■LEGISLATION
KMT wants special session
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is prepared to issue a proposal to hold a special legislative session in case four government restructuring bills fail to clear the legislature by the end of its current session on Tuesday, a KMT lawmaker said yesterday. Caucus whip Lu Hsueh-chang (呂學樟) said President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) attaches great importance to the bills, which are crucial for the implementation of a plan to downsize the government’s structure on Jan. 1, 2011. Lu said that chances are high for a special session to be held in light of the urgency of the bills, including a proposed amendment to the Executive Yuan’s Organic Law to reduce the number of ministries and other Cabinet agencies from 37 to 29. However, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) opposition is likely to stall their progress. DPP caucus whip Yeh Yi-jin (葉宜津) said that her party is in favor of government downsizing, but was against the versions of the bills proposed by the KMT, because they would result in an expansion, rather than reduction, of the government’s structure. The DPP does not have a position on whether a special session should be held, she said.
■CONSTRUCTION
Airport capacity to double
Officials said yesterday that when the Taichung Airport expansion project is completed in 2012, it will more than double the airport’s passenger capacity. The expansion will add a second terminal to Taichung Airport, allowing passengers on domestic and international flights to be channeled through separate terminals, officials at the Ministry of Transportation and Communications’ Taiwan Area National Expressway Engineering Bureau said at a news briefing yesterday. The international terminal will be equipped with five air bridges, the officials said. The new facilities are expected to offer more convenient services to passengers and will expand the airport’s capacity to 1.35 million passengers per year, nearly triple the 460,000 passengers it can handle at present. Once the expansion project, which will cost an estimated NT$3.1 billion (US$97 million), is completed, the airport’s formal name will change to “Central Taiwan International Airport.”
■EVENTS
Fenton to perform
Composer George Fenton has been invited to Taiwan to lead the National Symphony Orchestra in two concert performances of The Blue Planet. The concert will feature music from the Emmy Award-winning soundtrack Fenton composed for the documentary series The Blue Planet, a joint production of the BBC and the Discovery Channel. A spokeswoman for the concert’s organizer, National Chiang Kai-shek Cultural Center, said The Blue Planet creates a grand soundscape that has enthralled audiences around the globe. The concerts will be held on March 5 and March 6 at the National Concert Hall.
■OPEN CALL
US offers residencies
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Public Affairs Section is calling for applications for the 2010 Study of the US Institute programs. The programs are designed for mid-career university-level educators and each residency will typically last six weeks and take place between mid-June and early August next year, AIT said. More information can be found at exchanges.state.gov/academicexchanges/scholars.html or by contacting the American Cultural Center Office at (02) 2723-3959, ext. 224 for details. Applications may be sent by e-mail to application@mail.ait.org.tw.
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
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