SOUTH KOREA
Program to boost tourism
A reciprocal entry program between Taiwan and South Korea, scheduled to begin at the end of the month, is expected to boost the number of visitors between the two countries, Korean Mission in Taipei Deputy Representative Park Kijun said. Taiwanese travelers should expect to see their waiting time cut significantly when entering South Korea, while South Korean travelers would enjoy the same preferential status, Park said. The automated immigration program is expected to boost tourism between Taiwan and South Korea, Park said, adding that he believes the number of visitors between the two nations will top 2 million this year. According to data compiled by the Tourism Bureau, South Korean arrivals in Taiwan last year topped 1.05 million, while arrivals in South Korea from Taiwan totaled 888,526. The reciprocal electronic immigration clearance program comes after the US Global Entry program for Republic of China passport holders and Taiwan’s e-gate program for travelers from the US went into effect Nov. 1 last year.
RESCUE
Lost mountain hikers found
Eight migrant workers from the Philippines were rescued from a mountain range in central Taiwan after the hikers lost their way deep into a forest late on Friday, the Taichung Fire Department said yesterday. The seven men and one woman had earlier that day set off on a trail on Tangmadan Mountain (唐麻丹山) in Guguan (谷關), a popular trekking site on the Central Cross-Island Highway (Provincial Highway No. 8) in Taichung. Firefighters received a call for help on the 119 hotline from the group at about 8:39pm, the department said. Through coordinates on the hikers’ cellphones, a search team managed to find them one hour later about 200m from the trail entrance. No injuries were reported, the department said, adding that the group had failed to take flashlights for the hike and lost their way after night fell. The rescuers provided them with food and water, and they were later taken to a police station in Guguan. The department called on people to be well prepared with food and water when venturing into the mountains, and to pack proper gear such as maps, mobile navigational aids and flashlights.
MILITARY
Annual drills deemed success
The annual Han Kuang live-fire military exercises ended on Friday with all objectives having been met, Minister of National Defense Yen De-fa (嚴德發) said. Yen praised the various military units that took part in the five days of drills and said that they had successfully demonstrated that the military has the ability to defend the nation. The military showed that it could create multiple dilemmas for the enemy, and that it has the ability to defeat an enemy along the coast, Yen said. A series of live-fire drills were held in the northern, central and southern regions from Monday, after a string of computer-simulated war games were conducted from April 30 to May 4. A joint anti-airborne exercise conducted on Thursday at Taichung’s Ching Chuan Kang Air Base to test the military’s ability to repel an attempted landing by the enemy was one of the most successful operations that he could remember, Yen said. Military units were able to utilize civilian and military resources, Yen said, adding that these resources have to be used effectively to be more successful in combat.
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,
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