US President George W. Bush yesterday sent condolences to Soong Mayling's (宋美齡) family, praising the former first lady for her "intelligence" and "strength of character," and calling her a close friend of the US.
Bush's message came four days after the 105-year-old Soong, also known as Madame Chiang Kai-shek, died in her New York home.
His statement said that he and his wife "were saddened to learn of the death of Madame Chiang Kai-shek. Madame Chiang was a close friend of the United States throughout her life and especially during the defining struggles of the last century."
"Generations of Americans will always remember and respect her intelligence and strength of character," he said.
Meanwhile, Premier Yu Shyi-kun paid his respects to Soong yesterday at a temporary memorial set up at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei.
Yu bowed three times to a picture of Soong.
He said he was paying homage to the late first lady on behalf of the Executive Yuan. He also extended his condolences to her family.
In related news, a task force was formed yesterday by "pan-blue" parties and the National Women's League of the Republic of China to handle Soong's funeral arrangements. The league was founded by Soong in 1950 in Taipei.
Chang Che-chen (
People First Party (PFP) Chair-man James Soong (
The task force met yesterday at the KMT's headquarters and decided to send a delegation to New York to attend Soong's memorial service and to hold of symposium in her memory, Chang said.
"Further details on related funeral arrangements will be decided in consultation with Madame Chiang's family," Chang said.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
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US climber Alex Honnold left Taiwan this morning a day after completing a free-solo ascent of Taipei 101, a feat that drew cheers from onlookers and gained widespread international attention. Honnold yesterday scaled the 101-story skyscraper without a rope or safety harness. The climb — the highest urban free-solo ascent ever attempted — took just more than 90 minutes and was streamed live on Netflix. It was covered by major international news outlets including CNN, the New York Times, the Guardian and the Wall Street Journal. As Honnold prepared to leave Taiwan today, he attracted a crowd when he and his wife, Sanni,
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