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Taiwan Quick Take

■ CRIME
Corruption figures released
Public prosecutors have handled 3,700 corruption cases and prosecuted more than 9,600 people since the Ministry of Justice began an operation in July 2000 to crack down on organized crime and corruption, statistics released by the ministry showed yesterday. The statistics show that between July 2000 and last month, a total of 9,677 suspects involved in 3,731 cases were prosecuted for benefiting from illegal gains through corruption and related offenses, and that of this total, 2,043 had been sentenced to prison. The 9,677 indicted suspects include 532 senior government officials, 583 elected public officials, 1,718 middle-level government officials, 2,892 civil servants and 3,952 ordinary citizens.

■ SOCIETY
Runner featured in ads
A group of photographers with National Geographic Channels International yesterday began shooting a 30-second TV advertisement featuring the story of extreme-condition marathon runner Kevin Lin (林義傑), the Government Information Office said in a statement yesterday. The office has enlisted Lin to promote the country's international image as part of a promotional campaign following Lin's successful run across the Sahara Desert with an American and a Canadian in February. The photographers shot a scene at Cheng Yuan Senior High School in Taipei, where Lin studied, and the track-and-field team were also in the frame, the statement said. "We are happy to have Lin do this. He represents the spirit of passion, ambition, adventure, and perseverance," Deputy Government Information Minister William Yih (易榮宗) said.

■ SOCIETY
Mahjong competition begins
A qualifying round for the 2007 Mahjong World Championship began in Taipei yesterday, with 150 contestants taking part in the three-day competition. The competition is part of a series of regional qualifying tournaments in Asia, Europe and North America. The eight top placers will qualify for the semi-finals in June, in either Denmark or Japan. A total of 20 finalists will compete in the Mahjong World Championship in Chengdu, China, in November. GigaMedia Global Limited, a provider of online entertainment software and services, has secured five-year exclusive rights to co-host the world championship in conjunction with the World Mahjong Organization. The firm plans to hold a championship in Taipei within the next five years.

■ TOURISM
Number of visitors up
The number of visitors to Taiwan reached 881,292 in the first quarter of this year, marking a 2.59 percent year-on-year increase, statistics released by the Tourism Bureau showed yesterday. Japan remained the top source of visitors, while the number of visitors from South Korea showed the largest increase. Japanese made 306,898 visits in the first three months of the year, up 4.21 percent. Last month alone, the number of visitors from Japan hit a new single-month high of 120,599, up 10.18 percent from the previous year. Moreover, business and leisure visitors both increased considerably. Officials attributed the rise to a combination of factors, including Japanese companies traditionally organizing tours for their employees in March and various festivals including several colorful lantern exhibits held nationwide last month.


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