Sat, Jul 27, 2024
Households in areas where flooding exceeded 50cm due to Typhoon Gaemi are to receive NT$20,000 each in planned relief funding, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday.Lai announced the subsidies after being briefed about the storm situation during an inspection of severely affected areas in Kaohs
SEVEN-YEAR TERM: Three other defendants were found guilty and sentenced in the trial over legislative office salaries, while a fourth was found not guilty of all charges Anne Kao (高虹安) yesterday was sentenced to seven years and four months in prison and suspended as Hsinchu mayor after the Taipei District Court found her guilty of contravening the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例) and the Criminal Code.The court also deprived Kao of her civil rights for four years and sh
The Taichung District Court yesterday handed a combined sentence of eight years and four months to Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Yen Kuan-heng (顏寬恒) for corruption and forgery.Yen contravened Article 5 of the Anti-Corruption Act (貪汙治罪條例) by making unlawful profit or withholding public f
Two rival gang leaders signed a truce to end armed conflict in Haiti’s largest shantytown, a community leader said on Thursday.Haiti has long been rocked by gang violence, but conditions sharply worsened at the end of February when armed groups launched attacks in Port-au-Prince to overthrow then-Ha
Pakistan is trying to stay relevant through “terrorism” and “proxy war,” but its “unholy plans” would never succeed, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said yesterday.The South Asian neighbors share an uneasy relationship and India has, for decades, accused Pakistan of backing Islamist militants fi
SEA SEARCH: Nine crew members of a cargo ship had taken to the water after the vessel sunk off the southern coast, with a rescue effort under way, officials said The strongest typhoon to hit Taiwan in eight years yesterday killed three people and flooded parts of the nation’s second-biggest city, while rescuers were searching for nine sailors after their cargo ship sank in the storm.Typhoon Gaemi transformed streets in Kaohsiung into rivers, with some househ
This year’s Han Kuang military exercises have been cut short as troops were mobilized to assist in disaster relief operations in the aftermath of Typhoon Gaemi, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday.Multiple drills scheduled from noon yesterday to today — when the five-day exercises were o
CASUALTIES: The typhoon has left seven people dead, run cargo ships aground and caused landslides that have severed roads and left people stranded, officials said Typhoon Gaemi, which made landfall in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳) on Thursday, has left seven dead, one missing and 785 injured since Wednesday, the Central Emergency Operations Center said.The casualties announced by the center as of 2pm yesterday included two men who died in separate incide
Relying on nuclear power is the wrong strategy for Taiwan to achieve net zero emissions, a coalition of environmental groups said yesterday, amid rising calls from some lawmakers and government officials in support of it.The National Nuclear Abolition Action Platform held a news conference in Taipei
A foreign teacher has won a lawsuit against St Dominic Catholic High School in Kaohsiung and is to receive financial compensation following a recent court ruling.The lawsuit was filed by a man identified as teacher “J.” He worked at the school from September 2002 to August 2007, and from September 2
BETTER CARE NEEDED: Although the mortality rate for children has fallen thanks to the program, Taiwan still lags behind neighboring countries The Executive Yuan last week approved plans to allocate about NT$13.5 billion (US$411 million) for child healthcare over the next four years, nearly five times more than the current program.The government expects to spend NT$13.5 billion on medical care for pregnant women, newborns and children from
‘COMPUTING POOL’: The ministry said it expects to approve 60 enterprises to have access to the computing resources, and begin accepting applications before Aug. 13 Taiwan is investing NT$65 million (US$1.98 million) to build shared computing resources for eligible Taiwanese artificial intelligence (AI) developers, Minister of Digital Affairs Huang Yen-nun (黃彥男) said yesterday.AI technology is important for the nation’s economic future, but the cost of computer
The Taipei District Court’s ruling against Hsinchu Mayor Anne Kao (高虹安) was regrettable and highlighted the lack of proportionality in the justice system’s meting out of punishments for similar crimes, the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) said yesterday.Kao was found guilty of contravening the Anti-Corru
The Fanxing Project (繁星計畫) introduced by China’s Fudan University to attract young Taiwanese to intern at Chinese companies during the summer vacation is part of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) “united front” tactics, a Taiwanese academic said. The Shanghai branch of China’s Taiwan Affairs Offic
‘LAWFARE’: The China Coast Guard’s boat seizure in February should be seen in the context of the CCP’s legal warfare tactics against Taiwan, experts say Taiwanese fisher Chen Zhi-rong says that for decades it was common to sail in waters that skirted the Chinese coastline. Since Beijing seized a boat and its crew for the first time in 17 years for contravening a fishing ban — and continues to detain them — all that has changed.The China Coast Guard
Unlike most countries, Taiwan cannot use its country’s own name to compete in the Olympic Games or other major international sports events.Instead, it participates under the name “Chinese Taipei,” a name that causes confusion and sparks curiosity among many people, including an American director who
CHANGE OF FORTUNES: Concern over a pricey valuation and the risk of tighter US curbs on chip sales to China have poured cold water on TSMC’s bullish momentum Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) shares fell the most in three months yesterday upon trading resumption, joining a global technology rout as investors dramatically soured on the promises of artificial intelligence (AI).The shares declined 5.62 percent to close at NT$924 in Taipei, d
POSSIBLE HEADWINDS: Fuel and raw material prices sit atop the list of concerns of local firms, followed by US economic trends and foreign exchange movements Taiwanese manufacturers are looking at an improvement in their operating conditions in the second half of this year, but most would not be running at full capacity due mainly to a lack of business orders, among other things, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (中華經濟研究院) said yesterday.Th
Advantech Co (研華) expects revenue momentum to gradually strengthen in the second half of this year after its sales and earnings grew last quarter compared with the previous quarter, the nation’s largest industrial PC maker said yesterday, citing customers’ growing interest in its applications amid g
Taiwan has been the focus of international media after former US president Donald Trump said the nation should pay the US for defense. Former Trump administration officials such as Elbridge Colby and Robert O’Brien believe Taiwan should boost defense spending to demonstrate its willingness to resist
Tomorrow’s presidential election in Venezuela is shaping up to be a pivotal event in the country’s history, signaling a potential turning point after 25 years of Chavista leadership. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who has led the nation since 2013, faces significant challenges due to an econom
The issue of whether to call the language spoken in Taiwan “Minnanese” (閩南語) or “Taigi” (台語, taiyu, also called Hoklo or Taiwanese) has long been a subject of debate. On the surface, it seems to be a simple question about language, but in essence it is a political question of identity.Perhaps we cou
WARMED UP: After lackluster performances in the pool phase, France justified their pretournament favorite tag in the quarter-finals against Argentina Global rugby superstar Antoine Dupont inspired France to a thrilling 26-14 Olympic sevens quarter-final win over Argentina on Thursday on a pulsating night at the Stade de France in Paris that also saw the mighty New Zealand suffer a shock exit.Meanwhile, double gold medalists Fiji survived a huge s
Reigning Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmati scored one goal and helped create another as FIFA Women’s World Cup holders Spain beat Japan 2-1 in their first game of the women’s Olympic soccer tournament on Thursday, while record four-time gold medalists the US beat Zambia 3-0.Spain are making their Ol
In April last year, Taiwanese badminton ace Tai Tzu-ying finally opened up about her future in the sport in which she had competed professionally since 2009.“My plan is to retire after the end of next year’s season. Even if I’m still able to compete, I would prefer not to,” she said at a promotional
Beach volleyball begins at the Paris Olympics today in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower and with the sport under the spotlight because of the inclusion of a Dutch player convicted of rape.Steven van de Velde was convicted in 2016 of raping an underage girl and sentenced to four years in prison.He serv
NETANYAHU MEETING: The US vice president said that she ‘expressed with the prime minister my serious concern about the scale of human suffering in Gaza’ US Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday signaled a major shift on US Gaza policy, with the presidential hopeful telling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to seal a peace deal and insisting she would not be “silent” on the suffering in the Palestinian enclave.Ripping up outgoing US Presid
SIPHONING MISSION: The owner of the sunken ship has contracted a company to secure the industrial fuel, with the coast guard bracing for contingencies There was no indication that industrial fuel oil stored in a tanker that sank in stormy weather in Manila Bay had started to leak, the Philippine Coast Guard said yesterday, as it planned to siphon off the highly toxic shipment to prevent a spill.The MT Terra Nova had left Bataan province en route t
Through a basement door in southeastern Turkey lies a sprawling underground city — perhaps the country’s largest — which one historian believes dates back to the ninth century BC.Archeologists stumbled upon the city-under-a-city “almost by chance” after an excavation of house cellars in Midyat, near
Last Sunday’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) national congress was the most anticipated in years, and produced some drama and surprises. As expected, party chair President William Lai (賴清德), his New Tide (新潮流系統, usually abbreviated to 新系) faction and his allied “trust in Lai” (信賴) coalition of
Stepping inside Waley Art (水谷藝術) in Taipei’s historic Wanhua District (萬華區) one leaves the motorcycle growl and air-conditioner purr of the street and enters a very different sonic realm.Speakers hiss, machines whir and objects chime from all five floors of the shophouse-turned- contemporary art gal
Keita Suzuki leads a group of young analogue photography fans around a coastal city in Japan, stopping to snap pastel hydrangea blooms with bulky vintage film cameras.The participants later share their lush retro-looking snaps online — a trend a top Japanese camera brand wants to capture with its fi
People have a fascination with wild animals, and zoos may be the only chance for some to observe animals closely. Whether it’s rarely-seen creatures like kangaroos and koalas, curious animals like sloths and pangolins, or even endangered species like rhinos and orangutans, humans enjoy watching the
A: Wow, two Taiwanese swimmers have qualified for this year’s Olympics in Paris.B: I know one is the Taiwanese-American swimmer Angie Coe.A: And the other is Eddie Wang, Taiwan’s “King of Butterfly.”B: Didn’t Wang miss a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) test and face an 18-month ban?A: But the Chines
A: The 2024 Paris Olympics is set to open tomorrow (Saturday Taiwan time), and will run until Aug. 11.B: How many Taiwanese athletes will compete in the Olympics?A: About 60 Taiwanese athletes will participate in 16 sports.B: I’ve heard some Olympic gold medalists, such as weightlifter Kuo Hsing-chu
It’s certainly been a pleasure watching the presidential campaign launch of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate Hou You-yi (侯友宜) lurch painfully about like a wounded pachyderm in search of an elephant graveyard. Hou’s fall to third place in some polls last week appears early, and it might still be recoverable. But grumbling in his party about replacing him has already begun. Indeed, all indications are that the party that twice gave us Lien Chan (連戰), the most despised politician in Taiwan, as a presidential candidate and later offered voters Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) and Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), is arcing along its normal descending trajectory, the North Korean missile test of electoral politics. A KIND OF POLICY PLATFORM Last week the KMT doubled down on this path with Hou’s calls for nuclear power and more death penalty executions, standard KMT fare for decades (the latter is unnecessary since so many potential criminals are likely to die in traffic accidents long before they harm anyone). Apparently KMT policy institutions are not echo chambers so much as mausoleums where dead ideas are embalmed and then periodically put on display. The lack of public policy imagination is obvious. A less obvious facet of KMT ineptitude: with years of speculation that Hou would be their man in 2024, neither Hou nor the party insisted on interesting or experimental public policies to showcase Hou’s greatness in preparation for the showdown. Of course, that is even more true of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). Hou’s slide and the media buzz surrounding it are obscuring the truly urgent problem the pro-Taiwan side faces: DPP presidential candidate William Lai (賴清德) has not expanded his voter support beyond the party base. In most polls he remains below 40 percent. Independent voters are staying away in droves, and for the moment the young are turning to
July 17 to July 23 When Yeh Ken-chuang (葉根壯) came of age, the traditional skills of architecture and carpentry that had been in his family for four generations were disappearing. After helping his uncle Yeh Teh-ling (葉得令) construct ships, residences and temples for more than a decade, Yeh struck out on his own at the age of 28 in 1960 as a damusi (大木司, chief carpenter), earning his lifelong title “Chief Chuang” (壯司). Around this time, builders in his homeland of Penghu were increasingly using reinforced concrete instead of wood, due to the humid climate. The period also saw a frenzy in temple construction as the economy improved, meaning there was plenty of work for Yeh. Adept in non-structural techniques such as doors, windows and furniture, as well as the intricate carvings and detailed decorations that adorned the structures, Yeh was able to adapt his skills, leading the reconstruction of the historic Hsiliao Daitian Temple (西寮代天宮) on Penghu’s main island in 1963. According to the book Crossing Traditions in Yeh Ken-chuang’s Large-scale Carpentry Skills (宮廟巧藝 :跨越傳統的葉根壯大木作技術), it was Penghu’s first temple that used a purely reinforced concrete structure. Before his life was cut short, Yeh created more than 70 temples and related structures across the various islands of Penghu and left behind more than 230 building plans. Although Yeh could have built temples and other structures on Taiwan proper, he only worked on a handful of projects outside of Penghu because he wanted to be close to his family. CLAN OF CARPENTERS The Yeh family’s woodworking tradition began with Yeh Ma-li (葉媽利), who learned the architecture and carpentry trade from an unknown master on Kinmen. The Yehs trace their roots to Kinmen, although this branch had been living in Penghu since the early 1600s. Yeh Ma-li was Penghu’s chief temple builder between 1860 and
New Taipei City | 14-23 | 10% | ![]() |
Hsinchu County | 14-22 | 10% | ![]() |
Hsinchu City | 14-22 | 10% | ![]() |
Taipei City | 14-22 | 10% | ![]() |
Miaoli County | 12-22 | 10% | ![]() |
Taoyuan City | 14-22 | 10% | ![]() |
Keelung City | 15-21 | 10% | ![]() |
Yunlin County | 14-24 | 0% | ![]() |
Taichung City | 14-24 | 0% | ![]() |
Nantou County | 14-24 | 0% | ![]() |
Changhua County | 14-23 | 0% | ![]() |
Chiayi County | 13-24 | 0% | ![]() |
Chiayi City | 14-25 | 0% | ![]() |
Tainan City | 15-22 | 0% | ![]() |
Kaohsiung City | 17-23 | 0% | ![]() |
Pingtung County | 16-25 | 0% | ![]() |
Yilan County | 14-22 | 10% | ![]() |
Hualien County | 16-22 | 10% | ![]() |
Taitung County | 17-23 | 10% | ![]() |
Kinmen County | 11-18 | 0% | ![]() |
Penghu County | 17-20 | 0% | ![]() |
Lienchiang County | 10-13 | 10% | ![]() |