Print

Mail

wiki links

Taiwan Quick Take

■ Foreign affairs
Shady funding denied
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs denied yesterday it had given funds to former Nicaraguan president Arnoldo Aleman for his party's election campaigns. A Nicaraguan investigator said in a press conference Thursday that Aleman's ruling Constitutionalist Liberal Party falsely reported its campaign funds in the country's 2001 election. The party reported US$5.1 million of campaign funds, but the investigator said evidence showed the party has actually garnered around US$35 million. The investigator said US$24 million of the party's unreported campaign funds are directly linked to Taiwan's donations. In response, ministry spokesman Richard Shih (石瑞琦) said the ministry's aid to Nicaragua is for the government and its people rather than any individual.

■ Trade
Sanctions for Iran sales
A local firm has been sanctioned by the US for violating an embargo against Iran by selling it items forbidden by the US, the State Department reported Friday. Adam Ereli, the deputy spokesman for the State Department, said US intelligence shows that the Goodly Industry Company of Taiwan, along with 12 other firms, have since Jan. 1, 1999 sold goods or technology to Iran that could be used for the manufacture of weapons of mass destruction. These firms have violated US legislation enacted in 2000 and have thereby been deprived of the right to deal with the US government for two years, Ereli said. Among the 13 offenders, five are Chinese firms. Goodly is believed to be the first Taiwan firm sanctioned under the act.

■ Development
Kaohsiung group tours Europe
A delegation from Kaohsiung has embarked on a European tour to obtain information about urban development with a view to boosting Kaohsiung's development. The 25-member delegation, headed by Kaohsiung Deputy Mayor Lin Yun-chien (林永堅), arrived in Rome April 1, where they were received by Rome Deputy Mayor Mariapia Garavaglia. The two sides exchanged opinions on their urban development experiences. Prior to their visit to Rome, the delegation had also visited London, Bonn and Barcelona to absorb experiences of urban development in those cities that could be applied to development in Kaohsiung.

■ Weather
Snow and hail fall
A strong convection current not only brought torrential rain to most of the country yesterday but also brought snow to Hohuanshan and hail to Yushan in central Taiwan, a very unusual occurrence for April, according to the Central Weather Bureau (CWB). Snowy season on the 3,416m Hohuanshan usually ends in February, but the humidity from a cold front the previous day prompted a rare spring snowfall that lasted for nearly an hour and covered the mountain with 2cm of snow, according to the CWB. Weather forecasters attributed the snow to the strong convection current that led to there being clouds as high as 5,000 or 6,000m. Meanwhile, Yushan -- the nation's highest mountain -- had a hail shower.

This story has been viewed 2369 times.