Drill to be held to prepare island for avian flu outbreak

National Science Council Minister Chen Chien-jen, who concurrently heads a Cabinet task force on avian flu prevention and control, made the remarks in an interview with CNA.

Chen said the planned drill will be the second of its kind following a similar exercise in 2007. In that drill, some public functionaries were required to work from home as response measures were practiced in a simulation where Taiwan is hit by a human-to-human bird flu epidemic.

This year, Chen said, the private sector will join government agencies in the drill, particularly those in the transportation service and public utilities sector as well as some high-tech companies in the country’s three science-based industrial parks.

Chen said the policy of prohibiting the slaughter of live poultry in traditional markets will be put into force April 1 as scheduled.

“The government’s stance on carrying out this policy remains unchanged,” Chen said. Nevertheless, he acknowledged that certain complementary measures must be reinforced before the new slaughtering ban takes effect.

On a suggestion by local poultry farmers associations that Taiwan follow the example of Hong Kong in using glass to separate consumers from slaughtering areas in traditional markets, Chen claimed that the proposal is “not feasible in Taiwan.” In Hong Kong, each poultry vending booth covers an area of about 15 ping (one ping equals 3.31 square meters), which makes it possible to have glass erected to separate shoppers from poultry slaughtering areas. In Taiwan, each booth usually covers an area of just 5 ping, which he claimed is too small to accommodate any separating structures.

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