■SOCIETY
AmCham holds happy hour
The American Chamber of Commerce in Taichung invited people to join this month’s happy hour on Tuesday starting at 6:30pm at the Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant. This informal social event is open to all and not exclusive to chamber members. No reservations needed. For more information, call AmCham administrative coordinator River Chen at 0955-038-733, or (04) 2471-8133, or check its Web site www.amchamtaichung.org.
■GAMING
Casino boss visits Kinmen
Lawrence Ho (何猷龍), The son of Macau’s casino king Stanley Ho (何鴻燊), visited Kinmen on Friday to learn about its investment environment and the feasibility of building a casino there. Lawrence Ho, chairman and CEO of Melco International Development, arrived at Shanyi Airport in Kinmen on his private jet at 10:30am, the first direct flight from Hong Kong to the Taiwan-held island just off China’s southeastern coast. In his meeting with Kinmen County Commissioner Lee Chu-feng (李炷烽), Lawrence Ho said he had confidence in Kinmen’s investment environment and that he was interested in its entertainment sector. Lee responded that he was happy that foreign capital could come to the county, but reminded his guest that whether or not Kinmen will allow casinos hinges on public opinion. Lee said opinion polls have shown considerable opposition among local residents to such an idea and said he would wait until there were more concrete plans before putting the matter to a public referendum.
■SCIENCE
Morakot delays exhibit
Because of Typhoon Morakot, the National Science Council (NSC) yesterday postponed the opening of an astronomy exhibition, which was meant to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s first observation of space and the International Year of Astronomy. The exhibition, titled “400 Years of Sky Gazing,” is aimed at explaining astronomy, showing how it relates to history, literature, religion, science and technology, and detailing how it has impacted human exploration of the universe. The presentation will be theatrical, featuring 3D projections, digital audio and video displays and multi-touch interaction installations to showcase scientific knowledge, said the council, adding that noted scientists from abroad would also give seminars. The exhibition is scheduled to run though Sept. 13 at Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall’s Second and Third Display Rooms and Art Gallery. Admission to the exhibit is free.
■ENVIRONMENT
UK office focuses on climate
The British Trade and Cultural Office said in its latest e-newsletter that it would hold a series of activities on climate change as part of a UK government program geared toward a global pact on the issue. This is a landmark year for climate change because the nations of the world will gather in Copenhagen in December to work out a new international agreement to tackle climate change because the Kyoto Protocol will expire in 2012, the office said. As part of the efforts, the office is planning to work with the organization Taiwan Environmental Action Network to hold a workshop on climate change from Aug. 25 to Aug. 26 at the Youth Hub in Taipei City. The office and Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs will together organize a forum on greenhouse gas management, which is scheduled to take place Sept. on 29 at National Taiwan University’s International Convention Center, the e-newsletter said.
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