SOCIETY
Taiwan mulls Ang Lee award
The Presidential Office is mulling whether to bestow an honor upon Taiwan-born director Ang Lee (李安), who won his second Oscar award for best director for Life of Pi earlier in the week. Presidential Office spokesperson Lee Chia-fei (李佳霏) said the decoration would be for his contributions to filmmaking and for bringing honor to the nation. The Presidential Office could confer upon Lee the Order of Brilliant Star with Special Grand Cordon, the highest of the nine ranks of the civilian order of Brilliant Star, Lee Chia-fei said. The Order of Brilliant Star is awarded to civil servants, members of the public and foreigners who have made great contributions to the nation or society. Ang Lee was awarded the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon, which is one rank lower, in 2006 after winning his first Oscar for Brokeback Mountain.
MUSIC
NZ soprano set for April gigs
New Zealand crossover soprano Hayley Westenra will perform in Taiwan next month, her first concerts in the country since early 2011, the events’ sponsor said. The 25-year-old pop and classical singer is scheduled to perform in Taipei, Tainan and Kaohsiung on April 9, 13 and 14 respectively, said Audi Taiwan Co, which is sponsoring her tour. Westenra, who will be accompanied by the Evergreen Symphony Orchestra, will perform well-known songs in English, Japanese, Mandarin and Taiwanese, Audi Taiwan said in a statement. In addition to Amazing Grace, one of her best-loved songs, she will also sing the Japanese Nada Sou Sou and Taiwanese ballads, it said. Management of New Arts, which is promoting the concerts, said the show in Tainan will coincide with the Tainan Arts Festival and be held at the city’s Eternal Golden Castle.
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “(we) appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
ON PAROLE: The 73-year-old suspect has a criminal record of rape committed when he was serving in the military, as well as robbery and theft, police said The Kaohsiung District Court yesterday approved the detention of a 73-year-old man for allegedly murdering three women. The suspect, surnamed Chang (張), was arrested on Wednesday evening in connection with the death of a 71-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙). The Kaohsiung City Police Department yesterday also unveiled the identities of two other possible victims in the serial killing case, a 75-year-old woman surnamed Huang (黃), the suspect’s sister-in-law, and a 75-year-old woman surnamed Chang (張), who is not related to the suspect. The case came to light when Chao disappeared after taking the suspect back to his residence on Sunday. Police, upon reviewing CCTV
TRUMP ERA: The change has sparked speculation on whether it was related to the new US president’s plan to dismiss more than 1,000 Joe Biden-era appointees The US government has declined to comment on a post that indicated the departure of Laura Rosenberger as chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Neither the US Department of State nor the AIT has responded to the Central News Agency’s questions on the matter, after Rosenberger was listed as a former chair on the AIT’s official Web site, with her tenure marked as 2023 to this year. US officials have said previously that they usually do not comment on personnel changes within the government. Rosenberger was appointed head of the AIT in 2023, during the administration of former US president Joe