■ POLITICS
Assets petition reaches goal
The Central Election Commission confirmed yesterday that the number of signatures on a petition for a referendum on divesting the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) of its stolen assets has reached the threshold of 840,000. The referendum petition was initiated by Democratic Progressive Party Chairman Yu Shyi-kun. The Referendum Law (公民投票法) stipulates that the number of petitioners for a referendum must reach 5 percent of the total number of voters in the previous presidential election. Commission Secretary-General Teng Tien-yu (鄧天佑) said that, according to the law, the referendum must be held between one and six months after the petition was passed. The actual referendum date is to be decided by a commission meeting to be held in the next few days, Teng said.
■ CULTURE
Monuments commemorated
This year's national commemoration weekend for historic monuments, which falls on Sept. 15 and Sept. 16, will include a series of activities to increase public awareness of the need to preserve historic sites. Council for Cultural Affairs officials said yesterday that the third weekend of September each year marks the celebration, which began in 2001 and was modeled after France's International Heritage Day declared in 1984. Entry to the nation's historic sites, art galleries and cultural museums will be free during the two-day celebration, officials said. The provisional office of the National Center for Research and Preservation of Cultural Properties will hold an opening ceremony to mark the beginning of the activities in front of the Confucius Temple in Tainan on Sept. 15.
■ DIPLOMACY
Paraguay president to visit
President Nicanor Duarte Frutos of Paraguay, the nation's only diplomatic ally in South America, will depart for an official visit to Taipei on Oct. 5, Paraguay's La Nacion newspaper reported on Wednesday. According to the report, Duarte made the comment while presiding over an inauguration ceremony for 40 public housing units donated by Taiwan to his nation in its capital city of Asuncion. Duarte was quoted as having said that he would return home with more funds to build public housing units for low-income Paraguayans and that Taiwan had donated funds to Paraguay because "it knows for certain that the funds will alleviate the poverty and plight of thousands of Paraguayans and give them hope." Duarte said he would celebrate his birthday in Taiwan on Oct. 11. The upcoming visit will be his final visit to Taiwan during his presidential tenure, the report said.
■ SOCIETY
Stray dogs star at event
The Animal Protection Association is hosting a two-day event this weekend to encourage the public to adopt stray dogs rather than buying dogs at shops. Those who have taken in stray dogs will be able to register their pets free of charge and get them free vaccinations, including for rabies, if they pre-register on the association's Web site. Almost 200 people have already signed up, Huang Ching-jung (黃慶榮), secretary-general of the association, told a press conference yesterday. For those who are looking for a dog, the association will be bringing to the event some of the almost 600 dogs in its care, which are in need of families. The event will be held by Taipei City Hall.
■ HEALTH
EPA to help dengue fight
Environmental Protection Administration Minister Winston Dang (陳重信) said yesterday that his agency will set aside NT$7.5 million (US$226,300) to help Tainan City curb a dengue fever outbreak. Dang toured the city yesterday to see first hand the seriousness of the outbreak. He said the agency would review the results of the efforts to control the outbreak before deciding whether more aid will be necessary. Tainan Mayor Hsu Tain-tsair (許添財) sacked the city's top health official, Su Chun-jen (蘇俊仁), late last month for failing to bring the mosquito-borne disease under control. The first indigenous dengue fever case this year appeared in the city's Annan District in June. Since then, the city has recorded 299 confirmed indigenous cases.
■ DIPLOMACY
St. Lucian ties stable: MOFA
Taiwan and St. Lucia enjoy stable relations that will not be affected by the illness of St. Lucian Prime Minister John Compton, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) spokesman David Wang (王建業) said yesterday. He confirmed a news report that Compton was receiving treatment on the Caribbean island of Martinique for breathing difficulties. He said Taiwan's embassy in St. Lucia has reported on Compton's health condition to the ministry and that Ambassador Tom Chou (周台竹), who recently assumed his post, has passed his good wishes to Compton. Wang said the ministry would monitor the political climate of St. Lucia, but that new elections were not anticipated. The embassy has frequent interaction with various social circles in the Caribbean country and all cooperation projects are being carried out as scheduled, which means the two sides enjoy a stable friendship, Wang said.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai
Four China Coast Guard ships briefly sailed through prohibited waters near Kinmen County, Taipei said, urging Beijing to stop actions that endanger navigation safety. The Chinese ships entered waters south of Kinmen, 5km from the Chinese city of Xiamen, at about 3:30pm on Monday, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement later the same day. The ships “sailed out of our prohibited and restricted waters” about an hour later, the agency said, urging Beijing to immediately stop “behavior that endangers navigation safety.” Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) yesterday told reporters that Taiwan would boost support to the Coast Guard