■Pornography
Ecuador bans sex lines
Ecuadoran pornography is going back to the rumpled pages of magazines, at least temporarily, after regulators banned commercial phone sex lines and domestic Internet porn sites. The National Telecommunications Council on Thursday told owners of electronic sex businesses that they now must register and receive permission to operate. Conatel's director Jose Pileggi said the new rule aimed to regulate companies that sell sex through the phone and to protect consumers from hidden charges on the 1-900 lines. "The resolution also says that 1-900 must include a 15-second opening message that explains to the consumer the total cost of the call, including tax and giving the option of hanging up without charge," he said.
■ Airlines
Malaysia to buy Airbus
Malaysian Airline System Bhd's parent plans to buy six A380 jetliners from Airbus SAS, worth as much as US$1.5 billion, becoming the 10th company to order the 550-seat, double-decker plane. The planes will go into service with the national carrier in 2007, a year after the model is due to start commercial flights, Airbus said in a statement. Malaysian Airline said it chose the larger aircraft because of rising demand on international routes and a shortage of landing slots at Asian airports. Toulouse, France-based Airbus is building the A380 to challenge Chicago-based Boeing Co's 747 in the market for planes seating more than 400 people. The aircraft maker has been targeting Asia and offering discounts to achieve its target of 300 plane deliveries this year, a figure that would allow it to beat Boeing Co in the rankings.
Agencies
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique