Chunghwa Post is set to publish a set of stamps featuring Itu Aba Island (Taiping Island, 太平島) as part of the government’s efforts to assert its sovereignty over the South China Sea island.
The stamp collection is to be published tomorrow, the same day that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is to lead an entourage of political veterans to visit the island, including former premiers Hau Pei-tsun (郝柏村) and Mao Chi-kuo (毛治國), as well as former National Security Council secretaries-general Hu Wei-chen (胡為真), Su Chi (蘇起) and Jason Yuan (袁建生).
The set of stamps is called the “South China Sea Peace Initiative,” a proposal that Ma advocates to resolve territorial disputes.
Each set is to consist of four stamps with face values of NT$5, NT$9, NT$13 and NT$15, Chunghwa Post said.
The NT$5 stamp, designed to highlight Taiwan’s sovereignty over Itu Aba, shows a map of Taiwan in relation to other island groups, including the Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands, 南沙群島), the Paracel Islands (Xisha Islands, 西沙群島) and the Pratas Islands (Donghsha Islands, 東沙群島), as well as the Macclesfield Bank (Zhongsha Islands, 中沙群島) and the Scarborough Shoal (Huangyan Island, 黃岩島).
On the foreground stands a monument marking the completion of the pier construction on Itu Aba, inscribed with the Chinese characters signifying “peace in the South China Sea” and Itu Aba’s status as part of Taiwan’s “national borders.”
The NT$9 stamp, with peace as its theme, shows the Nansha Hospital and lighthouse on Itu Aba.
The NT$13 stamp shows the national monument on Itu Aba in the foreground and solar energy panels in the background, highlighting the government’s plan to turn the island into a low-carbon territory.
The NT$15 stamp features a walking trail, farm animals, vegetables and trees to show that the island is capable of sustaining life.
Ma first visited Itu Aba on Jan. 28. His administration subsequently organized trips for international media and legal experts to visit the island in March and last month respectively.
Tomorrow’s trip would be the latest move by the Ma administration to protect the nation’s territory, ahead of a ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague on a case brought by the Philippines against China, arguing that Itu Aba is a rock, not an island.
Fast food chain McDonald's is to raise prices by up to NT$5 on some products at its restaurants across Taiwan, starting on Wednesday next week, the company announced today. The prices of all extra value meals and sharing boxes are to increase by NT$5, while breakfast combos and creamy corn soup would go up by NT$3, the company said in a statement. The price of the main items of those meals, if ordered individually, would remain the same. Meanwhile, the price of a medium-sized lemon iced tea and hot cappuccino would rise by NT$3, extra dipping sauces for chicken nuggets would go up
FUKUOKA SITUATION: Japanese media reported that the pathogen is expected to be identified by the summer, while the CDC downplayed the idea that it was hMPV A “mysterious cold-like illness” reported in Japan’s Fukuoka Prefecture does not seem to be a new disease, but Japanese authorities have been asked about the situation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. The Fukuoka Prefectural Medical Association on Wednesday told a news conference that a “mystery cold” that has become a hot topic on social media is “highly likely to be caused by some kind of viral infection,” Japan’s KBC News reported. “Many people are experiencing symptoms starting with a sore throat, followed by a runny nose, phlegm and a severe cough,” KBC News reported, citing association officials. Health authorities are
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) arrived in Taiwan yesterday ahead of upcoming AI and technology events, saying he plans to meet with clients and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) during his visit. After landing at Taipei Songshan Airport, Huang posed for photos with fans and handed out Yakult drinks to reporters and supporters waiting at the scene, saying he has “a lot to do” during the trip. Asked about reports that Nvidia’s planned headquarters site in Taipei’s Beitou Shilin Technology Park could break ground on May 27, Huang said that if the company holds an event, he would
Carrefour Taiwan is to begin using a new name from the start of July, but it cannot divulge the name until then, the chairman of the supermarket chain's parent company said today. President Chain Store Co chairman Lo Chih-hsien (羅智先) was asked by reporters after a shareholders' meeting to confirm whether the company has settled on a new name for the supermarket brand. In March, the government-registered name of two Carrefour Taiwan branches was quietly changed to "Le Chia Kang" (樂家康) in Chinese, raising speculation that has been selected as the name. Lo said that because of local regulations and contractual obligations, the
RSS