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.
The inspection equipment and data transmission system for new robotic dogs that Taipei is planning to use for sidewalk patrols were developed by a Taiwanese company, the city’s New Construction Office said today, dismissing concerns that the China-made robots could pose a security risk. The city is bringing in smart robotic dogs to help with sidewalk inspections, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Ssu-chuan (李四川) said on Facebook. Equipped with a panoramic surveillance system, the robots would be able to automatically flag problems and easily navigate narrow sidewalks, making inspections faster and more accurate, Lee said. By collecting more accurate data, they would help Taipei
TAKING STOCK: The USMC is rebuilding a once-abandoned airfield in Palau to support large-scale ground operations as China’s missile range grows, Naval News reported The US Marine Corps (USMC) is considering new sites for stockpiling equipment in the West Pacific to harden military supply chains and enhance mobility across the Indo-Pacific region, US-based Naval News reported on Saturday. The proposed sites in Palau — one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — and Australia would enable a “rapid standup of stored equipment within a year” of the program’s approval, the report said, citing documents published by the USMC last month. In Palau, the service is rebuilding a formerly abandoned World War II-era airfield and establishing ancillary structures to support large-scale ground operations “as China’s missile range and magazine
A 72-year-old man in Kaohsiung was sentenced to 40 days in jail after he was found having sex with a 67-year-old woman under a slide in a public park on Sunday afternoon. At 3pm on Sunday, a mother surnamed Liang (梁) was with her child at a neighborhood park when they found the man, surnamed Tsai (蔡), and woman, surnamed Huang (黃), underneath the slide. Liang took her child away from the scene, took photographs of the two and called the police, who arrived and arrested the couple. During questioning, Tsai told police that he had met Huang that day and offered to
A British man was arrested for attempting to smuggle 14.37kg of marijuana into Taiwan through Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taipei Customs said late yesterday. The man, who arrived from Bangkok at 9pm on Friday, was asked by customs officers to open his luggage during a random inspection, Taipei Customs said in a news release. The passenger, whose identity was not disclosed, refused to open his suitcase and tried to flee the restricted area. He was eventually subdued by three customs officials and an Aviation Police Bureau officer. A later search of his checked luggage uncovered 14.37kg of marijuana buds. The case was handed over
RSS