■ Cross-strait ties
DPP seeks united front
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday that its legislative caucus will seek the support of other parties for its March 26 protest against China's proposed "anti-secession" law. DPP caucus whip Lai Ching-teh (賴清德) told a press conference at the Legislative Yuan yesterday that given the importance of the rally, caucus members would approach other lawmakers to sign a joint declaration of support for the parade. "The March 26 parade is to be the first time in Taiwan's history that we will have marched in response to China. Everyone, regardless of age, gender, ethnic group, or party should unite together," Lai said. He said the caucus also plans to propose that the legislature invite all party leaders to a summit where they can come up with a joint reaction to the anti-secession law.
■ Travel
Visa-free tourists in Japan
Japan's visa waiver for tourists from Taiwan during the Aichi World Exposition came into force yesterday, with the arrival of 151 Taiwanese visitors in Hokkaido. They were the first group of Taiwanese tourists to enjoy the visa-free privilege. Japanese public television channel NHK footage showed an arriving tourist who said the people of Taiwan generally welcome the visa waiver. A Taiwanese tour guide told an NHK reporter that he believes the visa-free privilege will help boost the number of Taiwanese visitors to Japan by 20 percent to 30 percent this year. More than 1 million Taiwanese visited Japan last year.
■ Politics
KMT marks death of Sun
To commemorate the 80th anniversary of Sun Yat-sen's (孫逸仙) death, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) will hold an exhibition of artifacts relating to Sun in the party's headquarters starting today. The exhibition, located in the main lobby, will include historical documents from Sun's time, a map of the National Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum in Nanjing and Sun's clothing. In a statement issued by the party yesterday, KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) used the anniversary of Sun's death to urge unity under the banner of the Republic of China and to criticize pro-independence factions. "Today, we remember the anniversary of Sun's death while facing escalated tensions across the Taiwan Strait and threats to the safety of Taiwan. More now than ever, we must unite [under Sun's wishes for] `peace, struggle, and save Taiwan,'" Lien's statement yesterday. Sun died in Beijing on March 12, 1925.
■ Government
Chen talks about new agency
President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said yesterday that he expects the proposed national communication commission (NCC) would be "fair, independent and just" when it begins operations. Chen made the remarks when receiving a group of foreign visitors who are attending an international seminar in Taipei focusing on national telecommunication and broadcasting policies. The Cabinet has approved draft amendments to abolish the Government Information Office and replace it with the commission. If the proposed amendments are approved by the legislature, the NCC would be an independent entity and the sole supervisory body of the telecommunications and media industries. The major tasks facing the proposed commission include promoting fair competition, enhancement of related industries' national competitiveness and safeguarding consumers' rights, the president told his visitors.
■ Lawyers' group slams China
The Taiwan Bar Association issued a public statement yesterday calling for China to pull back on its enactment of an "anti-secession" law targeting Taiwan "before it's too late." The association, which includes some 4,000 lawyers practicing in Taiwan, urged the Chinese regime not to enact the proposed law to avoid undermining an atmosphere that is conducive to accelerating cross-strait engagement and shun actions that will lead both sides of the strait to a mutually destructive doomsday. The Taiwanese lawyers said that after failing to push its "pro-unification, anti-independence" scheme, Beijing authorized its State Council and Central Military Commission to take Taiwan by "non-peaceful means" if it thinks Taiwan is making moves toward independence. This pre-emptive plot will change the cross-strait status quo unilaterally and also hurts the feelings of the people of Taiwan, the statement says, adding that the law also infringes upon the Taiwanese people's rights to survival and autonomy.
■ Diplomacy
Minnesota governor invited
An official of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Chicago has invited Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty to visit Taiwan during his trip to China and Hong Kong later this year. Shao Ping-yun (邵平雲), an information official at the Chicago office, made the invitation in a letter he sent to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the largest newspaper in Minnesota. Pawlenty is scheduled to lead a delegation to visit China and Hong Kong in November to inspect the information technology (IT) industry there. Noting that Taiwan excels in the IT industry, Shao urged the governor to include Taiwan in his trip.
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
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai