■ Diplomacy
Lin assumes office at WTO
The new head of the Permanent Mission of the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu to the WTO was warmly greeted by mission members upon his arrival in Geneva, Switzerland, Friday. Lin Yi-fu (林義夫), an experienced official in foreign trade affairs, attended the 2003 WTO Ministerial Conference in Cancun, Mexico, in his previous capacity as minister of economic affairs. His mission in the new post is to join in the WTO's efforts to conclude the Doha round of trade talks.
■ Diplomacy
Taiwanese Americans help
Three New York Taiwanese community leaders headed for Geneva to help with Taiwan's bid to enter the World Health Organization (WHO). Lee Cheng-san (李正三), who is president of a pro-Taiwan overseas Taiwanese group, the Global Alliance for Democracy and Peace, Huang Chin-chih (黃靜枝) and Huang Man-yu (黃滿玉) said before they departed that they want to boost Taiwan's chances of entering the World Health Assembly (WHA) -- the governing body of the WHO. Lee called on China, which has forced the WHA to exclude Taiwan's bids from its agenda since 1997, to reach out to the Taiwan people by stopping its unreasonable blockage. Huang Chin-chih said it is a shame that Taiwan has been excluded from the world health body despite its generous contributions to international disaster relief operations. It denies the WHO a valuable member and denies the Taiwan people, he said. The WHA is gathering in Geneva for its annual conference from May 16-25. Taiwan sent a delegation of veteran diplomats and leading politicians to Geneva to try once again to get included on the agenda.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
The New Taipei City Government would assist relatives of those killed or injured in last month’s car-ramming incident in Sansia District (三峽) to secure compensation, Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said yesterday, two days after the driver died in a hospital. “The city government will do its best to help the relatives of the car crash incident seek compensation,” Hou said. The mayor also said that the city’s Legal Affairs, Education and Social Welfare departments have established a joint mechanism to “provide coordinated assistance” to victims and their families. Three people were killed and 12 injured when a car plowed into schoolchildren and their
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