A memorial service for former first lady Soong Mayling (宋美齡), also known as Madame Chiang Kai-shek, will be held at St. Bartholomew's Church in Manhattan on Nov. 5, her family said on Monday.
Taiwan's representative office in New York -- the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office -- was expected to issue a press release on details regarding the memorial service yesterday.
Soong's body is being kept at the Franklin E. Campell funeral home and her family is considering choosing a day during this week to open her coffin for public viewing. Meanwhile, her family plans to invite 1,000 people to the funeral.
Soong died at her New York home on Friday, at the age of 105.
Former premier Hau Pei-tsun (
"Her contributions to the ROC can hardly be epitomized by a grand funeral," Hau said.
Many of Soong's relatives, friends, former aides and proteges have flown to New York to pay their respects and assist in funeral arrangements.
Meanwhile, President Chen Shui-bian (
Chen has instructed that all national flags will be flown at half-mast on the day of Soong's funeral. Moreover, Chen will issue a posthumous commendation in honor of Soong for her contributions to Taiwan, particularly in the diplomatic field.
When Chen pays his respects, he will present a large national flag to the Soong family that can be draped upon the coffin at her funeral.
As Chen will leave New York for Panama Nov. 2 to attend the Central American country's Nov. 3 centennial celebrations, he will not attend the memorial service.
Soong led a reclusive life at her Manhattan home for much of her later life, after her husband died in 1975.
‘SUSPENDED’: The restrictions are likely to have a greater effect on seafood producers, as exports of food and drinks to China had already decline due to the COVID-19 pandemic China’s customs administration late on Monday announced bans on more than 100 Taiwanese food brands ahead of a visit by US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan. Beijing said that the blacklisted exporters — which include tea, honey and seafood producers — failed to renew their export registration and could therefore only sell their products until the end of this month. The exporters may submit additional documents this month, Food and Drug Administration Director Wu Shou-mei (吳秀梅) said, adding that the agency would help them complete their registrations. The bans might be politically motivated, as Taiwanese manufacturers were treated differently than
MISSILE PATHS: Certain information on the Chinese missile fire was not disclosed to maintain secrecy over military intelligence-gathering capabilities, the MND said Military experts yesterday speculated on the implication of the government’s tight-lipped response and the lack of air-raid sirens during the first day of China’s military drills the previous day. On Thursday, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) launched 11 Dongfeng-series ballistic missiles into waters north, east and south of Taiwan, a day after US House of Representative Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s departure from the country, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said. The Japanese Ministry of Defense said that China fired nine missiles toward Taiwan, including four that flew over Taiwan proper. However, China’s exhibition of force failed to terrorize the local populace, because
UNDER WATCH: Taiwan will have to establish a standardized nucleic acid testing method to identify the virus and monitor its spread, the CDC said The Langya henipavirus, which can be transmitted from animals to humans, has been discovered in China, with 35 human infections reported so far, Taiwan’s Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said, adding that the nation would establish a nucleic acid testing method to identify the virus. A study titled “A Zoonotic Henipavirus in Febrile Patients in China” that was published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Thursday said that a new henipavirus associated with a fever-causing human illness was identified in China. The study said an investigation identified 35 patients with acute infection of the Langya henipavirus in China’s Shandong
Legislators across party lines yesterday welcomed US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, marking the first time in 25 years that an incumbent US House speaker has visited the nation. Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) cited the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) support for Pelosi’s visit — including from senior party members KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) and former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) — as evidence that President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) foreign diplomacy is on the right course. Pelosi’s visit has special meaning for Taiwan and the Indo-Pacific region as a whole, DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said. The
RSS