■ Society
Beaten for luck
Thousands of faithful have been flocking to a Taoist temple in south Taiwan during the Lunar New Year holidays to be spanked and whipped to get rid of back luck, an online newspaper reported yesterday. Since Jan. 21, the first day of the Lunar Chinese New Year, thousands of faithful have been visiting the Dong Lung Gong temple in Tungkang to go through the century-old ritual to get rid of bad luck, ETtoday.com said. Although men receive spankings and women are whipped, the number of times is decided by Wang Ye (god) by burning incense and tossing two pieces of wooden blocks. "The templer staff only lightly spank or whip the faithful, but the faithful all go home happily, believing the luck will improve from now on," said a temple staff member, quoted by ETtoday.com.
■ Transportation
Traffic flowing smoothly
Major national freeways did not show signs of congestion yesterday morning as most drivers chose to take detours. As yesterday marked the fifth day of the new lunar year and signified a return to work, heavy traffic was expected. Traffic flow on major freeways remained steady at around 70kph to 80kph yesterday morning. The National Freeway Bureau said that toward the end of Lunar New Year celebration, there might be signs of congestion in metropolitan areas. Visitors to the 2004 Flower Expo in Changhua or scenic spots in Nantou and Hsiluo as well as to the Chingshui Rest Stop should avoid national freeways and take bypasses instead.
■ Diplomacy
Lu criticizes Germany
Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) has criticized on a TV show Germany's policy of sharing its high-tech weapons and nuclear reactor technology with China. Many countries spent a lot of money and time to fight terrorism last year, Lu said in the program Weltspiegel broadcast Sunday, adding that it is "unimaginable" that Germany would share high-tech weapons with a totalitarian regime. Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said during a visit to China last December that in response to Beijing's support for Germany's reunification, Berlin would support China's Taiwan policy. He also said that Germany would sell nuclear reactor equipment constructed by Siemens to China. Schroeder also promised Beijing that he will request that the EU remove a ban it imposed in 1989 prohibiting selling weapons to China. While talking about President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) proposed referendum, Lu also criticized the leaders of various countries for appeasing Beijing.
■ Lunar New Year
Spokesman takes time off
Cabinet Spokesman Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) was among those who took time off for the Lunar New Year holidays. As the government spokesman, Lin, a father of two, has little time for himself, let alone for his family in Tainan County and friends, most of whom were activists he met in college. "Every Chinese New Year is the time for us to get together, reminisce about the good old days and talk about the future," he said. "The annual gathering started off as a bunch of bachelors and now it has grown into a bevy of parents." The bliss is no doubt unadulterated for Lin and yet transient because government employees are due back to work today from the six-day holiday.
‘NEVER!’ Taiwan FactCheck Center said it had only received donations from the Open Society Foundations, which supports nonprofits that promote democratic values Taiwan FactCheck Center (TFC) has never received any donation from the US Agency for International Development (USAID), a cofounder of the organization wrote on his Facebook page on Sunday. The Taipei-based organization was established in 2018 by Taiwan Media Watch Foundation and the Association of Quality Journalism to monitor and verify news and information accuracy. It was officially registered as a foundation in 2021. National Chung Cheng University communications professor Lo Shih-hung (羅世宏), a cofounder and chairman of TFC, was responding to online rumors that the TFC receives funding from the US government’s humanitarian assistance agency via the Open Society Foundations (OSF),
ANNUAL LIGHT SHOW: The lanterns are exhibited near Taoyuan’s high-speed rail station and around the Taoyuan Sports Park Station of the airport MRT line More than 400 lanterns are to be on display at the annual Taiwan Lantern Festival, which officially starts in Taoyuan today. The city is hosting the festival for the second time — the first time was in 2016. The Tourism Administration held a rehearsal of the festival last night. Chunghwa Telecom donated the main lantern of the festival to the Taoyuan City Government. The lanterns are exhibited in two main areas: near the high-speed rail (HSR) station in Taoyuan, which is at the A18 station of the Taoyuan Airport MRT, and around the Taoyuan Sports Park Station of the MRT
An alleged US government plan to encourage Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) to form a joint venture with Intel to boost US chipmaking would place the Taiwanese foundry giant in a more disadvantageous position than proposed tariffs on imported chips, a semiconductor expert said yesterday. If TSMC forms a joint venture with its US rival, it faces the risk of technology outflow, said Liu Pei-chen (劉佩真), a researcher at the Taiwan Industry Economics Database of the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research. A report by international financial services firm Baird said that Asia semiconductor supply chain talks suggest that the US government would
Starlux Airlines on Tuesday announced it is to launch new direct flights from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to Ontario, California, on June 2. The carrier said it plans to deploy the new-generation Airbus A350 on the Taipei-Ontario route. The Airbus A350 features a total of 306 seats, including four in first class, 26 in business class, 36 in premium economy and 240 in economy. According to Starlux’s initial schedule, four flights would run between Taoyuan and Ontario per week: Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Flights are to depart from Taoyuan at 8:05pm and arrive in California at 5:05pm (local time), while return flights