This week's edition of TVBS Weekly broke some big news when it reported that Wu Bai (
The singer emerged to confirm their marriage, but corrected the report by announcing that the two actually tied the knot in Fukuoka, Japan, in 2003. The couple had kept their marriage a secret because, according to Wu Bai, "telling everyone wouldn't be fun." He denied, however, that the announcement was made because they were expecting a kid.
Last week the gossip rags in Taiwan and Hong Kong thought they'd struck gold when they released photos of Taiwanese pop diva Chang Hui-mei (A-Mei,
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
Next Magazine (
Speaking of Tsai, she released a new album titled J-Game over the weekend. Ever since her emphatic split with Jay, when he was spotted in Japan with TV anchorwoman Patty Hou (
Finally, model fever in Taiwan has elicited a backlash, and leave it to bad boy rocker Chang Chen-yue (
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
S.H.E. had a close brush with politics over the weekend, when a newspaper in Lanzhou, China, reported that the band had said that they weren't Chinese, but were Taiwanese. Not wanting to attract any part of the nationalist hysteria that's raged in China over the past several weekends, the girl band moved quickly to defuse the potential controversy by confirming that they had never been to Lanzhou and never been interviewed by any paper based there. They also noted in an open letter to the Great Daily News (
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
May 18 to May 24 Pastor Yang Hsu’s (楊煦) congregation was shocked upon seeing the land he chose to build his orphanage. It was surrounded by mountains on three sides, and the only way to access it was to cross a river by foot. The soil was poor due to runoff, and large rocks strewn across the plot prevented much from growing. In addition, there was no running water or electricity. But it was all Yang could afford. He and his Indigenous Atayal wife Lin Feng-ying (林鳳英) had already been caring for 24 orphans in their home, and they were in
On May 2, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), at a meeting in support of Taipei city councilors at party headquarters, compared President William Lai (賴清德) to Hitler. Chu claimed that unlike any other democracy worldwide in history, no other leader was rooting out opposing parties like Lai and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). That his statements are wildly inaccurate was not the point. It was a rallying cry, not a history lesson. This was intentional to provoke the international diplomatic community into a response, which was promptly provided. Both the German and Israeli offices issued statements on Facebook
Even by the standards of Ukraine’s International Legion, which comprises volunteers from over 55 countries, Han has an unusual backstory. Born in Taichung, he grew up in Costa Rica — then one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — where a relative worked for the embassy. After attending an American international high school in San Jose, Costa Rica’s capital, Han — who prefers to use only his given name for OPSEC (operations security) reasons — moved to the US in his teens. He attended Penn State University before returning to Taiwan to work in the semiconductor industry in Kaohsiung, where he
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday delivered an address marking the first anniversary of his presidency. In the speech, Lai affirmed Taiwan’s global role in technology, trade and security. He announced economic and national security initiatives, and emphasized democratic values and cross-party cooperation. The following is the full text of his speech: Yesterday, outside of Beida Elementary School in New Taipei City’s Sanxia District (三峽), there was a major traffic accident that, sadly, claimed several lives and resulted in multiple injuries. The Executive Yuan immediately formed a task force, and last night I personally visited the victims in hospital. Central government agencies and the