DIPLOMACY
Yoshiro Mori visits Taiwan
Former Japanese prime minister Yoshiro Mori arrived in Taiwan yesterday for a two-day private visit, the third former Japanese prime minister to visit the country this year, following Taro Aso and Shinzo Abe, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. During his stay, Mori will attend the 13th Asian Japanese Rugby Cup to be held in Taipei today and visit the Baojue Buddhist Temple (寶覺禪寺), a shrine dedicated to some Japanese World War II soldiers who fought overseas located in Taichung. Mori, known as his pro-Taiwan position, last visited the country in November 2006, when he was received by then-president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who conferred upon him the Special Grand Cordon of the Order of the Brilliant Star, incurring the anger of Beijing.
POLITICS
Lee Huan dies at 95
Former premier Lee Huan (李煥) died of cardiopulmonary failure at Taipei Veterans General Hospital late on Thursday at the age of 95. Lee is survived by four children. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lee Ching-hua (李慶華), the second child of the late politician, made the announcement of his father’s passing and said the family would hold a simple funeral without a public memorial ceremony, according to his father’s wishes. Presidential Office spokesman Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) said President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) immediately extended his condolences to Lee’s family upon being informed of the death. Lee was born in China’s Hubei Province in 1917 and served as premier from 1989 to 1990. He also served as minister of education from 1984 to 1987.
CHINA
Chinese visa wait shortened
Taiwan’s representative office in Los Angeles has shortened the visa processing time for overseas Chinese nationals intending to visit Taiwan, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Los Angeles said on Thursday. The new service — currently being provided on a trial basis before it is expanded to other US cities — allows eligible applicants to obtain entry permits to Taiwan within 10 days of application, compared with the usual three to four weeks. The program is aimed at holders of People’s Republic of China passports who have lived overseas for a year or who hold permanent resident status or student visas in a foreign country. According to a TECO immigration clerk, the service has received a warm reception since it was launched on Nov. 8.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
The age requirement for commercial pilots and airline transport pilots is to be lowered by two years, to 18 and 21 years respectively, to expand the pool of pilots in accordance with international standards, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced today. The changes are part of amendments to articles 93, 119 and 121 of the Regulations Governing Licenses and Ratings for Airmen (航空人員檢定給證管理規則). The amendments take into account age requirements for aviation personnel certification in the Convention on International Civil Aviation and EU’s aviation safety regulations, as well as the practical needs of managing aviation personnel licensing, the ministry said. The ministry
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