NATIONAL DEFENSE
Conscription rule tightened
The Ministry of the Interior yesterday said that men who are obliged to serve in the military can no longer delay their service by claiming to be studying after the age of 28. The Regulation on Exemption, Banned and Postponed Enlistment (免役禁役緩徵實施辦法) has been revised to tackle the issue of men, especially some well-known entertainers, who postpone their military service by frequently transferring to different schools. The ministry decided to add the provision that those who study in institutions below college level should not be older than 28 when they ask for a delay of conscription. However, this rule will not apply to those who study in regular schools and graduate institutions, the ministry said. The issue became a topic of debate earlier this year when actor Matthew Lin (明道), 31, registered at his fifth college in 11 years to delay military service, which many male entertainers consider a “career killer.”
EDUCATION
Relationship rule clarified
The Ministry of Education on Wednesday clarified again that it did not officially ban amorous relationships between teachers and students. The clarification came after media reports that the ministry officially demanded educational institutions of all levels to make it clear that teacher-student relationships were banned whenever they revised contracts with teachers. Concern over the ministry’s alleged decision was voiced in editorials and by academics, who argued that personal relationships are private and a person’s free will should not be impinged upon by the authorities.
CRIME
Reporter freed on bail
Tao Huan-chang (陶煥昌), a reporter with the Chinese-language United Evening News, was released on NT$300,000 bail yesterday morning after being questioned by prosecutors on suspicion of insider trading activities that had allegedly netted NT$800 million (US$26.5 million) in illicit profits. The court also granted the prosecutors’ request to detain Tao’s brother in the case. The Taipei District Prosecutors Office said Tao Huan-chang was suspected of violating the Securities Exchange Act (證券交易法) by forming an insider trading ring that included actor-turned--restaurateur Shao Hsin (邵昕), former Chinese Television System anchor Chen Hsin-hung (陳信宏) and Tao’s two brothers. Tao used his own bank accounts and dummy accounts to engage in illegal trading of stocks, which brought in about NT$800 million in profits, prosecutors said. Tao and his elder brother reported to the prosecutors on Wednesday evening for questioning. The Taos said they had been used and did not know the details of the alleged scam.
CULTURE
Aboriginal exhibition opens
The Taiwan Centennial Indigenous Industry opens today in Taipei and runs through Monday, Council of Indigenous Peoples Minister Sun Ta-chuan (孫大川) said yesterday. The event will feature 180 booths run by members of the nation’s 14 Aboriginal tribes selling traditional specialties, handicrafts and other creative items, Sun said. There will also be 18 performances. The expo was designed to help Aborigines find a way to develop a culture--oriented economy, “so that we would know what we could pass on to our children and grandchildren in the next 50 or 100 years,” Sun said. For details about the expo, visit www.tciie.tw.
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai