CRISIS OF CONFIDENCE: Tricky intervention by the legislative speaker, who called for negotiations, calmed a furor caused by Chen Chin-te's motion to topple the Cabinet
By Shih Hsiu-chuan
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus whips were caught off guard yesterday by a motion initiated by a DPP lawmaker to topple the Cabinet.

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COMMITMENTS: While the president asked for US reiteration of its commitment to the `six assurances,' Raymond Burghardt asked about the government's arms budget
By Ko Shu-ling
President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) expressed concern over the US' commitment to the "six assurances" in a meeting with a high-ranking US official yesterday, saying he hoped Washington would reiterate its pledges.

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By Shih Hsiu-chuan
The Legislative Yuan yesterday passed an amendment to the Money Laundering Control Act (洗錢防制法) that makes financial support for terrorism a criminal offense, a move that meets the requirements of the Egmont Group, an international organization of financial intelligence units.

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By Charles Snyder
A senior US trade official on Wednesday committed the Bush administration to strengthening trade ties with Taiwan, but was noncosmmittal in terms of the possibility of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Taiwan and the US.

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By Jewel Huang
Taiwan should consider launching a "defensive referendum" to defend the nation's sovereignty if China continues to suppress its participation in international organizations, a forum on cross-strait issues said yesterday.

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Eight college students from Costa Rica may continue their studies in Taiwan on scholarships provided by the Taiwanese government despite the recent termination of diplomatic ties between the two countries, said Lee Tian-hsiang (李天祥), vice president of Kung Shan University of Technology in Tainan County.

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FINAL INSPECTION: Transportation authorities said they were satisfied with the system's overall operation but listed 34 problems that need to be corrected soon
By Mo Yan-chih
Transportation experts yesterday endorsed the overall safety of the Maokong cable car system in Muzha (木柵) after the final inspection despite concerns about the system's emergency response measures.

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EVENTFUL DAY: In addition to changes to the AIDS Prevention Act, new regulations on child pornography, infectious diseases and electric bicycles were introduced
By Shih Hsiu-chuan and Li Ming-hsien
An amendment to the AIDS Pre-vention and Control Act (後天免疫缺乏症候群防治條例) passed the legislature yesterday, allowing foreign spouses who become infected with HIV to remain in the country as long as they can demonstrate they were infected by their Taiwanese spouse or in the course of receiving medical treatment in Taiwan.

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Researchers said yesterday that they successfully tested 10 new sugar-fat compounds which they believe will inhibit the growth of cancer with limited side effects while prolonging the lives of patients.

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SOME GOOD NEWS: The number of deaths from the leading causes of death all declined in the past year, while the only cause showing an increase was suicide
By Loa Iok-sin
Deaths from chronic diseases are on the decline, according to statistics detailing the top 10 causes of death last year released by the Department of Health yesterday.

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By Loa Iok-sin
The Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong in China (CIPFG) announced plans yesterday to send a "human-rights torch" around the world and called for a boycott of the 2008 Beijing Olympics to condemn human-rights abuses in China.

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By Max Hirsch
A text message laced with sexual innuendo sent out to reporters on Wednesday from an education ministry spokesperson's mobile phone was the work of "hackers," Minister of Education Tu Cheng-sheng (杜正勝) said, while a ministry spokeswoman yesterday offered a different explanation for the flap.

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By Max Hirsch
A task force commissioned by the government to help it formulate immigration-related policies wants to limit the number of immigrant spouses from China, an interior ministry official said yesterday.

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In response to a report that more Taiwanese airline pilots are planning to work for China-based carriers, the head of the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) said on Wednesday that job changes were a personal choice.

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■ TOURISM
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