ANIMAL TRADE
Thousands of species banned
An import ban on more than 8,000 species of live animals is to take effect on Wednesday next week, the Forestry Bureau said. Animals such as raccoons and the crested myna are to be banned from entering Taiwan without authorization from the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the bureau said. The banned import list includes one mammal, birds, reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates, totaling 8,478 species, it said, adding that they are being banned because they pose a threat to Taiwan’s endemic species or its agricultural produce. People caught importing any of the animals without authorization would face a fine of NT$200,000 to NT$1 million (US$6,744 to US$33,721) under the Wildlife Conservation Act (野生動物保育法), and could also be charged with smuggling and breaching the Foreign Trade Act (貿易法), the bureau said.
WEATHER
Rainy week forecast
A stationary front that arrived yesterday is expected to linger near Taiwan until Saturday and bring rain to most of the island, Daniel Wu (吳德榮), a former Weather Forecast Center director who is now an adjunct associate professor of atmospheric sciences at National Central University, said yesterday. The front would initially be relatively weak, but would bring isolated showers to areas across Taiwan today, he said. A southwesterly wind system would build up from tomorrow to Saturday, causing the stationary front to intensify and ushering in the plum rain season, he said. People should be alert for lightning, strong winds and torrential rain, Wu said. On Sunday and Monday next week, the front would move toward the East China Sea, but due to southwesterly winds, central and southern Taiwan could still experience rain, while hot weather is forecast in the north and east, he said.
SOCIETY
PTS appoints new chair
Communications academic Hu Yuan-hui (胡元輝) was chosen to serve as chairman of the Public Television Service (PTS) on Friday. Hu received 15 of 19 votes from PTS directors, who are nominated by the Executive Yuan. His only competitor was Lin Kuan-yu (林寬裕), an adjunct assistant professor who teaches a Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability Executive Master of Business Administration course at National Taiwan Normal University. Lin received two votes. Hu said he hopes to draw on experiences at his previous jobs at commercial TV stations such as TVBS Media Inc, Formosa Television Co and Taiwan Television Enterprise to guide the development of PTS. Tchen Yu-chiou (陳郁秀) resigned on April 22 to take responsibility for the airing of several erroneous news tickers last month on Chinese Television System, where she doubled as chairwoman.
CULTURE
Comic contest wants entries
The Golden Comic Awards (GCA) is accepting submissions for its annual competition, including newly published works by foreign artists, the Ministry of Culture said. The 13th GCA competition offers a total purse of NT$2.45 million to NT$2.75 million, which includes a cash prize of NT$10,000 for each shortlisted entry, as part of an effort to encourage greater participation. Another addition this year is a NT$150,000 prize for the Special Contribution Award, which did not previously have a cash reward, said the ministry, which organizes the annual competition. Also for the first time, foreign artists would be eligible to submit original comics recently published in Taiwan, it added. Submissions are open until June 15, the ministry said.
Costa Rica sent a group of intelligence officials to Taiwan for a short-term training program, the first time the Central American country has done so since the countries ended official diplomatic relations in 2007, a Costa Rican media outlet reported last week. Five officials from the Costa Rican Directorate of Intelligence and Security last month spent 23 days in Taipei undergoing a series of training sessions focused on national security, La Nacion reported on Friday, quoting unnamed sources. The Costa Rican government has not confirmed the report. The Chinese embassy in Costa Rica protested the news, saying in a statement issued the same
Taiwan’s Liu Ming-i, right, who also goes by the name Ray Liu, poses with a Chinese Taipei flag after winning the gold medal in the men’s physique 170cm competition at the International Fitness and Bodybuilding Federation Asian Championship in Ajman, United Arab Emirates, yesterday.
A year-long renovation of Taipei’s Bangka Park (艋舺公園) began yesterday, as city workers fenced off the site and cleared out belongings left by homeless residents who had been living there. Despite protests from displaced residents, a city official defended the government’s relocation efforts, saying transitional housing has been offered. The renovation of the park in Taipei’s Wanhua District (萬華), near Longshan Temple (龍山寺), began at 9am yesterday, as about 20 homeless people packed their belongings and left after being asked to move by city personnel. Among them was a 90-year-old woman surnamed Wang (王), who last week said that she had no plans
‘SPEY’ REACTION: Beijing said its Eastern Theater Command ‘organized troops to monitor and guard the entire process’ of a Taiwan Strait transit China sent 74 warplanes toward Taiwan between late Thursday and early yesterday, 61 of which crossed the median line in the Taiwan Strait. It was not clear why so many planes were scrambled, said the Ministry of National Defense, which tabulated the flights. The aircraft were sent in two separate tranches, the ministry said. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday “confirmed and welcomed” a transit by the British Royal Navy’s HMS Spey, a River-class offshore patrol vessel, through the Taiwan Strait a day earlier. The ship’s transit “once again [reaffirmed the Strait’s] status as international waters,” the foreign ministry said. “Such transits by
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