■ POLITICS
Case against Hsieh dropped
District prosecutors yesterday said they would not prosecute former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) for accusing President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of possessing a valid US green card. During Hsieh’s bid for the presidency, the Hsieh camp said Ma had a valid green card. Ma countered that his green card became invalid about 20 years ago. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus filed a lawsuit on behalf of Ma in March last year before the election. They accused Hsieh of violating the Election and Recall Act for Public Servants (公務人員選舉罷免法), which bars the spreading of “rumors or untruths through words, pictures, speeches or other means in an attempt to prevent a certain candidate from being elected.” Prosecutors said that as Ma was running for the presidency, whether he possessed a green card was a matter of public concern. The prosecutors said some of Hsieh’s claims were later shown to be true, which showed that he was not merely fabricating aspersions to smear his opponent.
■ TRAVEL
MOFA adjusts alert system
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday added a “gray” category to its travel alert system, which offers advice for people going abroad. The system now consists of a gray alert, urging travelers to exercise caution; a yellow alert, urging extra precautions and care in assessing the safety of one’s destination; an orange alert, recommending that citizens avoid all non-essential travel to a country; and a red alert advising against all travel to a country. MOFA said the system was one guideline for travelers, but that all travelers should carefully evaluate their destinations when planning trips abroad.
■ SOCIETY
‘Famine camp’ planned
The local chapter of the Christian charity World Vision yesterday said Academia Sinica would participate for the second consecutive year in the organization’s Thirty-Hour Famine by hosting a 12-hour “famine camp” to raise awareness of poverty. “This year, top academics will again go without food for 12 hours, from 9am to 9pm on July 10, and learn about humanitarian issues,” World Vision Taiwan said in a press statement. World Vision Taiwan said that 300 people from Academia Sinica had signed up for the event — tripling last year’s figure. In its 20th year, the Thirty-Hour Famine program features a series of activities to raise funds to fight hunger. This year’s events will include a Famine Hero Rally on Aug. 15 and Aug. 16 and a famine challenge in which participants fast for 12 to 30 hours on their own.
■ EDUCATION
Biology camp in session
High school students made lanterns from puffer fish yesterday as part of a five-day marine biology camp at National Taiwan Ocean University. Students removed the skins of the fish, immersed them in the preservative formalin and stuffed them with paper to retain their shape. The lanterns were then decorated with other parts of the fish. The spiny puffer is a small fish with spines used for defense when threatened. More than 30 students are participating in the biology camp. Other activities included making fish food, learning about aquatic invertebrates, visiting the university’s aquatic animal center and learning about breeding fish.
■ SAFETY
Kinmen shipwreck drill
The Kinmen County Government said it would hold a shipwreck drill on Sept. 15 for the route between Kinmen and Xiamen. Officials will seek to determine whether a joint rescue mechanism with China is needed, a county official said yesterday. The drill will simulate a collision between a Chinese cargo ship and a passenger boat with 162 people on board en route from Kinmen’s Shueitou Pier to Xiamen’s Dongdu Wharf. During the exercise, teams will be dispatched to the scene to “rescue” passengers who fell overboard and to “treat” the wounded. Although such an accident could occur in the area, Kinmen may not have the capabilities to handle a disaster of that magnitude, Kinmen County Commissioner Lee Chu-feng (李柱烽) said.
■ EVENTS
Rain Festival to begin
The Ilan County Government is inviting the public to take part in the Ilan International Rain Festival, which opens on Saturday. This year’s festival is expected to attract more than 1 million visitors from home and abroad. Ilan County Commissioner Lu Guo-hwa (呂國華) said the event this year would be on a larger scale than last year, with more diverse activities, including three theme areas — the Wulaokeng Adventure Park, the Dongshan River Park and the Toucheng Vigorous Ocean Paradise. The festival will feature performances by Wuqiao acrobatic troupes from Hebei Province, China, a Nanta drumming show from South Korea, a bamboo orchestra from the Philippines and other attractions such as a pop music festival, a beauty pageant, a surfing competition, a street dancing competition, a creativity market and a beach wedding ceremony. Admission to the Toucheng Vigorous Ocean Paradise is free, while tickets for the Wulaokeng Adventure Park and the Dongshan River Park will vary depending on entry time and group size. The festival ends on Aug. 23.
■ EDUCATION
‘Ambassadors’ fly to Japan
Six fifth-graders from Chiayi County departed for Japan to take part in a two-week global youth camp as Taiwanese junior ambassadors, the county’s Education Department said on Tuesday. Chiayi County Commissioner Chen Ming-wen (陳明文) met the children to give them encouragement during a flag handover ceremony on Tuesday, a day before the 21st Asia-Pacific Children’s Convention (APCC) began in Fukuoka, Japan. Prior to the trip, the three boys and three girls selected from Siang He Elementary School in Chiayi County attended weekly training workshops to study English and Japanese and gain an understanding of international etiquette. The APCC said that the government-funded organization invites children from the Asia-Pacific region to Fukuoka as “junior ambassadors” to improve their international understanding through exchange programs including homestays, school visits and exchange camps.
■ POLITICS
Impeachment attempt fails
The Control Yuan yesterday failed to pass an impeachment motion against former Toronto-based Government Information Office (GIO) official Kuo Kuan-ying (郭冠英), who used insulting terms to refer to Taiwan and Taiwanese people in a series of online articles under the pen name Fan Lan-chin (范蘭欽). Control Yuan member Chien Lin Hui-chun’s (錢林慧君) proposal to impeach Kuo was voted down 7 to 4, but she said that she would bring up the motion again after making revisions to her impeachment statement.
Taiwan was listed in 14th place among the world's wealthiest country in terms of GDP per capita, in the latest rankings released on Monday by Forbes magazine. Taiwan's GDP per capita was US$76,860, which put it at No. 14 on the list of the World's 100 Richest Countries this year, one spot above Hong Kong with US$75,130. The magazine's list of the richest countries in the world is compiled based on GDP per capita data, as estimated by the IMF. However, for a more precise measure of a nation's wealth, the magazine also considers purchasing power parity, which is a metric used to
Taipei’s Ximending (西門町) shopping area welcomed the most international visitors, followed by Taipei 101, Songshan Cultural and Creative Park and Yangmingshan National Park (陽明山國家公園), a list of the city’s most popular tourist attractions published by the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism showed. As of August, 69.22 million people had visited Taipei’s main tourism spots, a 76 percent increase from 39.33 million in the same period last year, department data showed. Ximending had 20.21 million visitors, followed by Taipei 101 at 8.09 million, Songshan Cultural and Creative Park at 6.28 million, Yangmingshan at 4.51 million and the Red House Theater (西門紅樓) in
Renovations on the B3 concourse of Taipei Main Station are to begin on Nov. 1, with travelers advised to use entrances near the Taiwan Railway or high-speed rail platforms or information counter to access the MRT’s Red Line. Construction is to be completed before the end of next year, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said last week. To reduce the impact on travelers, the NT$95 million (US$2.95 million) project is to be completed in four stages, it said. In the first stage, the hall leading to the Blue Line near the art exhibition area is to be closed from Nov. 1 to the end
NINTH MONTH: There were 11,792 births in Taiwan last month and 15,563 deaths, or a mortality rate of 8.11 per 1,000 people, household registration data showed Taiwan’s population was 23,404,138 as of last month, down 2,470 from August, the ninth consecutive month this year that the nation has reported a drop, the Ministry of the Interior said on Wednesday. The population last month was 162 fewer than the same month last year, a decline of 0.44 per day, the ministry said, citing household registration data. Taiwan reported 11,792 births last month, or 3.7 births per day, up 149 from August, it said, adding that the monthly birthrate was 6.15 per 1,000 people. The jurisdictions with the highest birthrates were Yunlin County at 14.62 per 1,000 people, Penghu County (8.61
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