■ SOCIETY
Lofty name nixed
A household registration office has rejected a women's application to change her name to "Hung Occult God of Wealth President," on the grounds that one's name cannot contain "president." The Nantou County woman recently applied to the Tsaotun (草屯) Household Registration Office to change her name. "She was in her 30s. She did not tell us why she wanted to change her name," an official from Tsaotun Household Registration Office told reporters. "We rejected her application because it contains the word `president.' We told her that the name is not suitable but she can appeal our rejection," the official said. Under the law, a citizen's name must use Chinese characters listed in standard dictionaries. A citizen can change his or her name twice in a lifetime.
■ CRIME
Poet arrested for threats
Writer and poet Huang Jen-ho (黃人和), who publishes his work under the pseudonym Tu Shi-san (杜十三), was apprehended by the Taipei Shihlin District Prosecutors' Office yesterday afternoon for threatening Premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) in a drunken telephone call on Nov. 1. After being interrogated for three hours yesterday evening, Huang, 55, confessed to making the call in which he identified himself as a member of the Taiwan Liberation Alliance (台灣解放聯盟) and threatened to kill every member of Hsieh's family. He also said he regretted his actions and apologized to Hsieh. Hsieh in turn said he felt sorry for Huang and would not file a lawsuit against him. Hsieh said Taiwanese society has been polarized by political disputes and hatred. He urged people not to mimic such anti-social behavior and to solve problems through discussion.
■ POLITICS
Officials deny media report
The Presidential Office yesterday refuted a report by local Chinese-language media, which claimed that more than 400 staff working at the Presidential Office have been investigated because of alleged illegal conduct by former deputy secretary-general Chen Che-nan (陳哲男). According to the Presidential Office's Department of Public Affairs, an Accounting Department official, Kao Shen-shen (高慎慎), is the only staff member to have been questioned. A probe into possible illegal conduct by Chen will be completed by Friday, and the results will be released then. It aims to determine whether any staff lent their personal bank accounts to Chen for his personal use.
■ DEFENSE
Legislators cut arms budget
Opposition lawmakers yesterday cut a proposed NT$272.62 million (US$8.1 million) outlay in preparation for a major arms procurement package from the Ministry of National Defense's (MND's) budget plan for next year, saying it is not necessary since the package is not yet certain. A joint meeting of the National Defense Committee and the Budget Committee of the Legislative Yuan was reviewing the budget when opposition legislators nixed the complementary spending for the arms package. The package proposes buying three Patriot missile batteries, eight diesel-electric submarines and 12 P-3C Orion aircraft. The legislators proposed cuts to the budget for Patriot missiles but will leave the matter to the next joint meeting. The items require preparatory spending on things such as administrative fees.
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 7pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the temblor was at sea, about 69.9km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 30.9km, it said. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County’s Changbin Township (長濱), where it measured 5 on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 4 in Hualien, Nantou, Chiayi, Yunlin, Changhua and Miaoli counties, as well as
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
COMMITMENTS: The company had a relatively low renewable ratio at 56 percent and did not have any goal to achieve 100 percent renewable energy, the report said Pegatron Corp ranked the lowest among five major final assembly suppliers in progressing toward Apple Inc’s commitment to be 100 percent carbon neutral by 2030, a Greenpeace East Asia report said yesterday. While Apple has set the goal of using 100 percent renewable energy across its entire business, supply chain and product lifecycle by 2030, carbon emissions from electronics manufacturing are rising globally due to increased energy consumption, it said. Given that carbon emissions from its supply chain accounted for more than half of its total emissions last year, Greenpeace East Asia evaluated the green transition performance of Apple’s five largest final
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
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