■ MEDIA
‘Commons Daily’ shuts down
The Chinese-language newspaper Commons Daily yesterday announced it is terminating publication because of management disputes. On Sunday, the computers at the 60-year-old newspaper’s headquarters in Kaohsiung were taken by an unidentified person, making it impossible for staff to publish the newspaper. The paper’s deputy editor-in-chief, Chang Hung-kuang (張弘光), reported the incident to police. The management dispute was rumored to be between Eastern Multimedia Group’s Tsai Hao (蔡豪) and Wang Shih-chun (王世均). However, both issued statements saying they were not involved in the management of the Commons Daily, causing much confusion for the paper’s staff.
■ TRAVEL
Tourism office opens in PRC
Taiwan yesterday officially inaugurated its tourism office in Beijing — the first semiofficial agency set up by Taiwan in China. The office is formally known as the Beijing office of the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association (TSTA), with its principal mission promoting tourism in Taiwan among Chinese citizens. Tourism Bureau Director-General Janice Lai (賴瑟珍), who serves as chairwoman of TSTA, presided over the inauguration ceremony. Also attending were Shao Qiwei (邵琪偉), director of China’s National Tourism Administration, and Zheng Lizhong (鄭立中), executive deputy director of the Taiwan Affairs Office. Shao is also president of the Cross-Strait Tourism Association (CSTA), the TSTA’s Chinese counterpart. The Taipei office of the CSTA will be opened Friday.
■ TRAVEL
Fuel surcharge approved
The Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) has approved a request by Taiwanese carriers to increase fuel surcharges on international routes to help them offset an increase in aviation fuel prices. The new measures, to take effect on tickets issued from May 17, will see the surcharge raised to US$20 from US$17.50 per passenger for short-haul flights and to US$52 from US$45.50 for long-haul flights. The increase came after state-run oil refiner CPC Corp, Taiwan, announced on Monday it would raise the price of aviation fuel to US$103.18 per barrel, prompting local carriers flying international routes to petition the CAA for an increase in the surcharge. This is the first time Taiwan’s airlines have increased surcharges since Dec. 15. Meanwhile, China Airlines and EVA Airways Corp, the country’s biggest carriers, will from next Tuesday raise the surcharges on flights between Taiwan and Hong Kong by US$1 to US$11.80 based on Hong Kong’s adjustment mechanism.
■ TRAVEL
New ship line to begin
A Chinese passenger cargo ship will sail directly from Xiamen to Kaohsiung for the first time next week, opening a new transportation route for people traveling between China and southern Taiwan. The Hong Kong-registered Cosco Star, which will make its maiden voyage between Xiamen and Kaohsiung on Monday, expects to launch regularly scheduled services between the two cities once a week, the Kaohsiung Harbor Bureau said on Monday. The cruise ship, which can carry more than 600 passengers, already sails regularly between Xiamen in Fujian Province and Taichung and Keelung. More than 100,000 Fujian residents are expected to visit Taiwan this year, the Tourism Bureau said. The Kaohsiung Harbor Bureau and the Xiamen Port Authority will also sign a letter of intent on that day to enhance cooperation, officials said.
There are 77 incidents of Taiwanese travelers going missing in China between January last year and last month, the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) said. More than 40 remain unreachable, SEF Secretary-General Luo Wen-jia (羅文嘉) said on Friday. Most of the reachable people in the more than 30 other incidents were allegedly involved in fraud, while some had disappeared for personal reasons, Luo said. One of these people is Kuo Yu-hsuan (郭宇軒), a 22-year-old Taiwanese man from Kaohsiung who went missing while visiting China in August. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office last month said in a news statement that he was under investigation
‘JOINT SWORD’: Whatever President Lai says in his Double Ten speech, China would use it as a pretext to launch ‘punishment’ drills for his ‘separatist’ views, an official said China is likely to launch military drills this week near Taiwan, using President William Lai’s (賴清德) upcoming national day speech as a pretext to pressure the nation to accept its sovereignty claims, Taiwanese officials said. China in May launched “punishment” drills around Taiwan shortly after Lai’s inauguration, in what Beijing said was a response to “separatist acts,” sending heavily armed warplanes and staging mock attacks as state media denounced newly inaugurated Lai. The May drills were dubbed “Joint Sword — 2024A” and drew concerns from capitals, including Washington. Lai is to deliver a key speech on Thursday in front of the Presidential Office
An aviation jacket patch showing a Formosan black bear punching Winnie the Pooh has become popular overseas, including at an aviation festival held by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force at the Ashiya Airbase yesterday. The patch was designed last year by Taiwanese designer Hsu Fu-yu (徐福佑), who said that it was inspired by Taiwan’s countermeasures against frequent Chinese military aircraft incursions. The badge shows a Formosan black bear holding a Republic of China flag as it punches Winnie the Pooh — a reference to Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) — who is dressed in red and is holding a honey pot with
Celebrations marking Double Ten National Day are to begin in Taipei today before culminating in a fireworks display in Yunlin County on the night of Thursday next week. To start the celebrations, a concert is to be held at the Taipei Dome at 4pm today, featuring a lineup of award-winning singers, including Jody Chiang (江蕙), Samingad (紀曉君) and Huang Fei (黃妃), Taipei tourism bureau official Chueh Yu-ling (闕玉玲) told a news conference yesterday. School choirs, including the Pqwasan na Taoshan Choir and Hngzyang na Matui & Nahuy Children’s Choir, and the Ministry of National Defense Symphony Orchestra, flag presentation unit and choirs,
RSS