■CRIME
Ex-official’s home raided
Investigators yesterday searched the homes of former Council for Cultural Affairs minister Chen Chi-nan (陳其南) and a reporter from the Chinese-language The Commons Daily on suspicion of embezzlement. The two are suspected of being involved in the embezzlement of about NT$6 million (US$200,000) in funds earmarked for the promotion of an urban planning and reconstruction program from 2005 to 2006. Initial investigations said the council authorized a public relations company to undertake the project without going through the proper procedure of public bidding that is required of government-funded projects. Prosecutors are also tracking the whereabouts of the NT$6 million in funding. The two were also questioned on whether the project involved any bribe-taking or embezzlement. However, prosecutors declined to elaborate on details of their involvement in the case, citing a gag order that prohibits them from discussing cases under investigation.
■HEALTH
Mentally ill missing
A total of 335 mentally ill Taipei residents who were on a monitoring list cannot be reached by health authorities, posing a potential hazard to public security, the city’s health department said yesterday. Statistics provided by the department showed that there are 16,163 people on the list, including 10 arsonists. Chen Ching-mei (陳青梅), deputy chief of the department’s medical affairs division, said health officials had asked police for contact information on the missing 335, but had been turned down because of privacy concerns. This has made it difficult to monitor the condition of the mentally ill, she said. Chen made the remarks in a news conference held by Democratic Progressive Party Taipei City councilors Hung Chien-yi (洪健益) and Yen Sheng-kuan (顏聖冠) to address a recent incident in which a mentally ill man committed several acts of arson in the city on Nov. 2. The man was one of the listed missing persons.
■HISTORY
POWs remembered
This year’s Remembrance Weekend events will take place today and tomorrow with a banquet and memorial service to commemorate prisoners of war (POW) who lost their lives at the hands of their Japanese captors in Taiwan during World War II. The events, organized by the Taiwan Prisoner of War Camps Memorial Society, will begin with a banquet at the Imperial Hotel tonight. On Sunday morning, a service will be held at the site of the former Kinkaseki POW Camp in Jinguashih (金瓜石), Taipei County. The British Trade and Cultural Office in Taipei has co-organized the events with the society. From August 1942 to September 1945, more than 4,300 Allied POWs were held in 16 camps around Taiwan. Ten percent of them died. Check out www.powtaiwan.org for more information.
■CHARITY
Rummage sale at TAS
Taipei American School’s (TAS) Orphanage Club will hold its annual rummage sale and flea market in the school’s lobby and forecourt today, starting at 10am, rain or shine. The flea market will end at 3pm, but the rummage sale will continue until 5pm. Items include clothing, toys, household items, electronic appliances, furniture and some antiques. There will also be Mexican food, drinks and ice cream for sale. The club will use the proceeds to fund its programs for orphans and needy children in Taiwan and overseas. TAS is located at 800 Zhongshan N Road Sec 6 in Tianmu (天母).
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