■ MILITARY
Embezzlement charges made
An army lieutenant general has been charged with embezzling NT$1.3 million (US$40,000), officials said yesterday. Lieutenant General Cheng Shih-yu (程士瑜), former commander of the Sixth Army Corps, was indicted last week, Vice Minister of Defense Ko Chen-heng (柯承亨) told reporters. "The defense ministry respects the results of the probe and the indictment," he said, declining to provide further details about the case. The Chinese-language China Times said military prosecutors would seek a 16-year jail term -- the toughest sentence ever sought for a ranking officer -- as Cheng had failed to admit his crimes and ask for forgiveness.
■ SOCIETY
Numbers get high bids
The Taipei City vehicle registration department said yesterday that the auction for motorcycle license plate number "AA-01" had been won, with a bid of NT$511,000 (US$15,500). The license plate was one of several issued by the Directorate General of Highways (DGH) and put up for online bidding in August. The department said the bid had set a 15-year record. Aside from "AA-01," other numbers were also in high demand. The number "BB-88," for example, was won with a bid of NT$18,000. Starting next month, the DGH will allow owners of motorcycles with a cylinder capacity of 550cc or above to use expressways and fast lanes on regular roads. The bikes will be required to observe laws governing sedans.
■ TRANSPORTATION
Tunnel fire drill scheduled
The Taiwan Area National Freeway Bureau is scheduled to hold fire drills in the Hsuehshan Tunnel today and on Thursday. The northbound and southbound lanes of the Chiang Wei-shui Freeway (National Freeway No. 5) linking Shihding (石碇) and Toucheng (頭城) will be closed from 9pm until 2am. The drills are part of the legal requirements that must be met before large-sized passenger vehicles can operate on the freeway. Starting on Nov. 15, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications will begin allowing large-sized passenger vehicles on the freeway. During the drills, motorists are advised to take other routes, including Provincial Highways 2 and 9 and County Highway 106. They are also advised to listen to the Police Radio Station of Taiwan for information.
■ JUSTICE
Chen appeals court ruling
President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) appealed yesterday a Taipei District Court ruling that rejected his declaration that documents seized in the "state affairs fund" case constitute classified information and should therefore be returned by the court. The district court also said it would continue to keep them and use them as evidence during the trial. Attorney John Chen (陳傳岳) told a press conference yesterday that the president had appealed the ruling to the Taiwan High Court. He said that Grand Justices Rulings No. 328 and No. 419 stipulated that the president enjoys the privilege of national secrets involving military, diplomacy and national security, which the judiciary has no right to hear. In addition, Grand Justices Ruling No. 627 does not enable the court to decide what constitutes a national secret. He said that Ruling No. 627 adds that the president has the right to interpret or explain why the documents seized in the "state affairs fund" concern national secrets, but that the district court did not allow him to do so.
■ ENVIRONMENT
Worms unnerve owner
Hundreds of thousands of earthworms appeared in a vineyard in Changhua County, prompting the owner to consult an expert out of fear that a strong earthquake might be imminent, the Chinese-language China Times reported yesterday. The report said that the worms crawled out of the earth and covered the surface of Wu Ching-chuan's (吳清泉) vineyard on Sunday morning. Wu said he had never seen so many worms and estimated there were 200kg to 300kg of them. Wu said he feared that a major quake might be coming because worms and snakes are known to come to the surface when disturbed by seismic activity. Wu consulted a farm expert who said the earthworms crawled out because his vineyard was flooded when Typhoon Krosa hit on Oct. 5. Although earthworms like humid environment, they cannot stand extreme moisture or when the underground water level rises too high, the expert said.
■ TRANSPORTATION
Councilors want bike space
Three Taipei City councilors yesterday called for a comprehensive network of bicycle paths for the capital. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) councilors Wang Chih-ping (汪志冰), Dai Hsi-chin (戴錫欽) and Chen Yu-mei (陳玉梅) made the call after examining bicycle traffic around several Mass Rapid Transport stations yesterday. Last month the city government began fining cyclists who illegally ride in fast traffic lanes or on the sidewalk, forcing them to use the road. Dai said it was common to see cars jostling motorbikes for road space, forcing the motorbikes to crowd bicycles off the road. To protect themselves, cyclists often risk fines by riding on the sidewalk, he said.
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “(we) appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
TRUMP ERA: The change has sparked speculation on whether it was related to the new US president’s plan to dismiss more than 1,000 Joe Biden-era appointees The US government has declined to comment on a post that indicated the departure of Laura Rosenberger as chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Neither the US Department of State nor the AIT has responded to the Central News Agency’s questions on the matter, after Rosenberger was listed as a former chair on the AIT’s official Web site, with her tenure marked as 2023 to this year. US officials have said previously that they usually do not comment on personnel changes within the government. Rosenberger was appointed head of the AIT in 2023, during the administration of former US president Joe
MUST REMAIN FREE: A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would lead to a global conflict, and if the nation blows up, the world’s factories would fall in a week, a minister said Taiwan is like Prague in 1938 facing Adolf Hitler; only if Taiwan remains free and democratic would the world be safe, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The ministry on Saturday said Corriere della Sera is one of Italy’s oldest and most read newspapers, frequently covers European economic and political issues, and that Wu agreed to an interview with the paper’s senior political analyst Massimo Franco in Taipei on Jan. 3. The interview was published on Jan. 26 with the title “Taiwan like Prague in 1938 with Hitler,” the ministry