DIPLOMACY
Drew to visit Taiwan
New St Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Terrance Drew is to arrive in Taiwan today for a four-day visit, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. It would be Drew’s first visit to Taiwan since taking office in Taipei’s Caribbean ally in August. President Tsai Ing- wen (蔡英文) will welcome Drew and his delegation with a military salute, the ministry said. The two sides are to exchange views on bilateral cooperation projects and topics of mutual interest, it said. Other members of the delegation include St Kitts and Nevis Minister of Foreign Affairs Denzil Douglas, Minister of Environment Joyelle Clarke, and Junior Minister for Youth Empowerment and Social Development, Gender Affairs, Aging and Disabilities Isalean Phillip, as well as Nevis Premier Mark Brantley.
TRAVEL
New system to be launched
The Ministry of Finance is this week to launch a digital service to allow people entering or exiting the nation to declare assets, such as gold and cash, online. People entering or exiting the nation with more than NT$100,000, more than US$10,000 or equivalent in foreign currency, or gold worth more than US$20,000 must declare it at customs. The process is currently done by filling out paper forms at customs checkpoints. People would be able to access the new system from computers and smartphones, Customs Administration officials said on Friday. They would be able to declare assets in excess of the regulated amount through the Carriage Paid To Single Window Web site (https://portal.sw.nat.gov.tw/PPL/index), they said. The new service would go online by Saturday in Chinese and English, they added.
DIPLOMACY
Tokyo to honor Taiwanese
The Japanese government on Thursday said that it would honor three Taiwanese this fall for their contributions to enhancing relations between Taipei and Tokyo. Antonio Chiang (江春男), vice president of the General Association of Chinese Culture, would receive the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon for his years of support for Taiwan research in Japan, the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association said. Lai Ming-chu (賴明珠), the first Taiwanese to translate the works of Japanese author Haruki Murakami, would receive the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Rays for her contributions to the popularization of Japanese culture and promotion of understanding of Japan in Taiwan, the association said. Tsai Shao-ching (蔡少卿), who served in the association for 30 years, would receive the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold and Silver Rays, it said.
CULTURE
Vilnius holds film event
The Asian Art Centre in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, is hosting film screenings to introduce Taiwan and its people through documentary films. The exhibition, titled “Independent Taiwanese Documentary,” began on Thursday and would run until Wednesday at the Skalvija Cinema Center. It features nine films dating from the 1960s to the present. The event also features lectures on Taiwanese history, politics and cinema by Vilnius University faculty members Balys Astrauskas and Konstantinas Andrijauskas, and by Chen Pin-chuan (陳斌全), head of the cultural division of Taiwan’s representative office in the UK. Admission to the screenings IS free and the films are presented with subtitles in English and Lithuanian.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is aware that Beijing’s treatment of Hong Kong has weakened any possible sentiment for a “one country, two systems” arrangement for Taiwan, and has instructed Chinese Communist Party (CCP) politburo member Wang Huning (王滬寧) to develop new ways of defining cross-strait relations, Japanese news magazine Nikkei Asia reported on Thursday. A former professor of international politics at Fu Dan University, Wang is expected to develop a dialogue that could serve as the foundation for cross-strait unification, and Xi plans to use the framework to support a fourth term as president, Nikkei Asia quoted an anonymous source
LUCKY DATE: The man picked the 10th ‘Super Red Envelope’ in a lottery store in Taoyuan’s Jhongli because he broke up with his girlfriend on Jan. 10 A man who recently broke up with his girlfriend won a NT$1 million (US$32,929) prize in the “NT$20 million Super Red Envelope” lottery after picking a card based on the date of their breakup, Taiwan Lottery Co said yesterday. The man, in his 20s, bought the 10th ticket at a lottery store in Taoyuan’s Jhongli District (中壢), because he broke up with his girlfriend on Jan. 10, the store owner told the lottery company. The “Super Red Envelope” lottery was a limited offering by the company during the Lunar New Year holiday, which ended yesterday. The cards, which cost NT$2,000 each, came with
TOURISM BOOST: The transportation system could help attract more visitors to the area, as the line is to connect multiple cultural sites, a city councilor said Residents in New Taipei City’s Ankeng District (安坑) said the local light rail system might have a positive influence, but raised questions about its practicality. The Ankeng light rail system, which is to commence operations after the Lunar New Year holiday, would cut travel time for commuters from Ankeng to downtown Taipei or New Taipei City by 15 to 20 minutes, the city government said. According to the initial plan, there would be one train every 15 minutes during peak time and additional interval trains would run between the densely populated Ankang Station (安康) and Shisizhang Station (十 四張). To encourage people to
CHAMPION TREES: The team used light detection and ranging imaging to locate the tree, and found that it measured a height of 84.1m and had a girth of 8.5m A team committed to finding the tallest trees in the nation yesterday said that an 84.1m tall Taiwania cryptomerioides tree had been named the tallest tree in Taiwan and East Asia. The Taiwan Champion Trees, a team consisting of researchers from the Council of Agriculture’s Taiwan Forestry Research Institute and National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), in June last year used light detection and ranging (LiDAR) imaging to find the giant tree, numbered 55214, upstream of the Daan River (大安溪). A 20-member expedition team led by Rebecca Hsu (徐嘉君), an assistant researcher at the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, set out to find the
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