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Taiwan Quick Take

■ Media
PTS, ARTE ink partnership
Public Television Services (PTS) yesterday signed a cooperation agreement with the Franco-German TV network Association Relative a la Television Europeenne (ARTE) to share programming resources. ARTE is a public TV network jointly created by France and Germany in 1991 to explore cultural and art themes, Jean-Claude Poimboeuf, director of the French Institute in Taiwan said during the signing ceremony. The two networks will broadcast each other's programs during the initial phase of the partnership and discuss future co-production projects, PTS president Hu Yuan-hui (胡元輝) said. "It's an opportunity for Europe and Asia to learn and to better understand each other," Jerome Clement, president of ARTE France, said of the partnership.

■ Culture
Portland orchestra on tour
The Portland Youth Philharmonic Orchestra from the US state of Oregon will stage a concert at the Kaohsiung Cultural Center on Wednesday. The orchestra from Kaohsiung's sister city will also perform at the Tainan Cultural Center on Thursday and at the National Concert Hall in Taipei on Sunday before flying to South Korea for a six-day tour. The orchestra is recognized as one of the US' premier youth orchestras. Its members range in age from seven to 22 and represent 70 different schools in the Portland area. Mei-Ann Chen, the 33-year-old conductress of the orchestra, was born in Taiwan. She began playing the violin at the age of seven and left for the US at 16 for further studies. She has a double master's degree in violin and conducting.

■ Politics
Equal treatment for Lu: Wu
Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) will receive treatment consistent with that afforded to President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) during planned stopovers in the US, Taiwan's representative to the US said. Lu is scheduled to make an overnight transit stop in San Francisco en route to Latin America next week and will take part in some private activities at the hotel during her stay in the US city, Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said. On her way back to Taiwan, Lu will make a four-hour transit stop in Los Angeles, Wu added. In January, Chen also made an overnight transit stop in San Francisco en route to Nicaragua and stopped over in Los Angeles on his way home. While in San Francisco, Chen met with American Institute in Taiwan Chairman Raymond Burghardt and former US secretary of defense William Perry, and had telephone conversations with top Washington officials and key Congressional members.

■ Trade
TAITRA reaches out to south
The Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) will soon use its video conferencing system to allow entrepreneurs in central and southern Taiwan to participate simultaneously in conferences held at its Taipei headquarters. The movement is part of the government's efforts to better serve the central and southern regions,as well as small and medium-sized enterprises, a TAITRA official said yesterday. TAITRA will set up nine video conferencing press rooms around the nation, including sites in Hsinchu, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung, and then later expand the system to all of its offices abroad. Businesspeople living or working in central and southern Taiwan will be better able to participate in exhibitions, industrial forums, sales meetings or even distance-education thanks to the video conferencing system, officials said.

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