TOUGH TIMES: Since the Ma administration took office earlier this year it has proposed a series of measures worth billions of dollars aimed at propping up the ailing economy
By Shih Hsiu-chuan
Against the gloomy economic backdrop, and just days after finalizing plans to take out loans valued at NT$82.9 billion (US$2.5 billion) to provide consumer vouchers, the government is set to announce another measure aimed at boosting the economy — a NT$100 billion loan for each of the next four years to boost public construction.

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By Shih Hsiu-chuan
The legislature yesterday voted to send the four cross-strait agreements signed by the Straits Exchange Foundation and the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait and other Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)-proposed amendments aimed at enhancing cross-strait ties to a preliminary review stage.

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By Jenny W. Hsu
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday condemned the Chinese foreign ministry for denigrating Taiwan’s president.

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By Mo Yan-chih
Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Chairwoman Lai Shin-yuan (賴幸媛) yesterday promised to relax existing regulations and allow Chinese spouses who enter Taiwan legally to start working immediately without needing to file applications.

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JOB FEARS: The visually impaired workers rallied to demand the government not amend a law that stipulates that they are the nation's only legal masseurs
By Loa Iok-sin
Around 1,500 visually impaired masseurs from all over the nation took to the streets yesterday, protesting a Council of Grand Justice decision overturning a rule that made them the only legal masseurs.

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SUCCESS STORY: The fall in the number of Taiwanese studying in the US is a result of the improvements in higher education when compared with a generation ago
By Charles Snyder
Taiwan’s success in building up a superior higher education system has cut into the number of Taiwanese studying in the US, while a shortage of higher education slots in China has meant that the number of Chinese studying in the US has soared, a new study by the Institute of International Education showed.

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By Shelley Huang
A recent study shows that among several Asian countries, Taiwan ranks last in cholesterol control and goal attainment, which could be attributed to inadequate funding by the National Health Insurance (NHI), doctors said in Taipei yesterday.

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By Shelley Huang
In anticipation of the upcoming peak season for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), doctors urged those with signs of the illness to receive help before it’s too late.

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THE BIGGER PICTURE: Organizers say the rally will be for ‘Taiwan, our nation, sovereignty, democracy, human rights and justice,’ not just the former president
By Mo Yan-chih and Jimmy Chuang
Democratic Progressive Party Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) will attend a rally tonight to support former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and address the retreat of justice and human rights, Chen’s office said yesterday.

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By Jenny W. Hsu
Former president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) detention last week dominated the nation’s headlines, but it also attracted the attention of many international news outlets.

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PASSENGER VOLUME: At present, the system carries an average of 90,000 passengers per day, with a train capacity between 45 percent and 47 percent
The high-speed rail system will increase the number of scheduled runs and purchase new trains next year to cope with increasing passenger volume, Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) executive director Ou Chin-der (歐晉德) said on Thursday.

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■ POLITICS

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