Despite air raid drill pledge, Taipei residents report 'no difference'

Taipei, July 17 (CNA) The Urban Resilience air raid drill was held in Taipei Thursday, with residents in one of the exercises' three "key verification zones" in Taiwan's capital reporting little to no difference compared with previous years, despite government pledges of stricter enforcement.

Formerly known as the Wan An exercise, the air raid drills, which conclude Friday, are now part of the "Urban Resilience Exercise," which also incorporates the Min An disaster prevention and rescue exercise.

In Taipei, the designated key verification zones -- where the government said more stringent measures would be enforced -- were Songshan, Zhongshan and Zhongzheng districts. Air raid sirens sounded at 1:30 p.m., signaling the start of the half-hour drill.

In Songshan District, the roads had largely been emptied by 1:30 p.m. Shortly after the sirens sounded, a bus pulled over to let passengers disembark.

They were directed by police officers to enter the nearby MRT Songshan station, where people casually stood or sat leaning against walls without adopting a low posture or covering their eyes and ears - actions recommended by the Taiwanese government in an air raid.

A nearby convenience store temporarily turned off its automatic door and the lights, as a clerk physically pushed open the door to let pedestrians who were unable to find shelter in.

Asked by CNA whether the store had planned a nearby basement or air raid shelter to which they would guide shoppers, as was instructed by the All-out Defense Mobilization Agency, which oversees the drills, the clerk said it had not.

"We didn't receive any instructions," she told CNA before the drill.

She reported only a "slight" change this year.

"In the past, we didn't turn off the lights, and we continued checking customers out [during the drill]," she said.

Similarly, an accountant at a nearby grocery store sounded perplexed when asked whether they had directed shoppers to a nearby shelter.

"We just told them there will be a drill, and they would either have to stay inside for half an hour or find somewhere else to be," she said.

The stores stopping short of guiding shoppers to shelters contradicted a remark by Chu Sen-tsuen (朱森村), head of the agency's Manpower Mobilization Division, who told CNA following a July 1 Ministry of National Defense news conference that "for the first time" in the history of the annual air raid, retail venues must assist shoppers to move to a nearby air raid shelter or basement during the drill.

Regarding the level of compliance in the capital, a source involved in the Taipei drill told CNA that "the government's recommended rules for taking shelter in an air raid are 'better to be underground than on the surface; better be indoors than outdoors.'"

"That's why we would rather people [in stores] not seek other shelters after the sirens have gone off," the source said.

Meanwhile, asked if China's sword rattling in recent years had added a sense of realism to the drill or changed how she perceives it, a student staying at MRT Songshan station told CNA it had not.

"I think it's unlikely [that China will attack]," said Chen, a student at the Songshan High School of Agriculture and Industry.

Chen, however, criticized what she described as the government's lack of commitment to the air raid drill.

"If you want to conduct a drill, do it properly," she said.

"For example, if the southern regions cannot conduct the drill due to damage from a natural disaster, postpone it so that everyone can participate instead of canceling it altogether," she said.

She also questioned the need for designating "key verification zones" instead of placing the entire country on the same alert level during the drill.

Meanwhile, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) and Minister Without Portfolio Chi Lien-cheng (季連成) inspected the basement of Songshan District Administration Center during the drill, where 178 staff members were taking shelter and adopting personal safety measures.

Several foreign dignitaries were also present to observe the exercise, including Saint Christopher and Nevis' Ambassador to Taiwan Donya Francis, American Institute in Taiwan Director Raymond Greene, and Lutz Güllner, head of the European Economic and Trade Office in Taiwan.