■ Currency
Old bills' time running out
Old NT$500 and NT$1,000 banknotes lacking a holographic foil membrane will be pulled from circulation on Aug. 1. A central bank spokesman said the old banknotes should be exchanged for new ones at financial institutions before July 31. After that date, the Bank of Taiwan will be the only place where people will be able to exchange old notes. Most NT$500 and NT$1,000 bills in circulation are of the new variety, the spokesman said. The spokesman said there was a holographic foil membrane on the right side of the new note's front side, while the original color-changing security thread has been replaced with a wider security holographic thread on the back of the note.
■ Culture
SMS literature encouraged
In an effort to promote Chinese literature, the Taipei City Government has joined forces with cellphone companies on a project to encourage residents to submit "text-message articles" about life in Taipei. With text messages becoming one of the more popular means of communication, the "Muse sends text message -- Taipei life 66688" project seeks to combine literature with technology, and invites Taipei residents to write about daily life in Taipei in the form of text messages from 30 to 70 words in length. "Expressing deep thoughts with the least number of words represents the highest level of Chinese literature and the most competitive communication model in this generation," event host and writer Liu Ko-hsiang (劉克襄) said yesterday. The event, which runs through April 18, will select 16 text messages from the submitted works, and winners will receive free cellphones from Nokia. Text messages should be sent to 66688, and are charged at NT$5 each.
■ Society
DPP proposes new holiday
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday resolved to urge the government to make April 7 "Freedom of Speech Day" to commemorate the death of human rights activist Cheng Nan-jung (鄭南榕), Acting DPP Chairman Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮) told a press conference. Holidays in memory of dictator Chiang Kai-shek's (蔣介石) birthday and death -- Oct. 30 and April 5 -- should be abolished, DPP Secretary-General Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said. There were no dissenting voices from representatives from the Cabinet that were present at the meeting yesterday, but the Cabinet would need time to prepare for the abolishment, Chai added. Cheng was the publisher of the Freedom Era weekly. He immolated himself when police attempted to arrest him in his office in 1989 to protest against the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government's oppression.
■ Crime
Chiu told to report to jail
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chiu Yi (邱毅), who was sentenced to 14 months in prison for public disturbance, will report to prison next Monday. "I received the notice of the coming into force of the sentence from the Kaohsiung District Prosecutors' Office at noon [yesterday], which asked me to report to jail on April 9," Chiu said. The Supreme Court turned down Chiu's appeal on March 22, upholding the Kaohsiung Branch of the Taiwan High Court's ruling sentencing him to jail for 14 months. Chiu was found guilty of leading a group of protesters, hopping on a pickup truck and attempting to break through the gates of the Kaohsiung District Court on March 21, 2004, following the re-election of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).
UPGRADE: The Kang Ding-class frigate is replacing its Chaparall missiles with Tien Chien II and Hua Yang VLS, which would provide it with long-range, 360° air defense Taiwan plans to produce 1,200 to 1,376 Hai Chien II missiles (海劍二, Sea Sword II) — also known as TC-2N — to serve as the standard air defense system of the navy’s surface combatant fleet, a source said yesterday. Last week, the Hai Chien II, the naval version of the Tien Kung II missile (天劍二, Sky Sword II), completed a live-fire test in waters off the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology’s Jiupeng facility (九鵬) in Pingtung County’s Manjhou Township (滿州). The MIM72 Chaparral and other dated air defense missiles that currently arm Taiwanese ships have inadequate range to combat Chinese
REASONS FOR TRAVEL: An assistant professor said that proposed amendments to penalize drivers if they used drugs overseas would not deter people from traveling People who operate a motor vehicle under the influence of marijuana would have their driver’s license revoked, even if they used the substance while overseas, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday, citing proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例). The amendments would also authorize the government to revoke the licenses of people determined to have used Category 1 or Category 2 narcotics, even if they were not operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs, as well as ban them from taking the license test for three years, the ministry said. People aged 18 or
Johanne Liou (劉喬安), a Taiwanese woman who shot to unwanted fame during the Sunflower movement protests in 2014, returned to Taiwan last night after being deported from the US. She is to stand trial in Taiwan for charges involving embezzlement, fraud and drug crimes. The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said it took her into custody at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and would first question her before transferring her to the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. She was arrested upon disembarking a flight from San Francisco that landed shortly before 7pm. Liou absconded to the US in 2019 after jumping bail
Shih Hsin University President Chen Ching-he (陳清河) yesterday issued a public apology for comments made in his commencement speech last week, stating that he has asked the school to suspend his duties and halt his wages for two months as a show of contrition. At the commencement ceremony on May 30, Chen said, “If you don’t manage your time well, or your own emotions, or your health, then I am telling every one of you — put a quick end to ‘you,’ because the world has no need for ‘you.’” The comments have sparked significant controversy online, and Chen through an open
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