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Taiwan Quick Take

■ Cross-strait ties
China tries to block interview
The Seoul correspondent of Beijing's People's Daily is trying to prevent the Seoul Foreign Correspondents' Club (SFCC) from holding a videoconference with President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), the head of the association said. Club president Lee Su-wan said that the club's managing director, Lee Byung-jong, who is Newsweek's correspondent in Seoul, came up with the idea of a videoconference last month. However, Lee Su-wan said the proposal met strong opposition from People's Daily correspondent Xu Baokong (徐寶康) when it was discussed at a SFCC board meeting. Lee Su-wan said he supports the holding of a videoconference and that if the event can't be held inside the club's headquarters, he would be willing to hold the event at another venue. He said behind-the-scenes discussions on the proposal are still going on and that he and other board members are considering revising the club's regulations to allow for the proposed videoconference.

■ Society
Fireworks in Taipei tonight
The Taipei City Government is holding a fireworks display and musical performance at Dadaocheng (大稻埕) along the Danshui River tonight to celebrate Retrocession Day, which falls on Tuesday. The concert will begin at 6:30pm featuring Taiwanese songs performed by traditional singers, including Lee Ping-jui (李炳輝) and Liu Fu-zhu (劉福助). The fireworks, sponsored by the Department of Information and the Taipei Broadcasting Station, will light up the sky between 9pm and 9:30pm. More information is available from the city's government's Web site (www.taipei.gov.tw/event/1022/).

■ Charity
Blankets sent to Pakistan
Victims of the massive earthquake in Pakistan will be getting 7,000 blankets from the people of Taiwan soon. China Airlines and Pakistan Airlines have agreed to transport the blankets for free after the Buddhist Compassionate Relief Tzu Chi Foundation initiated a blanket drive. Tzu Chi sent a 15-member team to Islamabad on Wednesday to join the relief operations. The team is made up of Tzu Chi volunteers, medical personnel and journalists from Taiwan, Jordan, Turkey, Malaysia and Indonesia. They brought 700kg of relief materials and medicines to Muzaffarabad for residents needing help. Tzu Chi is also preparing 220,000 vegetarian meal packages for shipment to the disaster area by air.

■ Society
Food fair at TAS
The Parents-Teacher Association of the Taipei American School (TAS) is hosting its 23rd Internatinal Food Fair today from 10am to 3pm. There will be booths offering food from many countries, plus activities for children. TAS is located at 800 Zhongshan N Rd, Sec. 6 in Tienmu.

■ Society
Demand for caregivers rises
With the number of elderly growing steadily, the number of foreign caregivers now stands at more than 120,000, the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics said. The number of people aged 65 or older had reached 2.18 million as of the end of June, accounting for 9.6 percent of the total population, officials said, adding that the ratio marked a 0.3 percent growth year-on-year. The steady increase in the numbers of elderly has given rise to the demand for foreign caregivers. According to the agency's figures, the number of foreign caregivers had risen to 124,000 as of the end of June, up 5 percent from the year earlier.

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