■ POLITICS
Hsieh proposes write-off
Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said on Thursday that, if elected, he would consider writing off unpaid national health insurance premiums owed by low-income families. Quoting data compiled by the Bureau of National Health Insurance, Hsieh's campaign aides said about 11,000 low-income households owe a total of NT$220 million (US$6.8 million) in health insurance premiums. Another 6,000 people owe the government a total of NT$270 million in unpaid loans for health insurance premium payment. Hsieh's proposal would cost the government NT$490 million.
■ POLITICS
University plans debate
The College of Social Sciences at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) hopes to hold a debate this month between the country's two leading presidential candidates. NCKU faculty members said that Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) and his Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) counterpart Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) had tentatively agreed to the debate, although the date of the forum has not been finalized. The faculty members said the university has a tradition of not inviting political candidates to speak at its campus in the three-month period prior to an election. As a result, they predicted that the date of the debate will be no later than Dec. 22.
■ POLITICS
Chen honors Weng
President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) awarded the Chung Cheng Medal to former Judicial Yuan president Weng Yueh-sheng (翁岳生) yesterday in recognition of Weng's contribution to judicial reform. The presentation of one of the country's top honors was made at the Presidential Office, with Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), Judicial Yuan President Lai In-jaw (賴英照) and Presidential Office Secretary-General Yeh Chu-lan (葉菊蘭) in attendance. The 75-year-old Weng, who was Chen's mentor when the president was studying law at National Taiwan University, devoted more than 35 years of his life to improving the country's judicial system. He promoted reform of court organization, the litigation system and judicial personnel recruitment. Weng retired on Oct. 2 as the head of the nation's top judicial body. He was succeeded by Lai.
■ EDUCATION
Science Olympiad opens
The Fourth International Junior Science Olympiad (IJSO) opens in Taipei tomorrow. The 10-day IJSO, which is being held for the first time in Taiwan, seeks to encourage students with an interest in science to compete in international competitions. In this way, it is hoped that some students will take up careers in science, a National Taiwan Normal University official said. Organized by the university and the Ministry of Education, the IJSO will bring together 220 students from 40 countries, including the UK, Germany, Russia, South Korea, Singapore and the Netherlands. The IJSO -- which is a competition for students aged 16 years and under -- consists of a theoretical test, a multiple choice test and an experimental examination, the official said. Contestants will have to draw on their knowledge and skills in the fields of mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology and earth science, the official said.
■ RESEARCH
Gambling research begins
The National Taiwan University of Science and Technology in Taipei City has inaugurated the country's first lottery and gambling research center, gathering experts from different academic fields to contribute to the research, a spokesman said yesterday. William Eadington, a professor of economics and director of the Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gambling at the University of Nevada, delivered a speech on casino operation at the opening ceremony of the center. Ko Hsiu-chuan, an official of the National Treasury Agency, said the center would benefit Taiwan's gambling business, which is still in the early stages of development. Liu Day-yang (劉代洋), director-general of the research center, said it would integrate industry resources to promote the gambling business and hold international meetings and seminars.
■ AID
Rice reaches Nicaragua
Taiwan has donated 300 tonnes of rice to Nicaragua as part of a promised 5,300 tonnes to people who have suffered from recent natural disasters, the Spanish-language news agency EFE reported on Thursday. The report said Taiwan's Ambassador to Nicaragua Wu Chin-mu (吳進木) handed over the rice to Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega at a ceremony in Managua on Wednesday. Nicaragua's Caribbean coast was hammered by Hurricane Felix in early September after flooding caused by heavy rain in August, killing about 300 people and leaving thousands homeless.
■ TOURISM
Tourists can drive in Japan
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has received around 3,000 applications in the last two months from citizens intending to drive during trips to Japan, an official said yesterday. The applications came after Taiwan and Japan mutually recognized the validity of driver licenses issued by both governments from Sept. 21 this year, said Tsai Ming-yao (蔡明耀), deputy secretary-general of the ministry's Committee on Japanese Affairs. Tsai reminded the public that people in Japan drive on the left and that climate conditions are different.
Former Czech Republic-based Taiwanese researcher Cheng Yu-chin (鄭宇欽) has been sentenced to seven years in prison on espionage-related charges, China’s Ministry of State Security announced yesterday. China said Cheng was a spy for Taiwan who “masqueraded as a professor” and that he was previously an assistant to former Cabinet secretary-general Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰). President-elect William Lai (賴清德) on Wednesday last week announced Cho would be his premier when Lai is inaugurated next month. Today is China’s “National Security Education Day.” The Chinese ministry yesterday released a video online showing arrests over the past 10 years of people alleged to be
THE HAWAII FACTOR: While a 1965 opinion said an attack on Hawaii would not trigger Article 5, the text of the treaty suggests the state is covered, the report says NATO could be drawn into a conflict in the Taiwan Strait if Chinese forces attacked the US mainland or Hawaii, a NATO Defense College report published on Monday says. The report, written by James Lee, an assistant research fellow at Academia Sinica’s Institute of European and American Studies, states that under certain conditions a Taiwan contingency could trigger Article 5 of NATO, under which an attack against any member of the alliance is considered an attack against all members, necessitating a response. Article 6 of the North Atlantic Treaty specifies that an armed attack in the territory of any member in Europe,
LIKE FAMILY: People now treat dogs and cats as family members. They receive the same medical treatments and tests as humans do, a veterinary association official said The number of pet dogs and cats in Taiwan has officially outnumbered the number of human newborns last year, data from the Ministry of Agriculture’s pet registration information system showed. As of last year, Taiwan had 94,544 registered pet dogs and 137,652 pet cats, the data showed. By contrast, 135,571 babies were born last year. Demand for medical care for pet animals has also risen. As of Feb. 29, there were 5,773 veterinarians in Taiwan, 3,993 of whom were for pet animals, statistics from the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency showed. In 2022, the nation had 3,077 pediatricians. As of last
XINJIANG: Officials are conducting a report into amending an existing law or to enact a special law to prohibit goods using forced labor Taiwan is mulling an amendment prohibiting the importation of goods using forced labor, similar to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) passed by the US Congress in 2021 that imposed limits on goods produced using forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region. A government official who wished to remain anonymous said yesterday that as the US customs law explicitly prohibits the importation of goods made using forced labor, in 2021 it passed the specialized UFLPA to limit the importation of cotton and other goods from China’s Xinjiang Uyghur region. Taiwan does not have the legal basis to prohibit the importation of goods