■ AVIATION
Bomb scare diverts plane
A Taiwan-based China Airlines (CAL) passenger plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Hangzhou, in eastern China’s Zhejiang Province yesterday after a passenger claimed to have a bomb on board, Taiwan’s Aviation Police Office said late yesterday evening. The 58-year-old passenger reportedly told cabin crew he had explosives in his luggage, the office said. The plane, which was on its way to Shanghai from Taipei, was diverted to Hangzhou. A preliminary investigation by local police found no explosives in Lin’s luggage. He claimed to have made the comment as a joke, the office said. The plane eventually took off again for Shanghai — minus Lin, who was detained in Hangzhou, according to the office.
■ FOOD
Farmers make halal bid
The farmers’ association in Taichung County’s Shihkang (石岡) said it was applying for Halal certification of its new ponkan mandarin orange cake to tap into Muslim markets abroad. Halal certification is recognition that products are permissible under Islamic law and are thus edible, drinkable or usable by Muslims. The Shihkang farmers’ association has been forced to add value to its ponkan mandarin oranges, which is a major crop in that area, following poor sales last year. After much trial and error, it came up with the orange cake, which is expected to hit the market this month. The association plans to export it to Southeast Asian countries with large Muslim populations.
■ SEAFARING
Koxinga honored with ship
A replica of a 17th century Ming Dynasty ruler’s ship was launched yesterday at Anping Harbor in Tainan City and is expected to make a voyage to Japan next April, Tainan city government officials said yesterday. Tainan Mayor Hsu Tain-tsair (�?]) said the ship, which was built to commemorate the Chinese general Koxinga, known in Mandarin Chinese as Cheng Chen-kung (鄭成�?would sail for the Japanese city of Hirado, where Koxinga was born in 1624. The officials said the ship, which is not self-powered and was towed into the harbor by a fishing boat, would have to undergo seven days of tests in the harbor before being fitted with navigation equipment and an engine. To reconstruct the ship, Tainan city officials traveled to Japan in 2008 to obtain a copy of a painting of the vessel from the Hirado City Government. Based on the 1706 painting, the 29.5m replica was completed in 18 months, with funding of NT$80 million (US$2.5 million) from the Council for Cultural Affairs.
■ NATURE
Coastal forests important
The country must put more effort into restoring coastal forests, which can provide protection against wind and tides, a Council of Agriculture official said. Chen Tsai-hui (陳財輝), an analyst at the council’s Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, said the coastal forests had declined substantially in recent years because of coastal industrial parks, fishing ports, and recreational and wind power facilities. The western coastline is suffering serious erosion, Chen said. The overuse of concrete armor units and bulwarks defeats the purpose of their construction, often resulting in encroachment at sea, he said. Land subsidence along the southwest coastline has also resulted in coastal forests being swamped, he said. To limit the damage from high tides and sandstorms, more forests should be planted along the nation’s 1,250km of coastline, Chen said.
POLAM KOPITIAM CASE: Of the two people still in hospital, one has undergone a liver transplant and is improving, while the other is being evaluated for a liver transplant A fourth person has died from bongkrek acid poisoning linked to the Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, as two other people remain seriously ill in hospital. The first death was reported on March 24. The man had been 39 years old and had eaten at the restaurant on March 22. As more cases of suspected food poisoning involving people who had eaten at the restaurant were reported by hospitals on March 26, the ministry and the Taipei Department of Health launched an investigation. The Food and
The long-awaited Taichung aquarium is expected to open next year after more than a decade of development. The building in Cingshui District (清水) is to feature a large ocean aquarium on the first floor, coral display area on the second floor, a jellyfish tank and Dajia River (大甲溪) basin display on the third, a river estuary display and restaurant on the fourth, and a cafe and garden on the fifth. As it is near Wuci Fishing Port (梧棲漁港), many are expecting the opening of the aquarium to bring more tourism to the harbor. Speaking at the city council on Monday, Taichung City Councilor
A fourth person has died in a food poisoning outbreak linked to the Xinyi (信義) branch of Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in Taipei, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said on Monday. It was the second fatality in three days, after another was announced on Saturday. The 40-year-old woman experienced multiple organ failure in the early hours on Monday, and the family decided not to undergo emergency resuscitation, Wang said. She initially showed signs of improvement after seeking medical treatment for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but her condition worsened due to an infection, he said. Two others who
Taiwanese should be mindful when visiting China, as Beijing in July is likely to tighten the implementation of policies on national security following the introduction of two regulations, a researcher said on Saturday. China on Friday unveiled the regulations governing the law enforcement and judicial activities of national security agencies. They would help crack down on “illegal” and “criminal” activities that Beijing considers to be endangering national security, according to reports by China’s state media. The definition of what constitutes a national security threat in China is vague, Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) said. The two procedural regulations are to provide Chinese