■ DIPLOMACY
Lu to visit South America
The Presidential Office confirmed yesterday that Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) will visit Latin America next month, but rejected allegations that the trip was "checkbook diplomacy." The Presidential Office issued a statement saying that details of Lu's planned trip to visit diplomatic allies in Central and South America are being arranged by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and that the purpose of the trip is to enhance exchanges and cement diplomatic ties. The statement said Lu's trip was not to dole out money to allies and that reports about "checkbook diplomacy" were full of false allegations, urging the media to stop speculating and to put the nation's diplomatic interests first. The statement was made in response to a report published in yesterday's edition of the Chinese-language China Times.
■ EDUCATION
Skills workshop planned
A training workshop for second-generation overseas Taiwanese to learn skills in international trade -- particularly how to promote Taiwanese products -- is scheduled to open in Taipei on Thursday, the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) said yesterday. Forty young men and women from around the world are expected to attend the six-week business workshop organized by TAITRA at the request of the Overseas Compatriot Affairs Commission, TAITRA officials said. TAITRA and commission officials hope that these young Taiwanese descendants from the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Paraguay and Southeast Asia will pick up skills in international trade -- including marketing, international business norms and business communications -- after receiving intensive training at the 38-day workshop.
■ CRIME
Cops name councilor's killer
Taipei County police yesterday identified Lan Chia-wei (藍家偉), 36, as the alleged killer of Taipei County councilor Wu Shan-jeou (吳善九). Police published Lan's photo and said Lan -- who fled to southern Taiwan after the shooting -- is armed and extremely dangerous. Police said they suspect Lan committed the crime and was helped by Banciao gangster Wu Hsin-chung (吳信中), who entered China a couple of days after the crime. Police said that Wu Hsin-chung and his friends had been found to be involved in environmental clean-up businesses and that the murder was probably related to it. Wu Shan-jeou, who was a People First Party (PFP) member, often brought up environmental issues at council meetings. The councilor was gunned down in his office in Sindian (新店), Taipei County, on May 23.
■ POLITICS
Officials dismiss spies story
The Presidential Office yesterday dismissed allegations that President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) revelation of China's missiles targeted at Taiwan in the run-up to the 2004 presidential election led to the arrests of more than 30 Taiwanese spies operating in China. The Presidential Office issued a statement dismissing a story published in yesterday's edition of the Chinese-language China Times as "groundless." The report alleged that Chen disclosed the intelligence in November 2003 in a bid to push the "defensive referendum" and boost his odds of winning the election. The move angered Beijing, which, as a retaliatory measure, arrested more than 30 China-based Taiwanese businesspeople.
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai