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Taiwan News Quick Take

■Culture

Chao Ning dies at 66

Taiwanese writer Chao Ning (趙寧) died of gallbladder cancer at the Taipei Veterans General Hospital, hospital officials said yesterday. The author of such works as Chao Ning’s US Study Journal and Drawing a Beautiful Circle for Your Life, Chao, 66, was admitted to the Veterans General hospital several months ago after an operation performed at another hospital failed to improve his condition. In June, he resigned as president of De Lin Institute of Technology in Taipei County, a post he had held since 2006. Wu Ching-wei (吳慶維), chief secretary of the institute, said Chao’s novel and easygoing style of administering the school had left a deep impression on students. Chao is survived by his wife, a daughter and two sons.



■Society

Brothel shut down

Authorities in Nantou County have turned off the red light at the county’s last legal brothel after the death of its 87-year-old owner, newspapers reported yesterday. Ai Le (愛樂) was the last legal brothel in Nantou and police revoked its permit because the 48-year-old business could not be transferred, the reports said. Prostitution has been illegal since 1997 and licensing of new brothels stopped in 1974, but isolated illegal brothels can be found all over the nation. Brothels licensed prior to 1974 were allowed to keep operating. The closure effectively leaves Ai Le’s two prostitutes, aged 40 and 50, jobless, the reports said. A photo in the newspaper showed Ai Le as a building with a pink flower-print facade, rimmed by a tattered roof.



■Society

English service halted

An “English teaching service” — messages broadcast by garbage trucks in Tainan City for the past few years — has been suspended for more than six months now, city officials said on Thursday in response to queries from curious residents. “The city government decided to temporarily suspend the service because it has so many other policies it needs to deliver to residents,” Environmental Protection Bureau chief Chang Huang-chen (張皇珍) said. As diseases such as dengue fever and enterovirus spread through the city last year and this year, the city decided to replace the trucks’ “English time” with city policy promotions in Vietnamese and Thai for the benefit of foreign spouses who do not understand Chinese. The city’s garbage trucks used to broadcast English teaching programs produced by its education department. Wang Shui-wen (王水文), the city’s education department head, said the English teaching services had not been permanently shelved, and the department planned to record more programs.



■Society

Mobile firm plans shuffle

The financially troubled First International Telecom Corp, the nation’s only mobile operator using PHS low-power systems, said yesterday it filed a corporate restructuring application with the Taipei District Court. Chairman Charlie Wu (吳清源) said in a stock exchange filing the company was asking the court to help protect its assets during the restructuring to protect the interests of clients, debtors, shareholders and employees. Once the court approves the application, First International Telecom said it would maintain normal operations while negotiating with major shareholders Shin Kong Group and FIH Global Inc on a possible capital injection. On Tuesday, First International Telecom bounced NT$86 milliion (US$2.7 million) in checks to creditor banks, suppliers and retailers.


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