HEALTH
Acupuncture aids rehab
Acupuncture stimulation could help blood circulation in patients who have suffered strokes, a recent study conducted by a team of local doctors showed. The study, published in last month’s edition of Microvascular Research, documented the therapeutic effects of acupuncture on 18 patients who had suffered strokes, Taipei City Hospital said. The patients, all in the rehabilitation stage, received acupuncture in certain areas associated with improved blood flow and were later tested for changes, said Chen Chao-tsung (陳朝宗), director of traditional medicine at the hospital. The results showed that acupuncture can decrease blood flow resistance and increase microcirculatory blood flow, a situation that is deemed helpful for the recovery of stroke patients, he said. “The main contribution made by this research was its evaluation of acupuncture therapy in a scientific way,” Chen said. The next step would be to come up with more scientific evidence to explain how acupuncture stimulation can be used to supplement Western treatments for strokes, he said.
POLITICS
DPP couple marries
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chiu Yi-ying (邱議瑩) yesterday married her long-time boyfriend, Greater Kaohsiung Deputy Mayor Lee Yung-te (李永得), in a long-expected and low-profile civil ceremony. Chiu, 39, met Lee, 55, when the two served as vice minister and minister, respectively, at the Council for Hakka Affairs. “Lee wanted us to marry while I am still in my 30s,” Chiu told reporters. Lee added he would “do my best to have at least three children,” although Chiu said that she would first focus on her re-election campaign. The ceremony, held at a public office in Greater Kaohsiung, was attended by Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊), while DPP lawmakers in the legislature wished the couple all the best.
DIPLOMACY
Wang delivers donation
Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) handed over a disaster relief donation of ￥1 billion (US$12 million) to Japan yesterday in Tokyo on behalf of Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Wang said Japan had made a great contribution to the relief work in Taiwan after a deadly earthquake in 1999 and again after Typhoon Morakot in 2009. Taiwan will never forget Japan’s kindness, said Wang, who is leading a delegation on a visit to Japan. Adding that Japan’s tourism industry has been affected by the nuclear crisis that developed there after a devastating earthquake and tsunami on March 11, Wang said he would lead another delegation to Hokkaido to show his support for the country. Taiwan held a TV fundraiser on March 18, raising ￥2.1 billion within four hours. To date, Taiwan has donated a total of ￥14.4 billion to the disaster relief efforts in Japan.
CROSS-STRAIT TIES
Hu offers Lien delegates
Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) will send delegates to a memorial service for former vice president Lien Chan’s (連戰) mother, Chao Lan-kun (趙蘭坤), who passed away on Sunday at the age of 103, Lien’s spokesman Ting Yuan-chao (丁遠超) said. Ting said that upon learning of Chao’s death, Hu extended condolences to Lien and offered to send a delegation to Taiwan, an offer Lien politely declined. However, Hu said he wanted to express his sympathy by sending “one or two non-official delegates” to the funeral on Thursday next week, so Lien agreed, Ting said. The memorial service for Chao will be held at the Taipei Wesley Methodist Church, Ting added.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
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