■ EDUCATION
Group protests tuition hikes
An advocacy group staged a demonstration at the Ministry of Education yesterday to protest the high cost of university education and call for a freeze of tuition fees for the next academic year. Around 30 students from the Coalition Against High Tuition in Taiwan protested in front of the ministry to condemn the increasing commercialization of education, arguing that "education is by no means a commodity" and that "tuition fees should not be adjusted in accordance with the consumer price index." The demonstrators condemned a number of colleges and universities for taking special funding from the ministry while continuing to increase tuition fees. They were referring to 23 universities that received funding under a five-year, NT$50 billion (US$1.5 billion) higher education and teaching excellence subsidy program.
PHOTO: CHEN TSE-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
■ WEATHER
More heavy rain expected
Central Weather Bureau forecaster Hsiao Chia-sen (蕭家森) said yesterday there were no changes to the weather system over the country and that the weather would remain unstable during the coming week. Hsiao said that the nation could experience torrential rainfall at least until Wednesday and that the situation after Thursday remained uncertain. The bureau warned that while the weather front remained unchanged, residents should be prepared for heavy rain and lightning. Hsiao said residents in low-lying areas should take measures to prevent flooding while those in mountainous areas should watch for landslides and falling rocks.
■ POPULATION
Fertility rate dropping
The Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said that the country's total fertility rate (TFR) dropped by more than 60 percent over the last 30 years, with its TFR dwindling from 3.4 children in 1975 to 1.4 in 2005. The country's 60.2 percent fall in TFR -- the average number of babies born to women during their reproductive years, from 15 to 49 -- was greater than the world's average 40.7 percent decline during the same 1975 to 2005 period, which went from 4.5 to 2.7 children, the DGBAS reported. In Asia, South Korea registered the largest decrease in TFR, at 71 percent, followed by Hong Kong at 67.5 percent and China at 65 percent, the DGBAS said. TFR is the single most important factor in determining future population, experts said.
■ POLITICS
Yeh reveals intentions
Former vice premier Yeh Chu-lan (葉菊蘭) yesterday said that she would not pass up the opportunity if she was called upon to be Frank Hsieh's (謝長廷) presidential running mate. It was the first time Yeh had made her intentions known since Hsieh was nominated as the Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate. Yeh, however, declined to reveal whether she had obtained the backing of the party or whether there was any mutual understanding between her and Hsieh. There is mounting speculation that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) favors former premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) as Hsieh's running mate, while Hsieh is widely believed to favor Yeh.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
The brilliant blue waters, thick foliage and bucolic atmosphere on this seemingly idyllic archipelago deep in the Pacific Ocean belie the key role it now plays in a titanic geopolitical struggle. Palau is again on the front line as China, and the US and its allies prepare their forces in an intensifying contest for control over the Asia-Pacific region. The democratic nation of just 17,000 people hosts US-controlled airstrips and soon-to-be-completed radar installations that the US military describes as “critical” to monitoring vast swathes of water and airspace. It is also a key piece of the second island chain, a string of
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
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