2015-10-12
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On October 12, a press conference was held at the Municipal Building located on Taiwan Boulevard to announce the debut of "Property Trust Services Program for People with Disabilities". Guests attending the press conference included Mayor Lin; Lue Jen-der (呂建德), Director-general of Social Affairs Bureau; Lee Jih- chu (李紀珠), Chairperson of Bank of Taiwan; Peng Huai-chen (彭懷真), Chairman of Family Wellness Association (中華民國幸福家庭促進協會); and Lin Qiong-jia (林瓊嘉), Executive Director of Family Wellness Association. They all hoped that by combining a variety of professional plans, this program can help parents to protect their children with disabilities for the rest of their life and reduce the pressure on other family members.
Mayor Lin said, “It is a great honor for Taichung City Government to be the first to launch the Property Trust Services Program for people with disabilities in Taiwan. Under the collaboration of the Bank of Taiwan, the Family Wellness Association, and a large team of professionals, including lawyers, doctors, scholars and experts, we will work together to help people with disabilities and their families.
“Parents of people with disabilities not only take care of their children but are also worried of their survivability in the future. Now, the Bank of Taiwan will act as the trustee to look after the property for their children with disabilities. I believe everyone in the country will feel at ease now. We have many high-quality non-profit or non-governmental organizations in Taichung. I hope more people and more social welfare organizations will join this program to establish demonstration effect and then promote the program to everywhere in Taiwan.
“We established the Asia’s first Girls Museum in Taichung only yesterday. Today, we are here to launch this Property Trust Services Program. It is my sincere hope that Taichung will become a livable city for people to establish their family and raise their children. My team will continue to push out good policies, and I hope Social Affairs Bureau will make more people aware of our plans.”
Lee Jih-chu, Chairperson of Bank of Taiwan, said “I am very pleased that Bank of Taiwan has this opportunity to work with the Taichung City Government in this meaningful campaign. People with disabilities are always under pressure physically and mentally, and their parents are often worried about who will take care of their children when they die. This trust program will help resolve many concerns of those parents who have children with disabilities.”
Social Affairs Bureau of Taichung City Government pointed out that many parents of children with disabilities are worried of who to look after their children and how the property left to their children will be managed to ensure that the property can be "earmarked" for specified purposes without misappropriation or embezzlement.
To solve this dilemma, the Taichung City Government has thus used the surplus from Public Welfare Lottery to launch the Property Trust Services Program for people with disabilities in cooperation with the Bank of Taiwan and the Family Wellness Association, which act as the impartial third party to custody the property for people with disabilities.
Briefing sessions for the Property Trust Services Program have been held twice. Applicants each time have outnumbered the plan, witnessing the seriousness of this issue. A mom with an 18-year-old child with autism attended the first briefing session and personally delivered the relevant documents to the Family Wellness Association next day.
She said, “I have been thinking over the survival issue of my child since he was small. Of course, I have asked some banks how to open a trust account, but the entry barriers were unfortunately high for my current economic capability. I am happy that the Taichung City Government takes the lead to pilot test this Property Trust Services Program for people with disabilities. With the control of government agencies and the assistance from a team of professionals, I am confident this program will work and decide to seize the opportunity. Thus, I am here to apply.”
Lue Jen-der, Director-general of Social Affairs Bureau, said, “My special thanks to the full support of Bank of Taiwan. It has not only offered professional assistance but also adjusted the annual management fee to 0.2%. Currently, only cash management trust is open to application with an amount ranging from NT$ 1 million to NT$ 3 million. The upper limit is so set to encourage more people in need to join this program.
“To qualify, an applicant (a person with disabilities) must be aged 65 or under, has already registered his or her household in Taichung City for at least 6 months, and holds a new version of Proof of Disability Category 1, or the old version of Disability Manual Code 06 (a person with intellectual disability), 09 (a person in a vegetative state), 10 (a person with dementia), 11 (a person with autism), 12 (a patient with chronic mental illness), and/or 14 (a person with refractory epilepsy). Parents of children with disabilities may request an application form from the Social Affairs Bureau or the Family Wellness Association, or download it from the website of the Social Affairs Bureau of Taichung City Government.”
Peng Huai-chen, Chairman of Family Wellness Association, said, “To make people with disabilities enjoy more services from welfare institutions or organizations, your application form must be recommended by and stamped with the seal of a disability welfare group or institution. Then, you attach it with a photocopy of your disability manual and mail them to Family Wellness Association before the 15th of every month. We will review your application and your qualification every month and then arrange the signing of a trust contract. We have a team of lawyers, doctors, scholars and responsible persons from social welfare organizations to review your application and offer related services and assistance.”
unit:綜合企劃科
