■ Society
Mausoleum park proposed
Two DPP legislators have proposed that the mausoleums for the late presidents Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) and his son Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) be turned into a historic park. DPP legislators Trong Chai (蔡同榮) and Lin Chin-hsing (林進興) said in a press release that they have proposed that the Ministry of National Defense hand over the management of the adjacent mausoleums in Fuhsing Township, Taoyuan County, to the Tourism Bureau. Lin said that if the bureau took over the mausoleums' management, it would boost tourism. They also suggested that a park be set up in Tahsi, Fuhsing Township and that the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall should be renamed
the Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall.
■ Labor affairs
New rules target employers
In view of the high abscon-sion rate of some foreign workers, the Council of Labor Affairs has decided
to target the employers for the lax management of
their workers, officials said yesterday. They made the announcement to encourage employers not to neglect their responsibilities, as
the number of foreign laborers running away has reached 8,000. The officials said the measure was put in place April 1 and is not retroactive. Under the new regulations, employers of maids or care-givers will not be allowed to recruit or extend contracts if they
are found to have had two workers run away in the
past two years. In the case of the manufacturing, con-struction and fishery sectors, and medical-care institu-tions, if the absconding
level reaches a certain point, the employers will not be allowed to recruit more laborers or extend existing contracts for two years.
■ Travel
Ministry issues reminder
Ministry of Economic Affairs officials urged Taiwanese business travelers to pay attention to new security measures adopted by US airports aimed at preventing terrorist attacks. The US National Transportation Safety Board has recently announced new regulations concerning airport security checks under which customs officials can inspect luggage without warning and can break open locks if neces-sary, although they will put notification of the inspection in the luggage afterward.
■ Travel
MOFA probes Vietnam death
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday it is handling the case of busi-nessman Hsieh Teh-chou (謝德州) who died in Vietnam. Chen Shih-liang (陳士良), deputy director of the ministry's Asian-Pacific Affairs Department, said Hsieh's family was told of
his death on Friday. "Our representative office in Ho Chi Minh City has asked Vietnamese authorities not to move Hsieh's body before the arrival of his family," Chen said. Initial reports showed that Hsieh lost contact with his family after he traveled to Cambodia last month. The family learned Wednesday that Hsieh had been arrested by police in Ho Chi Minh City for allegedly entering Vietnam without proper travel papers.
■ Diplomacy
Praise from California
California Governor Gray Davis hailed Taiwan's economic achievement Friday and said his state should forge closer cooperative ties with the country. Davis made the remarks while meeting with two of Taiwan's represen-tatives stationed in his state after attending the 42nd California Prayer Breakfast.
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai