■ Business
Ban on steel exports urged
The government should follow the example of South Korea and impose an interim ban on steel exports to meet surging demand at home, a lawmaker said yesterday. Legislator Wei Ming-ku (魏明谷) of the Democratic Progressive Party, saying that price hikes have pushed some wholesalers to stockpile their products, added that many downstream companies have complained about the loss of business opportunities arising from a booming housing market. Many companies are afraid to take new orders because rising steel prices have shown no sign of slowing down since China Steel -- the largest steel producer in the country -- announced it would raise prices on Feb. 26. Wei called on the government to come up with a solution quickly.
■ Election
New labor policy sought
Several labor groups said yesterday that they will make a public appeal to candidates in the presidential race to create a better labor policy. Wang Wei-jen (王為仁), president of the Alliance of Taiwan Unemployed Workers, said yesterday that he and leaders of several other labor groups will make a public appeal in front of the Presidential Office and the Legislative Yuan from March 15 to March 17 to press President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Chinese Nationalist Party Chairman (KMT) Lien Chan (連戰) for a better labor policy. Noting that some labor groups have called for their members to boycott the March 20 election to show their displeasure with both candidates, Wang said that people, especially those who are out of work, will be ignored if they don't take part in the election.
■ Diplomacy
MOFA denies ASEAN report
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday dismissed as untrue reports by a Chinese state television that ASEAN is opposed to Taiwan's planned referendum, which will be held at the same time as the March 20 presidential election. Ministry officials said that China Central Television's reports "are not true," adding that Beijing has exaggerated the personal views of Indonesian Foreign Minister Noer Hasan Wirajuda. "This is the consistent way of China to restrict Taiwan's democracy and its maneuvering space in the international community, and yet another attempt to mislead international views," the officials said.
■ Women
Lu celebrates Women's Day
Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) will launch a series of activities to mark the 33rd anniversary of Women's Day tomorrow. Lu published an article on the review of the traditional relations of both genders in 1971 to usher in the new feminism in Taiwan. Lu is expected to board a train at Kaohsiung Railway Station at 9:55am today to travel northbound. She will change trains at Taichung at 12:50pm and continue the trip to Taipei where she will lead tens of thousands of women on a march. A special women's night will be held at the spacious square in front of the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall today to highlight the past, present and future of Taiwanese women. Lu said that during the event, she will talk with Chen Chu (陳菊), chairman of the Council of Labor Affairs, and former Taichung Mayor Chang Wen-ying (張溫鷹), about being jailed over the Formosa Incident which took place on Dec. 10, 1979, in Kaohsiung, where those who advocated the establishment of an opposition party in the magazine Formosa and their supporters clashed with police in an unauthorized rally.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
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