■SOCIETY
Man bitten in sex assault
A man had to seek medical treatment after his genitals were bitten while forcing a homeless man to perform oral sex, local media reported yesterday. The incident occurred about 3am on Monday in Daya Park in Taichung County, the Apple Daily said. The man, surnamed Hou (侯), 31, who is homeless, was drunk and loitering in Taya Park when he saw a 60-year-old homeless man, identified only as Kuo (郭), sleeping under a pavilion. Hou woke Kuo up and asked him for money. When Kuo refused to give him money, Hou knocked Kuo to the ground. Kuo pulled himself up and walked into a toilet to urinate. Hou followed him into the toilet, grabbed Kuo’s head and forced Kuo to perform oral sex on him, the paper said. Kuo bit Hou’s genitals, drawing blood and causing Hou flee for help at a police station about 50m away. Police rushed Hou to Cheng Ching Hospital, where doctors said that Hou’s foreskin had several lacerations. Hou was given a tetanus shot and had his wounds treated. The function of his penis was not damaged. After police questioning, Hou was turned over for prosecution on sexual harassment charges.
■CULTURE
Wu mulls ‘Matsu Day’
Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) said yesterday he planned to include Taiwan’s Matsu religious culture in celebrations for the nation’s 100th birthday. When fielding questions from Non-Partisan Solidarity Union Legislator Yen Chin-piao (顏清標), who doubles as chairman of the Da Jia Jenn Lann Temple — a major Matsu temple — the premier also promised to have the Ministry of the Interior consider designating the goddess’ birthday as a national memorial day. Matsu’s birthday falls on March 23 on the Lunar calendar.
■DIPLOMACY
MOFA pushes ‘digital’ ties
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to push for “digital diplomacy” by holding computer-related training sessions and expositions with its allies in Latin America, Weber Shih (施文斌), director-general of the ministry’s Department of Economic Affairs, said yesterday. Sharing Taiwan’s expertise in computers and information technology can help cement bilateral relations as well as bridge the digital gap, Shih said, citing as an example the Compu Expo held in the Dominican Republic early this month, which generated more than US$7.5 million in business opportunities. Taiwan also conducted a seminar on digital developments in Panama yesterday, he said, with more than 80 officials and computer experts from Taiwan, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Panama expected to attend.
■SOCIETY
Tianmu to hold tree festival
The Taipei City Government said yesterday that part of Tianmu, near Zhongcheng Rd Sec 2, will be closed to traffic on Saturday and Sunday in celebration of the Tianmu Flame Gold-rain Tree Festival. Initiated in 1996 by local businesses, the festival will run from 1pm to 6pm on Saturday and Sunday in front of Eslite Bookstore, featuring various performances and a make-up party. Benjamin Roan (阮燿斌), director of Tianmu Business Association, said the make-up party would be held at 4pm on Sunday, with participants invited to dress up according to the day’s theme — trees. Winners will also receive free coupons from local restaurants. The public is also encouraged to join a book donation activity. The festival takes its name from the approximately 1,600 flame gold-rain trees that stretch along Zhongcheng Road, with the leaves turning yellow and then red around September and October, Roan said.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
Travel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. The airline said that it has confirmed that the planned industrial action by its international wide-body cabin crew would go ahead on Thursday and Friday next week. While the Auckland-based carrier pledged to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of the workers’ strike, an Air New Zealand flight arriving at Taipei from Auckland on Thursday and another flight departing from Taipei for Auckland on Saturday would have to
RSS