DIPLOMACY
Nation aids Syrian refugees
Taiwan has extended a helping hand to Syrian refugees who have fled to Jordan to escape the civil war in their country, Teng Sheng-ping (鄧盛平), assistant director-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Department of West Asian and African Affairs, said yesterday. The ministry has donated two ambulances and 50 temporary housing units worth US$110,000 to help Jordan take care of the Syrian refugees at the request of the Jordanian government, Teng said. The Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation has also donated 190,000 second-hand garments, which the ministry has helped deliver to Jordan, he said. The civil war in Syria has left about 70,000 people dead or missing and has caused 600,000 to flee to neighboring countries, the ministry said.
LEISURE
TV taking a back seat
Television is no longer just something people watch, but becoming something people listen to as well, Internet search giant Google said. According to Google Taiwan, many people turn on their smartphones, tablets or laptops while watching TV, with their eyes constantly moving from screen to screen. In Taiwan, many people have the TV on as background and only pay attention to the screen when they hear things that interest them. Moreover, 79 percent of the mobile Internet users also search the Web after watching TV. Google Taiwan general manager Stanley Chen (陳俊廷) said that using the Internet to watch TV has also become a trend. He cited last year’s London Olympics as an example, saying that 10 percent of the network traffic related to the Games came from cellphone networks. Many also use YouTube to watch TV content, with the YouTube cellphone view rate growing by three times last year from the previous year.
Hong Kong singer Eason Chan’s (陳奕迅) concerts in Kaohsiung this weekend have been postponed after he was diagnosed with Covid-19 this morning, the organizer said today. Chan’s “FEAR and DREAMS” concert which was scheduled to be held in the coming three days at the Kaohsiung Arena would be rescheduled to May 29, 30 and 31, while the three shows scheduled over the next weekend, from May 23 to 25, would be held as usual, Universal Music said in a statement. Ticket holders can apply for a full refund or attend the postponed concerts with the same seating, the organizer said. Refund arrangements would
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
Taiwanese indie band Sunset Rollercoaster and South Korean outfit Hyukoh collectively received the most nominations at this year’s Golden Melody Awards, earning a total of seven nods from the jury on Wednesday. The bands collaborated on their 2024 album AAA, which received nominations for best band, best album producer, best album design and best vocal album recording. “Young Man,” a single from the album, earned nominations for song of the year and best music video, while another track, “Antenna,” also received a best music video nomination. Late Hong Kong-American singer Khalil Fong (方大同) was named the jury award winner for his 2024 album
The US Department of State on Monday reaffirmed that US policy on Taiwan remains unchanged, following US President Donald Trump’s use of the term “unification” while commenting on recent trade talks with China. Speaking at a wide-ranging press conference, Trump described what he viewed as progress in trade negotiations with China held in Geneva, Switzerland, over the weekend. “They’ve agreed to open China — fully open China, and I think it’s going to be fantastic for China. I think it’s going to be fantastic for us,” Trump said. “I think it’s going to be great for unification and peace.” Trump’s use of the
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