■ Passports
Beijing throws tantrum
China yesterday slammed the issuance of new passports by Taiwan and said it was "resolutely opposed" to the placing of the word "Taiwan" on the cover of the document. "To stamp Taiwan on the passport is a way or move to express gradual Taiwan independence and this is a move we are resolutely opposed to," Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan (孔泉) said. "This practice cannot be accepted by us." The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued the new passports on Monday.
■ Identity
KMT opposes Taiwan drive
KMT caucus leaders expressed their opposition yesterday to the "call Taiwan Taiwan" movement, saying the movement is aimed at changing the official name of the country and eliminating the Republic of China. The Alliance to Campaign for Rectifying the Name of Taiwan, the TSU and other organizations are planning to sponsor a parade in downtown Taipei to highlight the movement this Saturday. The KMT caucus held a news conference yesterday to express its opposition to the movement. Lee Chia-chin (李嘉進), a KMT caucus leader, said the DPP is secretly promoting the movement in collaboration with the TSU. Members of the DPP and TSU live in the territory of the Republic of China, but do not recognize their Republic of China citizenship, he said. KMT Legislator Li Chuan-chiao (李全教) said the DPP's secret support of the movement is against the world trend of democracy.
■ Diplomacy
AIT gets new deputy director
David Keegan assumed office as deputy director of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) yesterday. Keegan succeeds Pamela Slutz, who had been AIT's No. 2 person since September 2001. Slutz left for Washington before she takes up her new post as the US ambassador to Mongolia. Keegan, a historian trained at Columbia University, worked in the office of Taiwan coordination, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, of the US Department of State. Keegan joined the Foreign Service in 1982 and had previously served abroad in Jamaica, South Korea, Guangzhou and Singapore.
■ Hakka affairs
Exhibition begins today
The Council for Hakka Affairs is holding the 2003 Hakka Women Life Images Exhibition from today to Oct. 5. The exhibition will include displays of painting, carving, stained glass, decorations and pottery by Hakka female artists. There will also be a section showing Hakka female artifacts such as underwear, embroidery, traditional wedding carriages, and powder boxes. There will also be do-it-yourself activities such as making Hakka dolls, cloth carving and stained glass. The exhibition is on the 7th floor of the Shinkong Mitsukoshi Department Store in the Hsinyi district from today to Sept. 14, and will be on the 12th floor of the Kaohsiung Sogo Department Store from Sept. 25 to Oct. 5.
■ Trade
Accord before legislature
The new chief of Panama's National Assembly, Jacobo Salas, asked the legislative body on Monday to approve a free-trade accord signed with Taiwan 10 days ago. Salas, a longtime member of the ruling Arnulfista Party, was chosen to be the last congressional speaker under President Mireya Moscoso. Salas called for quick approval of the free-trade agreement with Taiwan signed on Aug. 21 during a Taiwan-Central America summit in Taipei.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
UNKNOWN TRAJECTORY: The storm could move in four possible directions, with the fourth option considered the most threatening to Taiwan, meteorologist Lin De-en said A soon-to-be-formed tropical storm east of the Philippines could begin affecting Taiwan on Wednesday next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The storm, to be named Fung-wong (鳳凰), is forecast to approach Taiwan on Tuesday next week and could begin affecting the weather in Taiwan on Wednesday, CWA forecaster Huang En-hung (黃恩鴻) said, adding that its impact might be amplified by the combined effect with the northeast monsoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the system’s center was 2,800km southeast of Oluanbi (鵝鑾鼻). It was moving northwest at 18kph. Meteorologist Lin De-en (林得恩) on Facebook yesterday wrote that the would-be storm is surrounded by
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