■ National defense
Conscription revision mulled
A revision of the alternative service program for conscripts is in the pipeline, Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-shiang (施顏祥) said yesterday amid criticism from lawmakers. In a breakfast meeting with lawmakers of the Taiwan Solidarity Union, Shih said that under the revised program worked out by the Ministry of the Interior, draftees working for high-tech firms in lieu of military service will get the same treatment as draftees who perform other services. He did not elaborate on the revision, saying only that it has already been submitted to the legislature. Shih also defended the current program, which has been criticized by lawmakers for allowing draftees to work in Chinese factories owned by local high-tech companies, saying that those who enroll in the alternative service program are considered to have retired from the military the day they assume their jobs in private firms.
■ National defense
MND may deploy LACMs
Taiwan has developed three prototypes of a cruise missile capable of striking China, an international defense magazine will report in next week's edition. Jane's Defence Weekly cited local defense sources as saying that the state-run defense firm Chung Shan Institute of Science and Technology developed the missile, which has a range exceeding 600km. Dubbed the Hsiung Feng 2E, the missile could strike "as far south as Hong Kong and as far north as Shanghai" if it was deployed on outlying islands, the magazine said. Initial plans were to produce 50 of the land-attack cruise missiles (LACMs) by 2010, and as many as 500 after that year, Jane's said. The magazine added that researchers were working to increase the range of the LACMs to 1,000km, and were also working on plans to create a short-range ballistic missile based on an already existing air-defense missile system.
■ Health
Physician warns on eating
A physician warned the public yesterday not to overeat during the Lunar New Year festival, citing survey results showing that a significant number of the country's young adults have an "abnormally large waist circumference" and the "fact" that an elevated waistline can lead to "early aging." Hsiao Tun-jen (蕭敦仁), a doctor in Chungli City, cited an almost-three-year-old survey conducted by his clinic on more than 4,000 workers and employees in an electronics factory. The survey found that 12 percent had an "abnormally large waist circumference" -- greater than 90cm for men and 80cm for women. The average age of those surveyed was 33.
■ Society
Photo rules relaxed
Women who wear headscarves for religious reasons are permitted to wear them in their photos for use in new ID cards, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. In a move to further relax the rules governing the photos that appear on the new ID cards, the ministry said that those who wear head coverings because of their religious beliefs, such as Catholic nuns or Muslim women, can wear their head coverings in their photos as long as their facial features from forehead to chin are clearly visible. The ministry also said that those suffering from hair loss after undergoing chemotherapy will be allowed to wear a wig in their photos. Last week, the ministry also relaxed its rules by allowing applicants for new ID cards to submit photos showing them smiling and exposing their teeth.
US climber Alex Honnold is to attempt to scale Taipei 101 without a rope and harness in a live Netflix special on Jan. 24, the streaming platform announced on Wednesday. Accounting for the time difference, the two-hour broadcast of Honnold’s climb, called Skyscraper Live, is to air on Jan. 23 in the US, Netflix said in a statement. Honnold, 40, was the first person ever to free solo climb the 900m El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite National Park — a feat that was recorded and later made into the 2018 documentary film Free Solo. Netflix previewed Skyscraper Live in October, after videos
Starting on Jan. 1, YouBike riders must have insurance to use the service, and a six-month trial of NT$5 coupons under certain conditions would be implemented to balance bike shortages, a joint statement from transportation departments across Taipei, New Taipei City and Taoyuan announced yesterday. The rental bike system operator said that coupons would be offered to riders to rent bikes from full stations, for riders who take out an electric-assisted bike from a full station, and for riders who return a bike to an empty station. All riders with YouBike accounts are automatically eligible for the program, and each membership account
A classified Pentagon-produced, multiyear assessment — the Overmatch brief — highlighted unreported Chinese capabilities to destroy US military assets and identified US supply chain choke points, painting a disturbing picture of waning US military might, a New York Times editorial published on Monday said. US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s comments in November last year that “we lose every time” in Pentagon-conducted war games pitting the US against China further highlighted the uncertainty about the US’ capability to intervene in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. “It shows the Pentagon’s overreliance on expensive, vulnerable weapons as adversaries field cheap, technologically
NUMBERs IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
RSS