碧仲) said on Wednesday.
“It’s quite an honor. We were the only nation from abroad invited to participate,” Tsai said while presenting a briefing from the annual meeting of the US National Association of Attorneys General.
Tsai led a five-member delegation to the event, representing the ministry and officials from the prosecutors’ office.
“We feel proud, as our national flag was displayed on the