■ POLITICS
Legislator switches parties
The Taiwan Solidarity Union yesterday revoked Chao Lien-chu's (趙連出) legislative candidacy as Chao will run as the Dadao Compassion Jishih Party's (大道慈悲濟世黨) vice presidential candidate next year. Chao is required by law to deposit NT$1 million (US$31,250) and collect 240,000 signatures endorsing his election bid before Dec. 31. The Central Election Commission can confiscate the deposit if Chao fails to collect the required signatures. The Dadao Compassion Jishih Party is one of six political parties established during the second half of this year.
■ Diplomacy
New diplomats named
Taiwan Solidarity Union Legislator-at-large George Liu (劉寬平) has been assigned to succeed Rex Wang (王世榕) as the country's representative to Switzerland, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Deputy Spokeswoman Phoebe Yeh (葉非比) told a press conference yesterday. Charles Liu (劉溪泉), chief of the third bureau of the presidential office, was assigned as the next representative to Denmark, Yeh said. Deputy Representative to the US Stanley Kao (高碩泰) will become the representative to Hungary and Ingrid Hsing (邢瀛輝), serving at the country's embassy in Panama, was designated as representative to Ecuador as part of the latest diplomatic reshuffle, Yeh said.
■ Defense
Retired officer sentenced
A retired top military intelligence officer was convicted yesterday of collecting and publishing classified information in a book, the High Court said. Pang Ta-wei (龐大為), a former deputy section chief of the Military Intelligence Bureau, was sentenced to three years and eight months in prison, but his term was reduced to 18 months in accordance with the commutation bill enacted in July, High Court spokesman Wen Yao-yuan (溫耀源) said. "Pang was sentenced to one year and eight months for collecting national defense documents that must not be made public. [Pang] was also given a two-year jail term for leaking such documents," Wen said. It was not immediately clear whether Pang would appeal and the Ministry of National Defense declined to comment on the ruling. Among the information disclosed was information relating to his unit's spying operations in China from 1992 to 1997, press reports said. Pang claimed he did not intend to reveal national secrets.
■ Policing
Fishermen lodge complaint
A group of fishermen lodged a protest yesterday against the Southern Taiwan Operations of the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) over harsh treatment by the coast guard regarding definitions of the nature of their catch. Complaining that the coast guard converges on the Hsiaokang (小港) fishing port whenever their vessels enter port to inspect their catch, and labels large volumes of their fishery produce as "smuggled," the fishermen called for Yang Li-chuan (楊麗川), director of the CGA Southern Taiwan Operations, to step down. The fishermen complained that even the catch they bring in themselves from the open seas has been labeled "smuggled" by CGA patrol officers. The CGA patrol officers, however, argued that smuggling has been rampant among Taiwan's fishing sector in recent years and said that the government has resolved to weed out smuggling. They said the illicit activity had infringed upon the interests of local fishermen.
■ TECHNOLOGY
Maxtor hard drives recalled
The Consumer Protection Commission ordered a recall of 3.5 inch Maxtor Basics Personal Storage 3200 external hard drives through a press release yesterday. A Trojan virus was found on 320GB and 500GB hard drives models sold after September, the press release said. Xander International Corp, distributor of the hard drives, said that customers may obtain a refund at retail stores where they purchased the hard drives or exchange them for a new hard drive at Xander service centers across the country or original retail stores, the press release said. In addition, those who want to keep the merchandise may download free anti-virus software at www.seagate.com/www/zh-tw/support/downloads/personal_storage/ps3200-sw. For details, please visit www.xander.com.tw.
■ SCIENCE
Bone implants improved
Taiwanese biotech researchers have successfully applied a new material to the coating process in the production of artificial bone implants, both improving the prognosis of patients and shortening the time for recovery, academic sources said yesterday. The research team, gathering staff members from Feng Chia University (FCU) in Taichung City and Taichung Veterans General Hospital (TVGH), has spent two years on integrating the material -- titanium dioxide in anatase form -- into the coating process, members said, adding that the beneficial effects have been proven in recent clinical experiments. Tsou Hsi-kai (鄒錫凱), a member of TVGH's Neurosurgery Department and a team member, said that compared to conventional coating -- hydroxyapatite -- the new one better facilitates bone structure regeneration and thus shortens the recovery period.
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
About 4.2 million tourist arrivals were recorded in the first half of this year, a 10 percent increase from the same period last year, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. The growth continues to be consistent, with the fourth quarter of this year expected to be the peak in Taiwan, the agency said, adding that it plans to promote Taiwan overseas via partnerships and major events. From January to June, 9.14 million international departures were recorded from Taiwan, an 11 percent increase from the same period last year, with 3.3 million headed for Japan, 1.52 million for China and 832,962 to South Korea,
SOVEREIGNTY: The rigs show that Beijing ‘rejects Taiwan’s jurisdiction’ by building in areas where Taipei demands permission to build or alter installations Chinese oil rigs have been sighted just 26 nautical miles (42km), from Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙島), posing a threat to Taiwan’s sovereignty if left unchallenged, a brief published by the Jamestown Foundation on Tuesday said. Pratas Island, 444km from Kaohsiung, is northeast of the South China Sea and houses a Taiwanese garrison. The brief, titled “Rigging the Game: PRC Oil Structures Encroach on Taiwan’s Pratas Island” — referring to the People’s Republic of China — analyzed photographs and said that Beijing’s tools to pressure Taiwan now include oil rigs. “Oil rigs now constitute part of Beijing’s
The Taiwan Experience Education Program (TEEP) has funded short-term internships in Taiwan for more than 4,500 young people from more than 40 countries since 2015, with the goal of attracting and retaining international talent, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. Fifty-five colleges launched 514 projects this year, including in fields such as semiconductors, artificial intelligence, medicine and biotechnology, green energy, and sustainability, it said. The program provides research and practical internships in Taiwan for two to six months, and offers cultural exchange and networking opportunities, the ministry said. For example, National Formosa University’s Embedded System and Autopilot Laboratory developed two solar-powered drones in
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