POLITICS
Legislators report for duty
Several legislators reported early for the new session yesterday, with one even staying overnight at the Legislative Yuan to be the first arrival. Legislators started reporting for the eighth plenary session of the seventh legislature at 8am yesterday. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators Tsao Erh-chang (曹爾忠), Chang Ching-chung (張慶忠), Lin Te-fu (林德福) and Kung Wen-chi (孔文吉) attended, as well as Democratic Progressive Party lawmaker Peng Shao-chin (彭紹瑾). The legislature holds two sessions each year, the first from February to the end of May, and the second from September to the end of December. Tsao said he arrived at 11:30pm on Wednesday night to get an early start, adding that he is often the first arrival for legislative sittings or committee meetings. KMT Legislator Lu Chia-chen (盧嘉辰) jogged in from Tucheng (土城) in New Taipei City (新北市). Lu said that when he was elected in 2008, he also jogged in to take his oath of office. The new session is scheduled to start on Sept. 16.
COMMUNICATIONS
HSR to upgrade WiMAX
The Bureau of High Speed Rail (HSR) said on Wednesday it would upgrade its telecommunications service by June to offer its passengers uninterrupted Internet access on mobile devices. In a NT$500 million (US$17 million) joint project, including the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Industrial Technology Research Institute and a local telecommunications company, the bureau said it would introduce the 4G (fourth-generation) WiMAX technology to overcome glitches in the current service. At present, high-speed rail passengers using 2G or 3G cellular devices often have reception problems because the high speed of the trains makes it difficult to achieve a smooth signal transition from one base station to the next. However, that obstacle should soon be overcome because hundreds of WiMAX base stations and 360km of optical fiber cable are being installed along the railway line, the bureau said.
TRANSPORT
EasyCard seeks trial testers
EasyCard Corp began accepting applicants yesterday for a trial scheme for IC EasyCards with a new function that allows users to look up their card usage record online. EasyCard was first introduced in Taipei in 2002. The company is offering 20,000 free Republic of China -centennial-themed IC EasyCards for commuters who apply to test-drive the new cards. According to the company , the chip embedded in the card allows holders to access their usage record for the past three months at home using a reader, rather than just the six most recent transactions the current EasyCard permits. The company said applications would remain open until Monday or until 20,000 applications had been accepted. EasyCard users can apply and submit their comments or suggestions at www.easycard.com.tw/newcard, the company said.
ENTERTAINMENT
Rocker Chyi Chin burned
Veteran Taiwanese rocker Chyi Chin (齊秦) was severely burned early yesterday at his home in Beijing, but was reported to be in stable condition, his agency said in a statement. The 51-year-old singer-songwriter suffered second-degree burns on his face and back while undergoing cupping therapy, the agency said, adding the therapist had accidentally spilled alcohol on Chyi. The burns covered about 8 percent of his body. Chyi was undergoing the treatment to alleviate fatigue. His agency said Chyi would cancel all public activities for the next two to three months to recuperate.
NATIONAL DEFENSE
GIO sends ‘WSJ’ clarification
The Government Information Office (GIO) said yesterday that it has sent a clarifying statement to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) regarding a recent opinion piece in the paper that suggested parts of Taiwanese society have been penetrated by Chinese intelligence. The statement, drafted by the Ministry of National Defense, is expected to be published in one or two days, Government Information Office Minister Philip Yang (楊永明) said. The statement, written in English and two pages in length, not only denies the infiltration allegation, but highlights the substantive relations between Taiwan and the US, according to ministry spokesman Colonel David Lo (羅紹和). On Wednesday, Lo told a press conference that “there is a consensus within Taiwan’s armed forces that despite the warming of cross-strait relations, China is still an enemy.”
TRAVEL
Bureau tells Family Mart ‘no’
Tourism Bureau director general Janice Lai (賴瑟珍) yesterday said the bureau has sent an official notice to Family Mart informing the convenience store chain that it cannot collect applications for Taiwan Compatriot Entry Permits from customers planning to visit China and deliver them to travel agencies. The chain announced on Aug. 23 that it was working with a courier company and a travel agency to launch the service, by which Taiwanese planning to visit China would pay a fee of NT$499 to get their single-entry Taiwan Compatriot Entry Permit to China renewed. FamilyMart said at the time it expected to handle 20,000 applications a month. Lai said the chain could violate the Act for Development of Tourism (發展觀光條例) if it went ahead with the new service. However, later in the day, FamilyMart said it would continue the service unless a formal ruling against the service was handed down.
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
One of two tropical depressions that formed offshore this morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. It is expected to move in a northwesterly direction as it continues building momentum, possibly intensifying into Typhoon Mitag this weekend, she added. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is expected to approach southeast of Taiwan on Monday and pass through the Bashi Channel between Tuesday and Wednesday,
About nine Taiwanese are “disappeared,” detained, or otherwise deprived of freedom of movement in China each month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Between Jan. 1 last year and Aug. 31 this year, 188 Taiwanese travelers went missing, were detained and interrogated, or had their personal freedom restricted, with some questioned in airports or hotel lobbies, the council said. In a statement ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the council urged people visiting China for any reason to be highly vigilant and aware of the risks. Of the reported cases, 50 people were “disappeared” after entering China, 19 were detained and 119 had
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