A cloud of uncertainty is hanging over the 70-odd employees at Taiwan Yam TV (蕃薯台), a pro-Taiwan localization television station, over rumors its management might change hands.
Wang Ben-hu (汪笨湖), a popular talk show host at the station, recently said on his program that “viewers watching Yam TV know something big is going to happen, we might be taken over.”
Station officials played down the remarks and did not respond to queries.
Based in Greater Tainan’s Anping District (安平), the station promotes pro-Taiwan localization, with most of its programs in Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese).
The station also aids farmers by promoting and selling agricultural products. It also organizes rallies, such as one demanding medical parole for former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who is now serving a 18-and-a-half-year prison sentence on corruption charges.
On his show, Wang often discusses the plight of Chen, Taiwan’s democratic movement and Taiwanese human rights activists.
Recently, he said: “The person behind the scenes who is trying to take over Yam TV must give the matter serious thought.”
“We can let you have it, but you must not betray the inherent meaning of ‘yam’ and what it represents. If the yam becomes a red taro, then the will of the gods will have been violated,” he said.
In the Taiwanese vernacular, “yam” refers to benshengren (本省人), those people who came to Taiwan from China centuries ago, while “taro” refers to waishengren (外省人) — people who fled China with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) after 1949.
According to Wang, the station purchased its broadcasting license for NT$55 million (US$ 2.07 million) from the Guo Wei Station two years ago. The license is now worth around NT$130 million.
“At the time, we bought the station for NT$55 million and some people criticized us for it. Now the building is worth NT$70 million. We also have about 70 employees, which helps boost the local economy,” Wang said.
Wang went on to urge supporters to donate to a “Yam Capital Fund,” so that “we can find another field to plant yams.”
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
RSS