HONEYMOON OVER?: A DPP poll showed that President Ma Ying-jeou's approval rating was 71 percent on April 7, but that it had fallen to 51.8 percent as of last week
By Ko Shu-ling
President Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) approval rating has plummeted dramatically over the past two months, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday.

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By Meggie Lu
The Council of Agriculture (COA) said yesterday that to better alleviate the burden of farmers when disasters hit, amendments to agricultural disaster relief regulations are in the works, including modifications to increase the amount of subsidies and lower the eligibility threshold.

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By Jenny W. Hsu
Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Chairman Chiang Pin-kung (江丙坤) yesterday lauded the previous Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government for paving the way on making the resumption of cross-strait negotiations possible and said he plans to personally invite his counterpart, the head of China's Association on Relations across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS), Chen Yunlin (陳雲林), to visit Taiwan.

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'NO ROOM FOR VAGUENESS': DPP's Chen Chi-mai asked the KMT administration to adopt higher moral standards for officials in national security of foreign affairs
By Ko Shu-ling, Flora Wang and Shih Hsiu-chuan
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday condemned the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) administration for allowing government officials to hold a US green card or dual citizenship and asked those who do to renounce the status.

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DIAOYUTAIS: Beijing has complained to Japan over the sinking of a Taiwanese fishing boat. The foreign ministry said the incident was not China's concern
By Jenny W. Hsu
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday that Taiwan is not a province of China and that China does not have maritime jurisdiction over Taiwan's territorial waters, which cover the Diaoyutai Islands.

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By Rich Chang
Taipei prosecutors yesterday seized money and property belonging to Wu Shih-tsai (吳思材), a suspect in the diplomatic fraud scandal, on the grounds that they came from money Wu allegedly embezzled from the government.

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By Mo Yan-chih
Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) plans to take advantage of his visit to Shanghai next week to seek giant pandas and other rare animals, including golden monkeys, to be displayed at Taipei Zoo.

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TIME OUT: New rules will allow students to take time off from school for family emergencies by ensuring they can take make-up classes and examinations
The Ministry of Education has passed an amendment to the Regulations of Grading the Performance of Senior High School Students (高級中學學生成績考查辦法) allowing students to take pre-maternity leave, maternity leave, miscarriage leave, parental leave and funeral leave, the Chinese language newspaper China Times reported yesterday.

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Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) said yesterday that she supports the construction of an Aboriginal cultural park and assembly hall and hopes that the facility can be completed within her term.

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By Meggie Lu
Although 80 percent of Taiwanese own one to three pairs of "eco-friendly chopsticks" (chopsticks in carrying cases), the nation still consumes 5 billion pairs of disposable chopsticks a year, the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) said yesterday.

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CAUTION: MOFA ordered stepped-up security after the family of a diplomat was beaten up by three robbers, who took off with the cash stored in the office safe
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs told its offices in South Africa yesterday to enhance security precautions and diplomats to pay extra attention to their personal safety after one of its offices was robbed by three armed men.

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Former Government Information Office minister Shieh Jhy-wey (謝志偉) said on Monday that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) should apologize to those who suffered directly or indirectly from the KMT's suppression of democracy and human rights during the Martial Law era.

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Academia Sinica presented the Young Scientist Prize to 16 winners on Monday in recognition of their outstanding contributions, institute officials said.

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CHEAP ALTERNATIVES: A survey showed that more car drivers were switching to scooters while scooter drivers were turning to public transport as fuel prices soar
By Mo Yan-chih
An increasing number of Taipei residents are finding alternative transportation in the face of soaring fuel prices, a survey conducted by the Taipei City Government showed yesterday.

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