CHARITY
Khieng T-shirt to help kids
Internationally renowned fashion designer Khieng Puong, now living and working in Taiwan, has designed a T-shirt for a charity drive for Aboriginal children, the non-profit Canlove Social Service Association, which organized the drive, said yesterday. Khieng, owner of the Taipei-based haute couture company Khieng Atelier, has designed a T-shirt especially for the charity that is seeking to provide better social services in Aboriginal communities, it said, adding that the proceeds from the sale of the T-shirt, 1,000 of which will be produced, would go toward programs for Aboriginal children. Khieng, who was born in Cambodia and married Wang Jui-jung (王瑞容), the daughter of late tycoon Wang Yung-ching (王永慶), said the T-shirt design integrates fashion elements and the unique totemic images of Taiwan’s Aborigines. The T-shirts will be sold online on the association’s Web site and on Yam Taiwan.
DIPLOMACY
Aid arrives in Thailand
The first batch of relief supplies donated by Taiwan to help flood victims in Thailand has arrived in the country, an official said yesterday. The supplies, which weigh 5,000kg, include surgical masks, food, sanitizers and first-aid kits. Thailand has been hit by its worst flooding in 50 years, said James Tien (田中光), director-general of the Department of East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The flooding in the world’s top exporter of rice broke out in late July and it has affected half of the nation’s population. On Oct. 18, the government donated US$100,000 to the Thai government. As the flooding in the country continued to worsen, Taiwan offered another US$100,000.
ENVIRONMENT
‘Green’ forums to be held
The German Institute in Taipei and a local environmental non-governmental organization are set to co-host forums on environmental issues throughout Taiwan starting from Monday, in an effort to promote a sustainable low-carbon environment, organizers said yesterday. The first forum is to be held in Yilan, followed by Greater Taichung and New Taipei City (新北市), before concluding in Greater Tainan, said Eugene Chien (簡又新), president of the Taiwan Institute for Sustainable Energy. Attending the forums will be two German experts — Christian Maass, former state secretary for environment and urban planning in Hamburg, will share his experiences about making his city this year’s European Green Capital, while Rudiger Schweer, director of the Ministry of the Environment in Hessen, will focus on business structure and opportunity.
CULTURE
Eight to receive awards
Eight people, including a crosstalk performer and two Aborigine nose-flute players, will receive the human national treasure award this year, according to the Council of Cultural Affairs. Lai Pie-hsia (賴碧霞), who is also known as the “Queen of Hakka folk songs,” has been awarded for her achievements in preserving Hakka mountain music. Wu Chao-nan (吳兆南), 80, a renowned crosstalk performer, and Paiwan nose-flute players Hsu Kun-chung (許坤仲) and Hsieh Shui-neng (謝水能) are among those honored. The others are master tinsmith Chen Wan-neng (陳萬能), Buddhist sculptor Shih Chih-hui (施至輝), traditional wood sculptor Shih Chen-yang (施鎮洋) and traditional glove puppet artist Huang Chun-hsiung (黃俊雄). This year’s award ceremony is scheduled to be held tomorrow at the Taichung Cultural Creative Industrial Park.
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
Taiwanese celebrities Hank Chen (陳漢典) and Lulu Huang (黃路梓茵) announced yesterday that they are planning to marry. Huang announced and posted photos of their engagement to her social media pages yesterday morning, joking that the pair were not just doing marketing for a new show, but “really getting married.” “We’ve decided to spend all of our future happy and hilarious moments together,” she wrote. The announcement, which was later confirmed by the talent agency they share, appeared to come as a surprise even to those around them, with veteran TV host Jacky Wu (吳宗憲) saying he was “totally taken aback” by the news. Huang,
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