MILITARY
Liu Ho-chien dies at 97
Liu Ho-chien (劉和謙), a former chief of the general staff, died early yesterday at the age of 97, the Ministry of National Defense said in a press release. The ministry said it would help Liu’s family with the funeral arrangements, but did not give any other details of his death. Liu, a four-star admiral, served as commander of the navy from 1983 to 1988 and as chief of the general staff from 1991 to 1995. He was appointed as military strategy adviser to the president by Taiwan’s four elected presidents to date, including President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文). He played a crucial role in the development of Taiwan’s navy and helped Taiwan purchase submarines in the 1980s despite various difficulties.
TRANSPORTATION
THSRC announces tickets
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) yesterday said that sales of reserved seat tickets for eight additional services running from Dec. 29 to Jan. 2 are to start at Saturday midnight. The THSRC said it is to run eight additional services amid high demand for the105 specially scheduled trains, bookings for which opened on Dec. 1. A total of 740 regular trains, and 53 southbound and 60 northbound extra services are to run from Dec. 29 to Jan. 2 to meet the demand, it said. Meanwhile, reserved seat tickets for 12 extra services from Jan. 5 to 7 are also go on sale at midnight on Saturday, it said. THSRC added that travel advice for nonreserved tickets, which can only be purchased on the day of travel, would be provided on the homepage of its Web site during the holiday period. Under its color-coded system, green indicates wait times of less than 30 minutes, while yellow indicates longer than 30 minutes and red more than 60 minutes, it said.
SOCIETY
Citizenship granted to 28
Twenty-eight foreign professionals were granted citizenship this year, the Ministry of the Interior said on Wednesday. The ministry on Monday convened its final meeting of the year to review naturalization applications for high-level foreign professionals, who under a 2016 amendment to the Nationality Act (國籍法) no longer need to forfeit their original nationality to become citizens. “High-level professionals” are defined in the act as working in technology, economics, education, culture, art, sports or other fields and have been recommended by a central authority. In the six years since the change, 281 people have become naturalized citizens, the ministry said. The seven applications approved on Monday brought the total for this year to 28, it said. Education was the best-represented field with nine approved applicants, followed by technology with seven and economics with six, it said. Twelve of the people hold dual citizenship with the US, it said.
BUSINESS
EVA Air awarded in Dubai
Taiwan-based EVA Air has been named as offering the best premium economy service in Asia at this year’s World Travel Awards in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, a statement released yesterday by the airline said. The airline, which launched its premium economy service in 1992, said it has “adopted business class seats” to make travelers feel comfortable and offers amenities such as inflight entertainment systems featuring an 11-inch LCD touch screen and noise-canceling headphones to enhance the flying experience. A pillow and blanket set, travel-sized toiletries, USB plugs and 110v sockets for laptops are also offered, it added. In addition to seats and amenities, special meals for are also provided, it added.
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
EVA Airways on Saturday said that it had suspended a pilot and opened an investigation after he allegedly lost his temper and punched the first officer several times as their plane was taxiing before takeoff at Los Angeles International Airport. According to a report published on Thursday by The Reporter, the incident occurred after the flight’s Malaysian first officer tried to warn the Taiwanese pilot, surnamed Wen (文), that he was taxiing faster than the speed limit of 30 knots (55.6kph). After alerting the pilot several times without response, the first officer manually applied the brakes in accordance with standard operating
The New Taipei City Social Welfare Department on Thursday celebrated Paralympic competitor Chen Tzu-wei (張孜維), who received last year’s national Golden Eagle award for exemplary achievement by Taiwanese with disabilities. Chen, who suffers from childhood-onset muscular dystrophy, did not attend the first award ceremony held by the Ministry of Health and Welfare in November due to illness. Chen was formally presented with the award at the department, where he gave thanks to government workers for supporting his education and livelihood, the department said in a statement. Chen was raised by the Ai-hsin Home for Persons with Disabilities in the city’s Bali District (八里)
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