SOCIETY
Kaohsiung births increase
Greater Kaohsiung observed an increase in both marriages and births last year, a year many people considered to be lucky, the city’s Department of Budget, Accounting and Statistics said. According to department’s statistics, 18,732 couples tied the knot in the municipality last year, compared with 15,659 couples in 2010. As for the birthrate, the number of babies born reached 21,411, compared with 19,198 in 2010. As it is the Year of the Dragon, the department said it was expecting high birthrates for this year as well. The Social Affairs Bureau added it would offer financial rewards to couples who have children this year. Parents would be given a birth stipend of NT$6,000 per child and NT$10,000 to couples that have a third child, the bureau said, adding that before infants reach their first birthday, parents are entitled to a monthly subsidy of NT$3,000.
ENVIRONMENT
Trucks to get recorders
The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) said it is planning to install recorders on hundreds of garbage trucks nationwide as part of government efforts to crack down on environmental violations. Wu Tien-chi (吳天基), head of the Department of Waste Management, said that to reinforce a crackdown on violations, such as dropping cigarette butts or belching exhaust smoke, a total of 960 garbage trucks around Taiwan would be fitted with recorders in the initial stage. Meanwhile, EPA Minister Stephen Shen (沈世宏) encouraged residents to report environmental violations.
CROSS-STRAIT TIES
Ties to get closer: Zheng
China’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits Deputy Chairman Zheng Lizhong (鄭立中) predicted yesterday in Greater Tainan that cross-strait engagements would become even closer and wider, with many people from many sectors pitching in. Zheng said it was once “beyond the imagination” that 558 flights could fly directly across the Strait per week. After so many years of efforts, both sides now appreciate that peace and collaboration are the only options to end tensions and standoffs, he said. Zheng, who arrived in Taipei on Saturday, is visiting at the invitation of the National Policy Foundation, a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) think tank. His visit, primarily to southern Taiwan, comes less than a month after the Jan. 14 presidential and legislative elections. Prior to visiting Greater Tainan, he was in Greater Kaohsiung and Pingtung County over the weekend. Academics said his visit was mainly aimed at winning more trust from Taiwanese at the grassroots level, particularly those residing in southern Taiwan.
CRIME
Envoy offers condolences
Representative to the Philippines Raymond Wang (王樂生) expressed condolences on Sunday to the family of a Taiwanese woman living in the Southeast Asian country who was murdered there last month. The 29-year-old victim, surnamed Hsu (許), was robbed and shot in Manila’s Chinatown on Jan. 11. Her brother and father were also injured. According to a police investigation, the perpetrator was an active duty policeman. Wang said the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Manila had requested the country’s police to take the suspect into custody as soon as possible. He also urged the local government to install security monitoring systems to improve the city’s safety. The victim’s father, who is involved in the onion trade, has been based in the Philippines for several decades.
JUDICIARY
Chiayi tests ‘observer jury’
The Judicial Yuan held a briefing session in Chiayi City yesterday in preparation for a test run of a proposed “observer jury” system in the southern city. About 120 legal professionals and law experts attended the session, which was held at the Chiayi District Court. The “observer jury” system aims to allow the public to participate in the criminal trial process and enhance judiciary transparency. According to a draft bill released on Jan. 11 by the Judicial Yuan, the “observer jury” would apply to cases that involve offenses carrying a maximum penalty of death or life imprisonment. However, the jury would only express their opinion and would not render a verdict, the draft bill states. The Judicial Yuan hopes the legislature will pass the bill this year, paving the way for its implementation next year. After Chiayi, the Shihlin District Court in Taipei has been selected to test the system.
MILITARY
Open islets: Kinmen
Kinmen County Commissioner Li Wo-shi (李沃士) yesterday again urged the military to conditionally open two islets — Dadan (大膽) and Erdan (二膽) — to the public to help boost tourism in the outlying islands. The two islets have long been military outposts that are off-limits to the public. Dadan covers an area of 0.79km2, while Erdan measures 0.28km2. In response, the Ministry of National Defense said that the Executive Yuan would discuss whether to open Dadan and Erdan to the public and would make the final decision on the matter. Li has called for the opening of the two islets to the general public on the condition that the military’s operations would not be affected.
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