■ Transportation
New airport planned
The government plans to develop Ching Chuan Kang Air Base in Taichung County into an international airport, Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Ling-san (林陵三) said yesterday. Speaking at a briefing for President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) on the government's plan to develop a north-south high-speed railway network, Lin said CKS International Airport will continue to serve as the nation's main international airport. The new facility in central Taiwan will serve as an auxiliary international airport. The new airport will be developed in three stages, Lin said.
■ Crime
Ringing bra betrays thief
A woman was caught red-handed and red-faced yesterday after the mobile phone she had stolen and hidden inside her bra rang, Taipei police said. The 52-year-old woman panicked when her bust started ringing and vibrating in front of other customers, police said. "She attempted to cover the strange scene with her handbag and dash out of the shop, only to be blocked by the shopkeeper, who was looking everywhere for her lost cellphone," an officer said. The officer said the theft had been recorded by the store's security camera. The suspect had picked up the shopkeeper's cellphone, which had been left on the sales counter, and stuffed it inside her bra. The shopkeeper's husband just happened to call her on her cellphone seconds after the suspect had grabbed it.
■ Education
Ministry revises scholarships
The Ministry of Education will reallocate government scholarships for overseas studies by offering more set-amount scholarships while reducing the quota of full-coverage funding for graduate studies, a ministry official said yesterday. The official said interested people should submit applications to the ministry. The official said that people receiving such scholarships are obliged to return to Taiwan after completing their studies and work here for the same period of time they spent abroad. A student on a full-coverage scholarship is awarded around NT$1 million for tuition, books, board and lodging, air fare and health insurance.
■ Diplomacy
Frutos pledges friendship
Paraguayan president-elect Nicanor Duarte Frutos said Wednesday that his country will continue to support Taiwan in the international community. Frutos, who will be inaugurated today, made the pledge during a banquet he gave in honor of Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮), who will attend the inauguration on behalf of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁). Frutos said Paraguay will enter a new era when he assumes the presidency. He said that Paraguay and Taiwan have long been friends and that both the government and people appreciate the assistance given by Taiwan.
■ Environment
Further rationing postponed
The implementation of second-phase water rationing measures in the greater Taipei area and third-phase measures in Keelung have been postponed, the Water Resources Agency reported yesterday. Torrential afternoon rains in recent days have allowed the water catchment of Feitsui Reservoir -- the main supplier of water for the greater Taipei area -- to take in 82.5mm of rainfall over the last three days, greatly easing water shortage pressure in Taipei City, officials said.
A strong continental cold air mass and abundant moisture bringing snow to mountains 3,000m and higher over the past few days are a reminder that more than 60 years ago Taiwan had an outdoor ski resort that gradually disappeared in part due to climate change. On Oct. 24, 2021, the National Development Council posted a series of photographs on Facebook recounting the days when Taiwan had a ski resort on Hehuanshan (合歡山) in Nantou County. More than 60 years ago, when developing a branch of the Central Cross-Island Highway, the government discovered that Hehuanshan, with an elevation of more than 3,100m,
Death row inmate Huang Lin-kai (黃麟凱), who was convicted for the double murder of his former girlfriend and her mother, is to be executed at the Taipei Detention Center tonight, the Ministry of Justice announced. Huang, who was a military conscript at the time, was convicted for the rape and murder of his ex-girlfriend, surnamed Wang (王), and the murder of her mother, after breaking into their home on Oct. 1, 2013. Prosecutors cited anger over the breakup and a dispute about money as the motives behind the double homicide. This is the first time that Minister of Justice Cheng Ming-chien (鄭銘謙) has
TRANSPORT CONVENIENCE: The new ticket gates would accept a variety of mobile payment methods, and buses would be installed with QR code readers for ease of use New ticketing gates for the Taipei metro system are expected to begin service in October, allowing users to swipe with cellphones and select credit cards partnered with Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC), the company said on Tuesday. TRTC said its gates in use are experiencing difficulty due to their age, as they were first installed in 2007. Maintenance is increasingly expensive and challenging as the manufacturing of components is halted or becoming harder to find, the company said. Currently, the gates only accept EasyCard, iPass and electronic icash tickets, or one-time-use tickets purchased at kiosks, the company said. Since 2023, the company said it
Ferry operators are planning to provide a total of 1,429 journeys between Taiwan proper and its offshore islands to meet increased travel demand during the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, the Maritime and Port Bureau said yesterday. The available number of ferry journeys on eight routes from Saturday next week to Feb. 2 is expected to meet a maximum transport capacity of 289,414 passengers, the bureau said in a news release. Meanwhile, a total of 396 journeys on the "small three links," which are direct ferries connecting Taiwan's Kinmen and Lienchiang counties with China's Fujian Province, are also being planned to accommodate
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