■ Diplomacy
Nauru embassy opens
Nauruan Foreign Affairs, Trade and Finance Minister David Adeang cut the ribbon to open his South Pacific island nation's newest embassy yesterday in Taipei. The opening was marked with a cocktail party last night. Adeang met President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) at the Presidential Office on Monday. Chen said that Nauru had expressed its willingness to set up an embassy during his visit to that country last year. Chen thanked Adeang and Nauruan President Ludwig Scotty for their firm, unstinting support of Taiwan in its attempts to join international organizations such as the UN, the WHO and the Pacific Islands Forum.
PHOTO: LIU HSIH-DEH, TAIPEI TIMES
■ Politics
DPP lawmakers sentenced
Two Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators have been found guilty of slandering former DPP Chairman Shih Ming-teh (施明德) at a press conference last September. The Taipei District Court said DPP legislators Lin Kuo-ching (林國慶) and Huang Chao-hui (黃昭輝) used offensive language against Shih on Sept. 7 last year. The presiding judge ruled that the press conference was not related to their pair's legislative duties, so their legislative immunity did not apply. Lin was sentenced to 50 days detention, while Huang received a 30-day sentence. Both men can avoid jail time, however, by paying a NT$1,000 per day fine. Lin said he would consult his lawyer about what to do next, while Huang said he would consider whether to appeal.
■ Politics
Su slams Chiu over riot
Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday said that Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chiu Yi (邱毅) should be jailed immediately and that he should be deprived of his civil rights. "Chiu is a disgrace to the legislature," Su said. "As a result of his attempt to ram a vehicle into the Kaohsiung District Court, not only should he serve his 14-month jail sentence, but judges should also strip him of his civil rights ... And yet, he is still out there, in public. This is not right. He should be jailed immediately." The premier made his remarks during conversations with KMT Legislator Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) at a legislative meeting. Su said Chiu continued to take advantage of this case to promote himself as a hero being jailed for political reasons. The truth, however, is that he led a riot at the Kaohsiung District Court and sullied the image of the KMT and the legislature, Su said. "What he did ... was very humiliating to the legislature," he said.
■ Diplomacy
Hu happy with Japan trip
Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) said yesterday that he was pleased with the results of his six-day visit to Japan. He told a press conference in Japan that he had received positive responses from Yasuchika Negoro, head of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) leagues organization, and NPB Secretary General Kazuo Hasegawa, about exchanges between the baseball organizations in Taichung and Japan. Hu said he had also invited Japanese professional baseball teams to conduct training sessions at Taichung's new Intercontinental Baseball Stadium. Hu arrived home yesterday.
■ Welfare
No child care planned
The government does not have any plans to introduce a child care subsidy program next year as reported in a local daily, Interior Minister Lee Yi-yang (李逸洋) told lawmakers yesterday during an question-and-answer session at the Legislative Yuan. In its Tuesday edition, the Chinese-language China Times revealed the contents of a research report by the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) on the government's population policy. The daily claimed that the MOI plans to provide a "child care subsidy" to families in an effort to stem the nation's declining birth rates. Under the reported "child care program," families with one child will be entitled to a monthly subsidy of NT$2,000 (US$60), while those with two children will receive NT$3,000 per month, and families with three or more children will be eligible for a monthly subsidy of NT$5,000.
■ Diplomacy
China blasts Huang's trip
China criticized St. Lucia yesterday for allowing the foreign minister of Taiwan to visit the Carribean nation and blasted Taipei for trying to split China. Foreign Minister James Huang (黃志芳) visited St. Lucia last week at the host government's invitation, despite the fact that the tiny Carribean island broke ties with Taiwan in 1997 and now has formal diplomatic relations with China. "It is against the principle set in the communique between China and St. Lucia and hurt the feelings of the Chinese people," Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang (秦剛) said of the visit. "China expressed its strong dissatisfaction and opposition to it," Qin told a news conference. Qin said St. Lucia should respect the "one China" principle and also expressed anger at Taiwan over the visit.
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
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