■ SPORTS
Prosecutors monitor games
Tainan City prosecutors will begin to monitor professional baseball games today in a bid to prevent match fixing. Seventeen prosecutors will take turns in leading local police in monitoring the games and collecting evidence if they think there are signs of rigging, said Lin Chih-feng (林志峰), a chief prosecutor. However, only games at the baseball stadiums in Tainan will be monitored, Lin said. Professional baseball game rigging and underground gambling have been rampant in the past two decades since the Chinese Professional Baseball League was launched in 1990. Over the years, several coaches and players have been detained and indicted for match fixing.
■ NATURE
Cyclists bike for Yushan
In the latest twist to an ongoing campaign to get Yushan listed as one of the world's seven natural wonders, 24 cyclists from around the country are biking on the country's tallest mountain. Yushan National Park Headquarters said the cyclists began the tour on Wednesday and were expected to complete the 185km route today. Park officials said they hoped the cyclists' enthusiasm, energy and spirit of embracing challenges would rub off on the public. Each of the cyclists are wearing a vest printed with the slogan “Vote for Yushan.” Yushan is currently in first place in the “mountains and volcanoes” category in the contest to select the world's new seven natural wonders organized by the Swiss-based New7Wonders Foundation. To boost Yushan's chances of being selected, the national park headquarters urged the public to cast their vote for the mountain by visiting the Web site http://www.new7wonders.com.
■ SOCIETY
Jilted woman finds no light
A jilted woman who attempted to set herself on fire in front of the Taipei World Trade Center early yesterday was frustrated to find that she had forgotten to bring a lighter or a match, a local TV station reported. After dousing herself with gasoline, the unidentified woman searched her handbag only to find that she had forgotten to bring a lighter, cable news network TVBS said. The gasoline-soaked woman then went to the parking lot of the trade center to try to borrow a lighter from a guard, who became suspicious of her intentions and instead called police. The woman later told police she was dumped by her boyfriend and she wanted to end her life. The woman was later taken home by her family, TVBS said.
■ CRIME
Dogs help drug crackdown
Sniffer dogs have become more important in detecting illegal narcotics at customs checkpoints, detecting some 20 percent of the illegal drugs confiscated from travelers at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in the first quarter, the Customs Office said. More than 90kg of unlawful drugs smuggled in by passengers was confiscated at the airport in the first three months of this year, with about 20 percent of the drugs discovered by dogs serving at the airport, the officials said. Taiwan's drug sniffer dogs squad was established in 2002 to help customs agents crack down on smuggling of illegal substances. Six sniffer dogs are serving at the Taoyuan airport. Besides the work of the dogs, a majority — or 67 percent — of the banned drugs seized was discovered by customs agents with the help of X-ray machines, while the remaining 13 percent was tracked down through tip-offs, the Customs Office said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
Speeding and badly maintained roads were the main causes of a school bus accident on a rainy day in Taipei last year that severely injured two people and left 22 with minor injuries, the Taiwan Transportation and Safety Board said. On March 11 last year, a Kang Chiao International School bus overturned inside the Wenshan Tunnel (文山隧道) on the northbound lane of the Xinyi Expressway. The tour bus, owned by Long Lai Co, exceeded the speed limit after entering the tunnel, the board’s investigation found. Sensing that the rear of the vehicle was swaying, the driver attempted to use the service and exhaust
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