■ Crime
Man caught with heroin
A man hiding 745 grams of heroin in his shoes was arrested Tuesday evening after customs officials noticed him walking clumsily at Kaohsiung International Airport, an officer at the Kaohsiung Aviation Police Station said yesterday. He said the suspect, Ke Ching-teh, told the police that he received the shoes and heroin from a friend in Cambodia. The heroin he was caught with has an estimated street value of NT$10 million (US$294,000).
■ Weather
Cold front arriving Friday
Taiwan's weather will warm up for the next couple of days before turning cold on Saturday, the Central Weather Bureau forecast yesterday. Meteorologists said temperatures on Mount Jade fell to minus 8.2?C Tuesday evening, while temperatures in Chiayi and Tamshui fell to 10.7?C and 12.4?C, respectively, early yesterday morning. Temperatures around the island are expected to drop again between Saturday and Tuesday after the arrival of a cold front on Friday afternoon, the meteorologists said.
■ Diplomacy
Chien visits Guatemala
Control Yuan President Fredrick Chien (錢復) arrived in Guatemala City on Tuesday to attend the inauguration of Guatemalan president-elect Oscar Berger on behalf of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁). Chien and his wife arrived in the Guatemalan capital in the company of Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Huang Lung-yuan (黃瀧元) and several other officials. In addition to attending the ceremony, Chien will hold talks with Berger and the outgoing Guatemalan president, as well as special envoys of other countries attending the ceremony. Chien's mission is scheduled to be completed on Jan. 16.
■ Politics
DPP eyes special sessions
The legislative caucus of the Democratic Progressive Party yesterday proposed that special legislative sessions be held on Jan. 16, Jan. 19 and Jan. 20 to discuss two bills introduced before the last session went into recess on Tuesday. Caucus leader Tsai Huang-lang (蔡煌瑯) said the party hoped that opposition parties would agree to the extraordinary sessions so that bills on the government's "10 New Construction Projects" and a constitutional amendment to cut the legislature in half could be discussed. He expressed the hope that the bills would be passed as soon as possible and described them as important to the future of the country.
■ Media
GIO funds film project
National Geographic Channels International (NGCI) has signed an agreement with the Government Information Office (GIO) to collaborate on a pilot project promoting documentary films made by local production companies, GIO officials said yesterday. Under the program, NGCI and the GIO will jointly provide US$400,000 for project development and production, with three documentaries to be filmed in Taiwan and another to be filmed elsewhere in Asia. Proposals will be accepted next month, followed by a workshop for a shortlist of invitees in May. The winning projects will be announced following the workshops, and contracts for production issued in June. Under the supervision of a joint NGCI-GIO production board, the four films will be produced for screening next year, and will provide an opportunity for local production companies to join the ranks of internationally renowned filmmakers.
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