■MUSIC
Fans mourn Jackson
Michael Jackson fans gathered in Taipei yesterday to imitate their late hero＊s dance moves and watch his performances as tributes to the US pop legend. Jackson, who died on June 25 in Los Angeles, enjoyed a huge following in Asia. About 200 fans held a memorial in Taipei where impersonators performed on a stage adorned with his photos. Many sobbed as they watched videos of Jackson＊s concerts. ※I paid tribute to him with my dance,§ said Kao Sha-ming, 30, wiping tears after he mimicked Jackson＊s moves in a red T-shirt and a black jacket. Kim Lin, 32, said she was picked to dance with Jackson when he performed in Taiwan in 1996. She said she screamed for 20 minutes after hearing about his death. ※My god of music just died. It was too hard to accept that because I was so close to him on the stage,§ she said.
■AGRICULTURE
Chinese delegation arrives
A Chinese delegation that will survey Taiwan＊s fruit market in preparation for an October visit by an official procurement group f arrived yesterday, officials with the semi-〝official Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) said. The nine-〝member delegation is headed by China Fruits Marketing Association vice chairman Fu Xiuquan (媸滼藾), and is composed of experts and officials from Liaoning, Hebei, Jiangsu and Guangxi provinces. The China Fruits Marketing Association is the largest trade organization in China＊s fruit sector. Although TAITRA said it remains unclear how much the procurement group intends to buy, it will be primarily interested in fall and winter fruit, such as oranges, grapefruit, pineapples and sugar apples.
■ MILITARY
Officers to attend US show
The air force will send a team of five to six officers to observe for the first time an air drill to be conducted by the US Air Force. Yin Shih-hsien (蹁蒢緕), an Air Force public affairs officer, said the Rodeo Airlift Competition would be staged by the US Air Force＊s Air Mobility Command at McChord Air Force Base in Washington state between July 19 and July 25. The drill, which was first staged in 1956 and features aerial refueling, aeromedical evacuation of troops and air drops, will give the air force a chance to expand its experience in these fields, Yin said. Taiwan is one of more than 27 partner nations invited by the US to observe the competition.
■IMMIGRATION
US man fined for abuse
An US passport holder of Chinese descent was fined US$500 for cursing at an immigration officer at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport late last month, government sources said yesterday. The Chinese-American unleashed a two-minute volley of expletives when he was asked to fill out his ED (entry and departure) card in detail after his arrival at the airport on June 25, officials with the National Immigration Agency said. The agency reported the case to aviation police, who transferred it to the Taoyuan Prosecutors Office. On June 26, Taoyuan District Court ruled that the Chinese-American man should pay a fine of US$500 for his abusive tirade. The immigration agency said it would hold a meeting later to decide whether to blacklist him as a persona non-grata.
Travel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. The airline said that it has confirmed that the planned industrial action by its international wide-body cabin crew would go ahead on Thursday and Friday next week. While the Auckland-based carrier pledged to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of the workers’ strike, an Air New Zealand flight arriving at Taipei from Auckland on Thursday and another flight departing from Taipei for Auckland on Saturday would have to
The Taipei City Government yesterday confirmed that it has negotiated a royalties of NT$12.2 billion (US$380 million) with artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant Nvidia Corp, with the earliest possible signing date set for Wednesday next week. The city has been preparing for Nvidia to build its Taiwan headquarters in Beitou-Shilin Technology Park since last year, and the project has now entered its final stage before the contract is signed. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said the city government has completed the royalty price negotiations and would now push through the remaining procedures to sign the contract before
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday said the name of the Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania was agreed by both sides, after Lithuania’s prime minister described a 2021 decision to let Taiwan set up a de facto embassy in Vilnius as a “mistake.” Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene, who entered office in September last year, told the Baltic News Service on Tuesday that Lithuania had begun taking “small first steps” aimed at restoring ties with Beijing. The ministry in a statement said that Taiwan and Lithuania are important partners that share the values of freedom and democracy. Since the establishment of the
Taipei Zoo welcomes the Lunar New Year this year through its efforts to protect an endangered species of horse native to central Asia that was once fully extinct outside of captivity. The festival ushering in the Year of the Horse would draw attention to the zoo’s four specimens of Przewalski’s horse, named for a Russian geographer who first encountered them in the late 19th century across the steppes of western Mongolia. “Visitors will look at the horses and think that since this is the Year of the Horse: ‘I want to get to know horses,’” said zookeeper Chen Yun-chieh, who has been
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