■ CRIME
Chiayi politician indicted
Chiayi County Council Speaker Yu Cheng-tah (余政達) was indicted yesterday on charges of corruption, and prosecutors called for a 22-year sentence. Chiayi prosecutors allege that Yu accepted at least NT$3 million (US$90,909) in bribes from businessmen in January when the county government was organizing a lantern festival. Yu, an independent, was indicted on charges of receiving bribes and extortion. Seven others, including two of Yu's aides and two Chiayi County Government officials, were indicted for corruption, while three businessmen were indicted on charges of bribery. Prosecutors said Yu's aides passed the bribes onto him.
■ WEATHER
Typhoon Krosa moves closer
Typhoon Krosa, which was upgraded from a tropical storm yesterday morning, is expected to affect Taiwan from Saturday, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) reported yesterday. At 2pm yesterday, Krosa was located at approximately 1,100km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), moving northwesterly toward Taiwan at a speed of 10kph, meteorologists said. Packing maximum sustained winds of 162kph, Krosa -- the 15th storm reported in the West Pacific region this year -- had a radius of 200km as of 2pm, the meteorologists said, adding that the radius was expected to increase as the typhoon moves toward Taiwan. Krosa is expected to bring sporadic showers to northern and eastern Taiwan over the next two days, while cloudy skies are forecast for central and southern Taiwan, and temperatures are expected to be high for the western part of the island, the forecasters said.
■ SOCIETY
Scared husband gets divorce
A district court granted a divorce to a man because his wife, suspecting him of infidelity, had threatened to cut off his penis, a newspaper said yesterday. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), told the Taoyuan District Court that he and his wife, surnamed Huang (黃), had been married for 10 years, the United Daily News reported. Three years ago, Tseng became a truck driver, which required him to work occasional night shifts. The following year, Huang began to suspect Tseng of seeing other women. When Tseng slept, Huang would sometimes wake him up to interrogate him and threaten to cut off his penis. To show Tseng that she was serious, Huang placed a knife beside the bed and would sometimes sharpen it at night. After living in fear for two years, Tseng asked the court in May to grant him a divorce. The Taoyuan District Court granted the motion on Tuesday on the grounds that his wife's jealousy had made it impossible for them to continue living together.
■ PUBLISHING
Taiwan at Frankfurt fair
Some 64 local publishers are taking part in this year's Frankfurt Book Fair in Germany, which opened yesterday. The Taiwanese are presenting 677 books in 10 categories to showcase the nation's publishing industry and seek copyright agreements. Taipei Book Fair Foundation chairman Lin Tzai-chuei (林載爵) said his group organized the national booth with the theme "Taiwan -- the Paradise of Chinese-language Publishing." The variety of books exhibited demonstrates that Taiwan is a favorable environment for writers and publishers, he said. A special section at the booth will display Chinese-language literary works banned in other countries, including the writings of exiled Chinese writers Gao Xingjian (高行健), Kang Zhengguo (康正果) and Jing Fuzi (京夫子), Lin said.
■ EVENTS
Double Ten fireworks at sea
A fireworks show organized by the central government to celebrate this year's Double Ten National Day will be held in the Taiwan Strait 400m off the coast of Dapeng Bay in Pingtung County, organizers said yesterday. They will be the first National Day fireworks display at sea, Pingtung County officials said, adding that the annual show on Oct. 10 would draw an estimated 100,000 visitors to the county. The fireworks show is scheduled to take place between 7pm and 8pm, the county government said, adding it has planned several other activities, including street art performances and a community fair. Last year's Double Ten National Day fireworks were held in Kaohsiung County.
■ CROSS-STRAIT TIES
DPP duo slam Beijing
Two Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers on Tuesday blamed their failure to attend the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai on obstruction from the Chinese government. DPP Legislator Hsieh Hsin-ni (謝欣霓) said that China should have allowed her to attend the ceremony, as she is a consultant for the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee. Legislator Lan Mei-ching (藍美津), who also acts in that capacity, was also denied a visa to attend the games. Lan said that sports should transcend political boundaries and that she had hoped to support Taiwanese athletes competing in the Special Olympics. Two other DPP legislators, Hsu Jung-shu (許榮淑) and Wang Jung-chang (王榮章), were granted visas to attend the opening ceremony.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
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