Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) instructed relevant government agencies yesterday to finalize plans at the earliest possible date for the redevelopment of Chung Hsing New Village in Nantou County, the seat of the now marginalized Taiwan Provincial Government.
Su called for the Public Construction Commission (PCC) -- the main agency in charge of planning -- not to procrastinate further and come up with concrete plans as soon as possible to prevent the site of the former provincial government from becoming further dilapidated.
The premier made the remarks on a visit to an office of the Taiwan Provincial Government located in Chung Hsing New Village, which has become a run-down complex following the downsizing of the provincial government in 1997.
Su, who served as a provincial assemblyman, said he had mixed feelings viewing the old complex, which was once the "heart of Taiwan" with a garden-like environment full of activity.
Su said he believed the PCC has had difficulties finalizing redevelopment plans due to conflicting suggestions regarding the fate of the complex, including suggestions to convert it into a hub for non-governmental organizations, an international convention and tourist center, a college town, a biotechnology industry park, a software processing zone, a cultural and art park and even the site for a relocation of the capital.
During a meeting with Nantou County Commissioner Lee Chao-ching (李朝卿), Su received a petition from Nantou residents asking the government to consider relocating the capital from Taipei since the former provincial government seat "has an ideal central location, a good climate and convenient transportation."
Su said that relocating the capital to Chung Hsing New Village would not help solve the problems that it now faces.
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
A Taiwanese woman on Sunday was injured by a small piece of masonry that fell from the dome of St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican during a visit to the church. The tourist, identified as Hsu Yun-chen (許芸禎), was struck on the forehead while she and her tour group were near Michelangelo’s sculpture Pieta. Hsu was rushed to a hospital, the group’s guide to the church, Fu Jing, said yesterday. Hsu was found not to have serious injuries and was able to continue her tour as scheduled, Fu added. Mathew Lee (李世明), Taiwan’s recently retired ambassador to the Holy See, said he met
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
RSS