■ Crime
New hotline opens
The National Police Administration (NPA) introduced an"anti-fraud calls hotline service" yesterday and encouraged the public to use the service whenever they receive phone calls from people who threaten them and try to extort money. The hotline service is based inside the agency's headquarters and has eight police officers to take calls from around the country. The hotline began service immediately after NPA Director-General Shieh Ing-dan (謝銀黨) announced its launch yesterday afternoon. The hotline's number is 0800-018-110.
■ Transportation
MRT clean of Legionnaire's
The Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday that there was no sign of the bacteria that causes Legionnaire's disease, a highly contagious lung infection, in the cooling towers of MRT stations. Taipei City Councilor Pan Huai-chung (潘懷宗), a New Party member, yesterday said the TRTC had ignored the spread of the bacteria that causes Legionnaire's in the cooling towers of MRT stations, thereby exposing people to a highly dangerous environment. TRTC president Tsay Huei-sheng (蔡輝昇) said tests for the disease at 18 MRT stations turned up negative and the company has submitted its assay methods and results to the Center for Disease Control to see whether the TRTC's management meets the center's regulations. Chiu Chan-hsien (邱展賢), a division chief at Taipei City's Department of Health, said there's no need for the public to worry about the disease.
■ Tourism
SARS hurts trips to China
The reappearance of SARS in China has poured cold water on Taiwan's tourism industry. Tour operators are holding their breath to see if the situation worsens, according to an industry source. Since three suspected SARS cases were reported in Beijing and Anhui Province, nearly 30 percent of China-bound Taiwanese tourists have canceled their trips and the ratio is likely to increase to above 50 percent should the situation in China and Taiwan change noticeably, the source said yesterday. The impact on China-bound travel, however, is unlikely to be as bad as it was last year, except for trips to Beijing. If China's SARS situation gets worse, local tour agencies may first consider calling a halt to trips to Beijing, according to the source. The spread of SARS would also affect inbound travel to Taiwan, he said. Many tourism-related businesses have not yet fully recovered from last year's SARS epidemic, he said, as a result of a large drop in inbound travelers, especially those from Japan.
■ Society
Few trust politicians
Taiwan's election dispute has shattered peoples' trust in the government so much that they trust fortune-tellers and shamans more than they trust the president and the judiciary, an opinion poll showed yesterday. President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) won re-election by beating opposition leader Lien Chan (連戰) by 29,000 votes, a margin of 0.02 percentage points. The poll showed that 34 percent of a total of 579 company executives polled believe the election dispute can be solved through legal proceedings, while 52 percent don't believe so. It also showed 19 percent trust fortune-tellers, 18 percent trust lawyers and 14 percent trust the president. The poll also indicated that only a scant of 2.76 percent of the interviewees trust lawmakers, while 7.43 percent trust shamans.
The Ministry of Finance this afternoon announced the winning numbers for the March-April uniform invoice lottery. The winning number for the NT$10 million (US$318,060) special prize is 19531471, and the winning number for the NT$2 million grand prize is 85941329. Three numbers were drawn for the NT$200,000 first prize: 07225810, 20231230 and 83518781. Those with receipts matching the last seven digits of any of the first-prize numbers will win the NT$40,000 second prize, while those matching the last six digits will win the NT$10,000 third prize. Those whose receipts match the last five digits of the first-prize numbers can claim the NT$4,000 fourth prize,
SIX SUBSIDIES: The monthly allowance for older farmers is to increase to NT$10,000, and NT$5,000 is to be given to homemakers under the national pension system, Lai said The government is to implement major welfare policies for disadvantaged groups, including raising the monthly allowance for older farmers to NT$10,000 and providing homemakers with NT$5,000 per month, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday. Lai made the remarks during a visit to Wangling Temple in Chiayi County, saying that the planned increases were being introduced amid economic growth and an increase in tax revenue. Touting a policy, in which the government plans to provide a monthly allowance of NT$5,000 for every child under the age of 18 in a bid to address Taiwan’s low birthrate, Lai said that if received for the
STAY COOL: The HPA recommended that people stay hydrated, use air-conditioning or fans while indoors, wear loose-fitting clothes and walk in the shade while outdoors Employers must implement measures such as installing cooling equipment, and providing drinking water and rest breaks for outdoor workers starting from Monday next week, the Taipei Department of Labor said on Sunday. Employers who fail to comply could face fines of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法), the department said. Businesses in Taipei employing fewer than 100 workers, as well as registered self-employed workers with labor insurance coverage, could receive on-site assessments and guidance from occupational safety consultants to help them apply for central government subsidies to implement or improve heat-protection measures, it said. Under the Ministry of
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
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