More than 1,000, mostly male, students from the nation's military academies graduated yesterday at a commencement attended by the president and vice president.
But it was the female graduates who won the praise of Minister of National Defense Tang Yao-ming (
"I must say, the girls did a better job than the boys," Tang said at a dinner with the presidents of six military academies on Thursday evening.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Tang said the female students had tried hard to attain the tough standards expected of them, both mentally and physically.
The same could not be said of the male students, he said.
"These boys' performances worried me a lot, because statistics showed that they did not do well at school when it came to Chinese composition, English comprehension and physical strength. There is still room to improve," he said.
A joint commencement for 1,038 graduates was held at the Fu Hsing Kang College yesterday morning attended by President Chen Shui-bian (
The students graduated from the Chinese Naval Academy, the Chinese Military Academy, the Chinese Air Force Academy, the Fu Hsing Kang College, the Chung Cheng Institute of Technology and the National Defense Management College.
In a break from tradition, the graduates sang pop songs, rather than military marches, when waiting for their superiors to arrive.
While Tang expressed his concern about the graduates this year, Chen seemed more than confident in their abilities.
"I saw it in your eyes that you are ready to fly high," Chen said at the commencement. "Dream high and work hard because it is your job to protect this country and people from now on."
The focus of attention yesterday was on twins Lee Cheng-an (李政恩) and Lee Cheng-che (李政哲) from the Chinese Naval Academy. They both graduated with honors and will begin their service on Taiwan's most advanced warships -- the Lafayette-class frigates.
Of 69 graduates from the Chinese Naval Academy, Lee Cheng-an came at the top of his class, followed by his younger brother.
They both became ensigns.
As two of the top three students from their military academy, they were allowed to choose in which unit they would begin their military careers.
"I want to be the best of the best. The Lafayette-class frigate is also the best of the best so it was my first choice," Lee Cheng-an said.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
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