First responders and the Taipei Medical University Sing Song Chorus are to lead the national anthem at the main Double Ten National Day celebration on Saturday in front of the Presidential Office Building, the National Day Preparatory Committee announced yesterday.
The event’s parade of vehicles is also to feature 100 healthcare workers, mask manufacturers, Central Epidemic Command Center personnel, post office workers, shop owners and other “pandemic heroes,” it added.
This year’s theme, “Democratic Taiwan, Advancing With Confidence,” was chosen because the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, challenging democracies worldwide, Legislative Speaker and committee chairman You Si-kun (游錫堃) said.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Beijing claims that its success in suppressing the pandemic is due to the benefits of “socialism with Chinese characteristics,” while democracies are not up to the task, but this explanation does not account for Taiwan’s experience, You said.
Taiwan has become a model for the world, making it impossible for China to discredit the idea of democratic governance, he added.
The speaker also took the opportunity to extend the legislature’s well wishes to US President Donald Trump, who tested positive for COVID-19 last week.
You wished Trump a speedy recovery so he could continue leading the world in resisting Chinese aggression.
Aside from the main celebration in Taipei, the committee said it has also worked with local governments to plan a series of events to mark the day, including an evening event in Keelung and a fireworks display in Tainan.
In related news, people wishing to obtain the souvenir bags usually handed out during Taipei’s Double Ten National Day celebrations would have to pre-order them this year, Taipei Deputy Mayor Tsai Ping-kun (蔡炳坤) said yesterday.
To observe COVID-19 prevention protocols, the city has adopted an online pre-ordering system for the 3,450 bags, to avoid the usual long lines for the free souvenirs, Tsai said.
Pre-orders are to begin on Thursday at 10am on the event planning Web site Accupass and would be open to Taiwan citizens and legal residents, he said.
Pre-orders for 450 bags reserved for people over the age of 65 would be held from 6pm to midnight on Wednesday, he added.
This year’s souvenir bags are to be a light shoulder bag that comes in two colors — gray and brown.
Taipei’s national day celebrations on Saturday are to include a flag-raising ceremony at Taipei City Hall plaza at 7:30am and a series of performances by dance groups, orchestras and choirs, which are to run until 9am, the city’s Department of Civil Affairs said.
The Grand Hotel Taipei on Saturday confirmed that its information system had been illegally accessed and expressed its deepest apologies for the concern it has caused its customers, adding that the issue is being investigated by the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau. The hotel said that on Tuesday last week, it had discovered an external illegal intrusion into its information system. An initial digital forensic investigation confirmed that parts of the system had been accessed, it said, adding that the possibility that some customer data were stolen and leaked could not be ruled out. The actual scope and content of the affected data
DO THEY BITE IT? Cats have better memories than people might think, but their motivation is based entirely around the chance of getting fed Cats can remember the identity of the people who fed them the day before, Taipei-based veterinarians said on Friday, debunking a popular myth that cats have a short memory. If a stray does not recognize the person who fed them the previous day, it is likely because they are not carrying food and the cat has no reason to recognize them, said Wu Chou Animal Hospital head Chen Chen-huan (陳震寰). “When cats come to a human bearing food, it is coming for the food, not the person,” he said. “The food is the key.” Since the cat’s attention is on the food, it
A New York-based NGO has launched a global initiative to rename the nation’s overseas missions, most of which operate under the name "Taipei," to "Taiwan Representative Office (TRO)," according to a news release. Ming Chiang (江明信), CEO of Hello Taiwan, announced the campaign at a news conference in Berlin on Monday, coinciding with the World Forum held from Monday through Wednesday, the institution stated in the release. Speaking at the event, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Huang Jie (黃捷) said she believed this renaming campaign would enable the international community to see Taiwan
TOO DANGEROUS: The families agreed to suspend crewed recovery efforts that could put rescuers in danger from volcanic gases and unstable terrain The bodies of two Taiwanese tourists and a Japanese pilot have been located inside a volcanic crater, Japanese authorities said yesterday, nearly a month after a sightseeing helicopter crashed during a flight over southwestern Japan. Drone footage taken at the site showed three bodies near the wreckage of the aircraft inside a crater on Mount Aso in Kumamoto Prefecture, police and fire officials said. The helicopter went missing on Jan. 20 and was later found on a steep slope inside the Nakadake No. 1 Crater, about 50m below the rim. Authorities said that conditions at the site made survival highly unlikely, and ruled
RSS