Wed, Apr 07, 2010 page3

• Taiwan News Quick take

  • STAFF WRITER, WITH AGENCIES
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  ■TRAVEL

  ‘Taiwan’ passports touted

  The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday suggested people replacing their old passports choose one that bears the name “Taiwan,” on the front to avoid trouble when traveling as the “Republic of China” is often confused with the “People’s Republic of China.” “Holding the new passport with the word ‘Taiwan’ on the cover will make it much easier for travelers to pass through immigration,” said James Lee (李光章), a MOFA official. The UK and Ireland granted Taiwanese citizens visa-free entry in March and July last year respectively, but there have been some incidents of Taiwanese holding old versions of passports being questioned when traveling to the two countries as they were mistaken for Chinese, Lee said.

  ■TRANSPORT

  Suhua report planned

  The Directorate-General of Highways (DGH) said yesterday it is to submit the environmental impact report for its proposed plan to improve the conditions of the Suhua Highway in September. The plan, reviewed by the Council of Economic Planning and Development, has gained approval from the Executive Yuan. The DGH said the report is expected to address the issue of 18-wheelers, which account for approximately 50 percent of traffic on the highway. The DGH said it is working with the Taiwan Railway Administration and the Hualien Harbor Bureau to help curb the number of large trucks using the highway.

  ■CULTURE

  ‘Scream’ numbers drop

  The total number of people attending this year’s Spring Scream music festival, which ended on Monday, was down from last year, organizers and local hotels said. Tens of thousands of music fans crowd into Kenting each year for the festival, the longest-running music event in the country. Most of the evidence of lower attendance this year, however, seemed anecdotal. Shen Kuan-yuan (沈光遠), general manager of Friendly Dog Entertainment which hosted the “Spring Wave” and “Spring Wave Hengchun Electronic Party,” said it sold about 15,000 tickets this year. He estimated the concerts this year might only break even, unlike last year, which were profitable. Many shop owners in Kenting also said a lot of people attending the festival did not stay overnight. Shen suggested that one of the factors in the perceived decline was that tourists from Hong Kong and Macau increased this year, prompting many Taiwanese fans unable to book guesthouses to stay at home. On the other hand, 20,000 tickets to the actual Spring Scream event were sold this year, more than last year, the festival’s founders said. Spring Scream, which began with two stages and 30 bands in 1995, has grown into a six-stage show featuring 200 local and foreign bands this year.

  ■FAMILY

  Thousands sweep tombs

  Around 6,000 members of the same family gathered for the recent Tomb Sweeping Festival, a report said yesterday. The Yeh family traveled from as far as the US, Australia and Brazil to Taoyuan on Monday, the Chinese-language Apple Daily said. The crowd thronged a square in front of the family tomb and surrounding roads, burning nearly 10 tonnes of paper money and setting off hundreds of firecrackers to honor the dead. Taiwanese believe burning paper money and everything from cars to computers made of paper will ensure their ancestors are comfortable in the afterlife, and lighting firecrackers will scare off evil spirits.
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