■ Crime
Justice official jailed
A former agent of the Ministry of Justice's Bureau of Investigation was found guilty and sentenced to five years and four months in jail yesterday for embezzlement. Yesterday's verdict was initially made by the Taipei District Court last March and upheld by the Taiwan High Court. Ou Tsung-jung (歐宗融), a former agent of the bureau's Taipei Office, was found guilty for stealing his work colleagues personal belongings as well as expensive watches and jewels that had been confiscated and kept by the bureau. Ou was immediately fired by the bureau after it was discovered he was stealing. Ou did not attend yesterday's verdict but was authorized to appeal to the Supreme Court.
■ Science
ROCSAT-2 launch uncertain
ROCSAT-2 will be launched after March 25 but the exact date remains uncertain, the National Science Council said yesterday. Early this month, US Orbital Sciences Corp, the operator of the satellites' launch vehicle, requested more time to fix problems with ground apparatus. Liftoff, originally scheduled for the end of this month, was delayed to late next month. To probe the cause of the delay, council officials and experts from the National Space Program Office last week visited the launch site, Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Council officials who visited the base said yesterday that most of the problems found earlier had been fixed and the satellite is in good condition. They said the launch date would be decided within days and they said such adjustments to the schedule were common.
■ Referendum
Extra pay for helpers
Teachers helping with the referendum vote will be granted a two-day vacation and those substituting for them will be getting two days' pay, the Cabinet announced yesterday. According to Cabinet Spokesman Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍), the plan is aimed at making teachers helping in the referendum feel more at ease doing their job. The Cabinet had originally planned to grant only a one-day vacation to teachers helping with the referendum and giving one day's pay to those substituting for them.
■ Politics
Officials to go abroad
Members of the legislature's Foreign and Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee are set to visit Japan and South Korea in the coming week, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Parris Chang (張旭成) said yesterday. Chang said he and his colleagues in the committee, including the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) John Chang (章孝嚴) and Sun Kuo-hua (孫國華) as well as People First Party Legislator Sun Ta-chien (孫大千), will head to Japan on Sunday and travel to South Korea on March 2 before returning home on March 4. Chang said the group will learn more about the situation in the Korean Peninsula and exchange views with their south Korean counterparts. "It is necessary to have an understanding of the current situation in Japan, " Chang said, adding that he will also pay close attention to Tokyo's latest views on Taiwan's referendum to be held March 20. Japan earlier expressed its concerns about the two referendum questions regarding the strengthening of Taiwan's anti-missile defenses and the opening of cross-strait talks on a peace and stability mechanism.
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
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
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