WEATHER
Storm approaching
A tropical depression over the western Pacific Ocean developed into the fifth tropical storm of the season yesterday morning, said the Central Weather Bureau (CWB). As of 8pm yesterday, the center of the storm, named Doksuri, was 1,400km southeast of Taiwan and moving west-nothwest at 8km per hour, CWB data showed. Doksuri could be moving closer to Taiwan, but its path would only become clear tomorrow or on Monday, the bureau said. CWB forecaster Lin Ping-yu (林秉煜) said that Doksuri would be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday, so there is a chance a sea warning might be issued as early as Monday. Citing the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts’ model, meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) said it is likely that Doksuri would pass through Taiwan.
POLITICS
MOFA donation to Ukraine
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) announced on Wednesday that it has pledged a donation of US$2.5 million toward the construction of a bridge in the war-torn Ukrainian capital of Kyiv. The bridge is to connect Obolonksy Island, a small island in central Kyiv, with the city, MOFA said in a press release. The donation is to be given to a charitable fund, Future Kyiv, the organization designated by the Kyiv government, based on a memorandum of understanding signed between Bob Chen (陳龍錦), Taiwan’s Representative to Poland, and Mariia Bochenkova, the head of the fund, on Wednesday. Taiwan and Ukraine share the same values of freedom, democracy and human rights, with both countries on the front line of defending against authoritarian expansion, the release said. Taiwan would continue to provide humanitarian aid to Ukraine as its people fight against Russian aggression, it said.
CRIME
Drunk driver charged
A man was indicted by Taipei prosecutors yesterday for killing a flight attendant in Taipei while driving drunk in November last year. The man surnamed Hsiang (向) was tested for alcohol, and a breath test showed a blood-alcohol level of 0.58mg per liter, which was above the legal threshold of 0.25mg per liter, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. The office indicted Hsiang for repeated drunk driving within 10 years of a previous offense that resulted in the death of another person. The 53-year-old driver was convicted of drunk driving twice previously in two separate cases and he was sentenced to four months in jail for each case in 2019, the prosecutors’ office said.
Hsiang also had his driver’s license revoked in 2019.
CULTURE
Taichung dance performance
Cloud Gate Dance Theatre is to hold a free outdoor performance of 13 Tongues in front of Taichung City Hall tonight, the first open-air performance it has held in the city in 10 years. The free performance is to start at 7:30pm. The last time Cloud Gate gave an open-air performance was when the troupe celebrated its 40th anniversary with Lin’s Rice, said Cloud Gate artistic director Cheng Tsung-lung (鄭宗龍). Everyone is welcomed to see 13 Tongues, a 2016 piece by Cheng that incorporates many elements of local life in Taiwan, such as folk songs and religious rituals, the choreographer said. 13 Tongues has toured Europe and the United States, and is to be performed in France and Spain later this year, Cloud Gate said.
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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