POLITICS
DPP advises against rally
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Central Standing Committee yesterday passed a resolution advising party members who are government officials or running in the Nov. 24 nine-in-one elections not to join a rally planned by the Formosa Alliance. The pro-localization group is to hold a rally on Taipei’s Ketagalan Boulevard on Oct. 20 to protest Chinese bullying, promote Taiwan’s right to self-determination and garner support for its independence referendum proposal. DPP spokeswoman Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said a motion put forward at the committee meeting said civil servants affiliated with the party wanted a clear position from the party headquarters on the matter. Committee members said that while the party steadfastly opposes annexation, any action on the issue at this time could give anti-reformists a pretext to cause disturbance during elections, Wu said.
DIPLOMACY
Tsai touts joint efforts
The nation is collaborating with other countries to establish or bolster cross-border security networks, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday told an international police cooperation forum in Taipei on combating transnational telecom fraud. Cracking down on fraud has become increasingly difficult due to the constantly evolving fraud methods and dispersal of criminal rings across various countries, she said. Taiwan is playing an indispensable role in the international security network, having taken the initiative to bolster ties with other countries, and is willing to and capable of making greater contributions, she said.
HEALTH
Yilan confirms dengue case
The Yilan County Public Health Bureau yesterday confirmed the county’s second imported dengue fever case this year. The patient is a Filipino fisherman recently returned from a trip to the Philippines, the bureau said. He was found to have a high fever upon his arrival at an airport on Saturday last week, it said, adding that blood samples tested positive for dengue fever on Monday. No indigenous cases of dengue fever has been reported in the county so far this year, it added. The bureau urged labor brokerage firms to pay attention to the health of foreign workers when they enter the nation and instruct them to seek medical attention if they develop symptoms such as high fever, headache and muscle pains. People should also keep their environment clean to prevent the spread of the mosquito-borne disease, the bureau said.
SOCIETY
Congress to open in Penghu
The World Congress of the Most Beautiful Bays in the World is to open in Penghu County on Thursday next week, county Commissioner Chen Kuang-fu (陳光復) said on Tuesday. A total of 250 people representing 50 cities in 23 nations are to participate in the meeting, which would be the first of its kind in Penghu, Chen said. The congress — with the theme “In Love With the Ocean: Ecological and Tourism Sustainability, Ocean Economy, Cooperation and Co-creation” — includes a series of academic forums, expositions and cultural and sports events, some of which start today and will run through Nov. 4, Chen said. Other events include the Bay Landscape Art Festival, a carnival street parade, the Penghu Lights Festival, the Global Marine Areas and Harbor City Forum, the Night in Penghu concert, an ironman triathlon and the Penghu Cross-Sea Marathon, Chen added.
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