WEATHER
First snow falls on Yushan
Snow fell for the first time this winter, marking the latest arrival of the season’s first snow in 15 years, the Central Weather Bureau said yesterday. The snow was discovered by weather station personnel at about 5am on Yushan (玉山), the highest peak in Taiwan at 3,952m. The personnel said they were surprised, because overnight temperatures had not fallen below 0?C. Central Weather Bureau forecaster Lin Ping-yu (林秉昱) said that while the lowest recorded temperature on the ground was 0.8°C, there was sufficient moisture and low enough temperatures in the upper atmosphere to generate snowflakes. Taiwan usually sees its first snowfall on its highest mountains in December, Lin said, adding that the last time snow came this late was in the winter of 2000-2001, when first snow fell on Jan. 10, 2001.
ELECTIONS
Ballot reaches record length
The high number of political parties running in the legislative elections caused the ballot paper to reach a length of 73cm and a width of 15cm, the Central Election Commission said. Eighteen parties are vying for 34 at-large seats in the elections, the commission said, adding that it is the highest number of parties running in an election since the “single constituency, two vote” system was introduced in 2008. There were 12 political parties vying for at-large seats in 2008 and 11 in 2012, the commission said. Each voter is to cast three ballots in the Jan. 16 presidential and legislative elections, one for a presidential candidate, one for a legislative candidate and one for a political party, which would determine how the at-large seats are distributed, the commission said.
SOCIETY
Taiwanese less happy
Taiwanese are feeling less happy, with the happiness index in the fourth quarter of last year dropping to a two-year low of 6.36, according to the results of a poll released last week. Since March 2012, Global Views Monthly magazine’s survey research center has been tracking the perceived happiness level of Taiwanese across different aspects of life on a quarterly basis. The latest poll questioned the respondents on overall well-being, health, satisfaction with living standards, social connectivity and income to gauge levels of self-satisfaction. The poll results showed Taiwanese’s self-satisfaction score stood at 6.36 points, down 0.1 points from the third quarter and a record low since 2013.
SOCIETY
Body found in valley
A 65-year-old man was found dead in a pool of water surrounded by rocks in a mountain valley in Pingtung County yesterday, local police said. The man, a resident of Laiyi Township’s (來義) Danlin Village (丹林), was reported missing on Saturday, police said, adding that an investigation has been launched. The man showed no vital signs when he was found at the bottom of a 15m deep valley. The man was last seen walking toward the entrance of an old hiking path in the mountains in search of a water source, police said, adding that he was found about 20 minutes’ walk away from where the path began. Separately, a car overturned in Pingtung County yesterday after skidding off the road while traveling northbound on the Provincial Highway No. 1. All five passengers in the car were rescued and sent to a nearby hospital where they were treated for minor injuries, police said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as
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