■ Society
Taipei reviews health
Taipei City's Department of Health yesterday announced its achievements in the past year. Under new department director Song Yien-ren (宋晏仁), 21 new services have been initiated, it said. Within the community, initiatives have included the free delivery of medicines to the homes of the mentally and physically disabled, the establishment of counseling services, anti-smoking campaigns and services, and the provision of physical therapy. To protect the health of consumers, sampling of a variety of goods such as food, medicines and cosmetic products has been routinely carried out. Additionally, self-management of trades related to food has been promoted, and do-it-yourself methods have been introduced to the public to test for the presence of hazardous substances in food products.
■ Politics
Legislature may sit longer
The legislature may extend the current legislative session to Jan. 13 and reconvene on Feb. 21. The legal term for the legislature's fall session begins in September and ends in December, while that for the spring session commences in February and concludes in May. Both sessions can be extended if necessary. Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) said that lawmakers reached a preliminary consensus yesterday during a cross-party negotiation called and chaired by him to discuss next year's government budget. Another round of cross-party talks is scheduled for this morning to map out more details since Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) representatives failed to attend yesterday's meeting.
■ Education
Two universities to merge
Two universities in Taichung are expected to merge by August 2007 to become the second largest university in Taiwan in terms of enrollment, behind only National Taiwan University in Taipei City. National Chung Hsin University and National Taichung University, formerly known as National Taichung Teachers College, have agreed to a merger at the recommendation of the Ministry of Education, and are now working toward this goal. However, the two sides have not yet agreed on a new name for the university following the merger, although ministry officials have suggested that the expanded university be named "Taichung Chung Hsin University."
■ Politics
Acting Taitung chief sworn in
Secretary-General of the Taitung County Government Lai Shun-hsien (賴順賢) was sworn in as acting Taitung County commissioner yesterday, amid protests staged by supporters of ousted commissioner Wu Chun-li (吳俊立) and county councilors. County councilors friendly to Wu refused to recognize Lai, saying that they were not invited to witness Lai's swearing-in ceremony yesterday. Wu's campaign manager also presented a petition letter to Deputy Interior Minister Chien Tai-lang (簡太郎), who supervised the ceremony. Wu was immediately suspended from his post when he took the oath of office on Dec. 20 and appointed his wife Kuang Li-chen (鄺麗貞) as his deputy. Wu has been convicted of corruption by the High Court but is appealing the ruling. He has also been charged with vote-buying but is out on NT$1 million (US$29,800) bail. Despite Wu's suspension, he can still run in a by-election by resigning and retaking the oath of office if re-elected. Kuang, who was receiving guests during the protests, said that she would still come to work today.
Taiwan yesterday condemned the recent increase in Chinese coast guard-escorted fishing vessels operating illegally in waters around the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. Unusually large groupings of Chinese fishing vessels began to appear around the islands on Feb. 15, when at least six motherships and 29 smaller boats were sighted, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said in a news release. While CGA vessels were dispatched to expel the Chinese boats, Chinese coast guard ships trespassed into Taiwan’s restricted waters and unsuccessfully attempted to interfere, the CGA said. Due to the provocation, the CGA initiated an operation to increase
A crowd of over 200 people gathered outside the Taipei District Court as two sisters indicted for abusing a 1-year-old boy to death attended a preliminary hearing in the case yesterday afternoon. The crowd held up signs and chanted slogans calling for aggravated penalties in child abuse cases and asking for no bail and “capital punishment.” They also held white flowers in memory of the boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), who was allegedly tortured to death by the sisters in December 2023. The boy died four months after being placed in full-time foster care with the
The Shanlan Express (山嵐號), or “Mountain Mist Express,” is scheduled to launch on April 19 as part of the centennial celebration of the inauguration of the Taitung Line. The tourism express train was renovated from the Taiwan Railway Corp’s EMU500 commuter trains. It has four carriages and a seating capacity of 60 passengers. Lion Travel is arranging railway tours for the express service. Several news outlets were invited to experience the pilot tour on the new express train service, which is to operate between Hualien Railway Station and Chihshang (池上) Railway Station in Taitung County. It would also be the first tourism service
The Chinese military has boosted its capability to fight at a high tempo using the element of surprise and new technology, the Ministry of National Defense said in the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) published on Monday last week. The ministry highlighted Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) developments showing significant changes in Beijing’s strategy for war on Taiwan. The PLA has made significant headway in building capabilities for all-weather, multi-domain intelligence, surveillance, operational control and a joint air-sea blockade against Taiwan’s lines of communication, it said. The PLA has also improved its capabilities in direct amphibious assault operations aimed at seizing strategically important beaches,
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