KEEPING AN OPEN MIND: Although the Presidential Office said it was not intending to approach the international court, it also said it would consider all options in its UN bid
By Ko Shu-ling
The Presidential Office dismissed reports yesterday that Taiwan plans to take its case to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague if its bid for UN membership is rejected again this year.

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By Flora Wang
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Yu Shyi-kun obtained a visa to visit Canada yesterday after the party criticized the Canadian Trade Office in Taipei on Tuesday for rejecting his initial application, saying Yu's application had been rejected because of pressure from China.

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By Mo Yan-chih and Flora Wang
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday downplayed his meeting with former Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) chairman Shu Chin-chiang (蘇進強), declining to comment on Shu's referral to him as "the president-to-be."

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The pan-blue camp should not judge Taiwan's economic performance based on select figures or exploit the economy to boost their election campaigns, Minister of Economic Affairs Steve Chen (陳瑞隆) said yesterday.

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Overseas Compatriot Affairs Commission (OCAC) Minister Chang Fu-mei (張富美) on Tuesday rebutted a local media report that she pressured expatriate Taiwanese businessmen to refrain from displaying support for the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) presidential ticket on the sidelines of a Taipei conference partly funded by the government.

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DNA: The Taipei seminar has brought together 350 scientists from 45 countries who want people to be able to access data on millions of species instantly
A group of Canadian scientists is working on an ambitious project to create a global database of up to half a million of the world's species using DNA barcoding technology.

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OUTBREAK: KMT Legislator Kao Su-po criticized the CDC for not taking over responsibility from local officials, but the deputy chief said the situation was not that serious
By Angelica Oung
This year's dengue season has yet to be contained despite the fact that the number of new cases reported each week is decreasing, a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) official said yesterday.

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By Jimmy Chuang
Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) Chairman Lu Tien-lin (盧天麟) said yesterday that a planned amendment to the law would mean employers planning large-scale lay offs must negotiate with employees in the presence of a third party and pay compensation in advance.

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FLOW: Kang Jhy-fu said the project allows the bureau to monitor traffic with new technology that replaces devices in use for more than a decade
By Shelley Shan
The Taiwan Area National Freeway Bureau said yesterday it is spending NT$5 billion (US$152 million) to construct a traffic management system incorporating traffic information from all the nation's freeways and 12 east-west expressways.

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NOT EXCESSIVE: Persimmon orchards in Hsinchu County appeared to be the hardest hit after the typhoon, though officials urged residents in the north to remain vigilant
The Council of Agriculture said yesterday that Typhoon Wipha, which swept through the north and northeastern regions of the nation on Tuesday, had affected crops in areas lying north of Miaoli, although the damage was not excessive.

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Beginning on Saturday, Taipei's Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall will hold a month-long exhibition in Malaysia featuring the teachings of Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙), the curator of the memorial hall said yesterday.

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Prosecutors demanded yesterday life imprisonment for a former prisoner who killed a professor of National Taiwan University (NTU) without provocation shortly after being released under a commutation program.

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■ HEALTH
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