WEATHER
High temperatures forecast
Hot weather is expected across the nation this week, especially over the next two days because of strong Pacific high-pressure systems, the Central Weather Bureau said yesterday. Temperatures could reach 36oC in the north and 34oC in central and southern areas today, the bureau said. The public were warned not to spend too long in the sun and those visiting riverside areas to beware of rising water levels following possible rain in mountainous areas. From tomorrow through Friday, eastern areas might see intermittent rain, while afternoon thundershowers may occur in northern, central and southern parts of the country, the bureau said. Intermittent thundershowers can be expected over the weekend in the afternoon in northern, central, southern and northeastern areas, the bureau said.
SOCIETY
Cabinet starts video contest
The Research, Development and Evaluation Commission is inviting local and foreign residents to participate in a video contest to highlight Taiwan’s English-language services, as part of efforts to build a friendly environment for the international community. Until Aug. 31, those who are interested can submit videos presenting their experience of the government’s efforts to create an amiable and effective English-language environment, the commission said. The competition is also aimed at promoting the English Services Emblem program, which recognizes English services provided by a store. The award ceremony is scheduled for Oct. 12 and the winner will receive a voucher worth NT$50,000. The commission held a similar event last year and one of the winners was James Miller of the US. He said the emblems are necessary because they help those who do not speak Chinese to find things.
RETAIL
Hair accessories fail check
An inspection of women’s hair accessories sold in Taoyuan County found that 285 out of 300 products examined did not contain the legally required information on their labels, the county’s Economic Development Bureau said yesterday. Last month, the bureau sent investigators to retail outlets around the county to conduct random inspections of hair accessory products. The investigators sampled 300 products, such as hair clips, headbands and combs. Of the samples that failed inspection, 198 were found to lack any of the labeling required by law, while the remainder had only partial labeling. All hair accessories should be labeled with the name and contact information of the manufacturer or distributor, place of origin, date of manufacture, content and composition of the commodity.
TRANSPORTATION
Train derails on Pingsi line
A train derailed at about 2pm yesterday on the Pingsi branch line in New Taipei City (新北市). Although there were no casualties, operations were halted until later in the evening, the Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) reported. The accident occurred about 100m from Jingtong Station, one of the two stations on the line. Passengers walked to the station after a three-carriage train came off the rails, the TRA said. Officials added that shuttle buses were later enlisted to carry passengers — mainly tourists and local commuters — between Jingtong and Pingsi stations. The cause of the derailment was under investigation, officials said.
Former Czech Republic-based Taiwanese researcher Cheng Yu-chin (鄭宇欽) has been sentenced to seven years in prison on espionage-related charges, China’s Ministry of State Security announced yesterday. China said Cheng was a spy for Taiwan who “masqueraded as a professor” and that he was previously an assistant to former Cabinet secretary-general Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰). President-elect William Lai (賴清德) on Wednesday last week announced Cho would be his premier when Lai is inaugurated next month. Today is China’s “National Security Education Day.” The Chinese ministry yesterday released a video online showing arrests over the past 10 years of people alleged to be
THE HAWAII FACTOR: While a 1965 opinion said an attack on Hawaii would not trigger Article 5, the text of the treaty suggests the state is covered, the report says NATO could be drawn into a conflict in the Taiwan Strait if Chinese forces attacked the US mainland or Hawaii, a NATO Defense College report published on Monday says. The report, written by James Lee, an assistant research fellow at Academia Sinica’s Institute of European and American Studies, states that under certain conditions a Taiwan contingency could trigger Article 5 of NATO, under which an attack against any member of the alliance is considered an attack against all members, necessitating a response. Article 6 of the North Atlantic Treaty specifies that an armed attack in the territory of any member in Europe,
LIKE FAMILY: People now treat dogs and cats as family members. They receive the same medical treatments and tests as humans do, a veterinary association official said The number of pet dogs and cats in Taiwan has officially outnumbered the number of human newborns last year, data from the Ministry of Agriculture’s pet registration information system showed. As of last year, Taiwan had 94,544 registered pet dogs and 137,652 pet cats, the data showed. By contrast, 135,571 babies were born last year. Demand for medical care for pet animals has also risen. As of Feb. 29, there were 5,773 veterinarians in Taiwan, 3,993 of whom were for pet animals, statistics from the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency showed. In 2022, the nation had 3,077 pediatricians. As of last
XINJIANG: Officials are conducting a report into amending an existing law or to enact a special law to prohibit goods using forced labor Taiwan is mulling an amendment prohibiting the importation of goods using forced labor, similar to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) passed by the US Congress in 2021 that imposed limits on goods produced using forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region. A government official who wished to remain anonymous said yesterday that as the US customs law explicitly prohibits the importation of goods made using forced labor, in 2021 it passed the specialized UFLPA to limit the importation of cotton and other goods from China’s Xinjiang Uyghur region. Taiwan does not have the legal basis to prohibit the importation of goods