DIPLOMACY
DPP to host Japan officials
Representatives from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) are to hold in-person talks for the first time in a closed-door meeting in Taipei today.
DPP lawmakers Lo Chih- cheng (羅致政) and Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) are to meet with LDP Foreign Affairs Division director Iwao Horii and LDP National Defense Division director Konosuke Kokuba, the DPP said. Although today would be the first face-to-face meeting between representatives from the DPP and LDP, the two parties held virtual talks in August and December 2021 on topics including diplomacy, national defense and economic security. Despite both parties having undergone personnel changes since those talks, the continued scheduling of meetings was a sign that both sides were hoping to make such exchanges routine, the DPP said, adding that with today’s talks taking place in Taiwan, it hoped future meetings could be held in Japan.
TRANSPORTATION
Train services to increase
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp is to provide an extra train service from next month to June, to meet high demand for southbound travel in the evenings, the company said yesterday. Starting on April 10, the No. 1549 high-speed train would depart from Nangang Station at 6:25pm from Mondays to Thursdays, stopping in Taipei, Banciao, Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Miaoli and terminating at Taichung Station, it said. The additional service would be offered until June 30, it said, adding that the extra service was established after the company observed an increase in demand for commuting in the evening on work days after COVID-19 restrictions eased. The company would adjust its services depending on demand after the long summer break begins on July 1, it added. Reservations for the new service open tomorrow.
AVIATION
EVA Air launches merch
EVA Air has launched a promotional sale of 80 limited-edition Hello Kitty airline service trolleys, which would be available on its home delivery shopping Web site while supplies last, the company said yesterday. The aluminum alloy trolleys, which feature images of the Sanrio character set against a pink background, are ideal items for collectors or for use around the home or office, it said. The trolleys, which are 103cm tall and relatively lightweight at 10.6kg, come with seven transparent sliding drawers, and cost NT$39,999, it said in a statement. During a similar promotion in October 2021, the 24 available service trolleys sold out in only 10 days, it said.
MARATHON
Ethiopian breaks record
Kenyan runner Barnabas Kiptum finished first in this year’s New Taipei City Wan Jin Shi Marathon on Sunday, winning the men’s race in two hours, 11 minutes and 57 seconds, the organizer’s official Web site said. Bekelech Gudeta Borecha of Ethiopia won the women’s race, breaking the event record by nearly five minutes with her time of two hours, 29 minutes and 25 seconds. Taiwanese runners Chiang Chieh-wen (蔣介文) and Lisa Ries were the fastest local male and female runners respectively, with Chiang finishing in two hours, 23 minutes and 6 seconds, while Ries recorded two hours 46 minutes and 24 seconds. A total of 6,187 runners took part in the marathon, including 300 from 33 countries, organizers said. The winners of the men’s and women’s races each received prizes of US$30,000, while Borecha was awarded an additional US$10,000 for breaking the women’s course record.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
MORE NEEDED: Recall drives against legislators in Miaoli’s two districts and Hsinchu’s second district were still a few thousand signatures short of the second-stage threshold Campaigners aiming to recall Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators yesterday said they expect success in 30 out of 35 districts where drives have passed the second-stage threshold, which would mark a record number of recall votes held at once. Hsinchu County recall campaigners yesterday announced that they reached the second-stage threshold in the recall effort against Legislator Lin Szu-ming (林思銘). A total of 26,414 signatures have been gathered over the past two months, surpassing the 10 percent threshold of 23,287 in Hsinchu County’s second electoral district, chief campaigner Hsieh Ting-ting (謝婷婷) said. “Our target is to gather an additional 1,500 signatures to reach
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