Fri, Aug 27, 2010 page3

• Taiwan News Quick take

  • CNA, WITH STAFF WRITER
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  ■ DIPLOMACY

  Canada may waive visas

  The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday it was “cautiously optimistic” that Canada would grant Taiwanese passport holders visa-free treatment by the end of the year. Taipei and Ottawa have agreed that visa-free treatment for Taiwanese citizens should not be linked with imports of Canadian beef — as the Canadian agricultural ministry had hoped to do — so political resistance to the issue has been overcome, said Harry Tseng (曾厚仁), director-­general of the ministry’s Department of North American Affairs. Since Taiwan offers Canadians visa-free entry, the Canadian government thinks it would be fair to grant the same privileges to Taiwanese nationals, Tseng said. However, he said it was unlikely the US would lift visa requirements for Taiwanese visitors by the end of this year because Taiwan may not be able to meet Washington’s requirements in time.

  ■ CROSS-STRAIT TIES

  Chen Yunlin visit delayed

  A visit to Taiwan next month by China’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林) is likely to be delayed due mainly to a tight schedule that month for exchange visits across the Strait, Taiwan’s Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) said. Taiwan and China agreed during negotiations in Chongqing, China, in late June that Chen would lead a business delegation on a visit to Taiwan on Sept. 5. However, while there have been no changes in Taiwan’s plans for Chen to visit, it is not yet known whether the trip will take place before the end of the year, the SEF said.

  ■HEALTH

  Many teens addicted to Net

  Eighteen percent of the nation’s 16-year-old students are addicted to the Internet and are at a higher risk than others for emotional disorders, a local hospital said on Wednesday. The Tri-Service General Hospital conducted a survey at a Taipei high school for three consecutive years and polled 2,600 freshmen with an average age of 16. The hospital defined Internet addiction disorders as excessive computer use that interferes with an individual’s job, schooling or social life. Nearly 20 percent of those deemed Internet addicts suffered emotional disorders, with the rate for male students higher than that for females, said Wang Tzong-shi (王宗熙), a psychiatrist specializing in teenagers at the hospital. Wang said Internet addicts are more likely to suffer learning disabilities and impulse control disorders. “If children surf the Net for six to seven hours a day and react very emotionally when asked to stop, parents need to pay extra attention to the addiction issue,” Wang said.

  ■ ART

  Student wins red dot award

  A student from National Taiwan University of Science and Technology has won a “best of the best” prize in the communication category of this year’s red dot design award — the world’s largest and most prestigious design competition, the university said yesterday. Lee Pei-wen (李珮雯) was recognized for her project Eros. The four-minute 3D film depicts the human gestation process in a video game setting. The main character, a combat aircraft named Eros, is transformed from a baby moving inside its mother’s womb as it struggles against various birth-blocking obstacles. Lee said her inspiration came from her elder sister’s first pregnancy and the experience of her own mother, who once considered an abortion.
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