ENTERTAINMENT
Hikaru Utada to perform
Japanese-American pop star Hikaru Utada has announced plans to perform in Taiwan for the first time in her more than 25-year career. Utada became more popular in Taiwan after her song First Love was used as the theme song for a Japanese drama of the same title that aired in 2022. The dates and the location of her performance have yet to be revealed. Separately, Japanese pop girl group Perfume is to perform at the Taipei Music Center on July 6. The group is returning to Taiwan after five years and would be the first Japanese girl group to perform at the venue. Meanwhile, Wheein of the South Korean girl group Mamamoo has announced an extra concert at the Taipei International Conference Center on April 21 after her show on April 20 sold out almost immediately.
Photo courtesy of Sony Music Taiwan
COMMUNICATIONS
No Starshield ban: SpaceX
Elon Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) on Monday said that it is “in full compliance with all of its US government contracts” in response to a letter from US Representative Mike Gallagher alleging that SpaceX was withholding its Starshield Internet service from Taiwan. Gallagher, chairman of the US House of Representatives’ Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, on Saturday sent a letter to Musk concerning Starshield, which provides the US government with a secure satellite network. “Multiple sources have disclosed to the Committee that Starshield is inactive in and around Taiwan,” the letter said. “Ensuring robust communications networks for US military personnel on and around Taiwan is paramount for safeguarding US interests in the Indo-Pacific region.” The letter was first reported by Forbes magazine.
Photo courtesy of Gorgeous Entertainment
TRAFFIC
NT$10m to go to three kids
Donations of more than NT$10 million (US$316,756) have poured in for three children hit by a vehicle in Changhua County last week, the county government said on Monday. An account for donations set up by the county closed at 12pm on Monday, and the money received would go to a trust to pay for the children’s medical treatment, rehabilitation and daily needs, it said. The three siblings, surnamed Chen (陳), were crossing a pedestrian walkway on Thursday last week when they were hit by an SUV driven by an unlicensed 73-year-old man surnamed Hsiao (蕭). Show Chwan Memorial Hospital said the eldest, 10, who has serious brain damage, has become responsive to light reflex tests. Her blood oxygen and blood pressure levels, as well as heart beat, have returned to normal. The younger sister, 8, had severe pneumothorax intracranial hemorrhaging. She is on one vasopressor to maintain vital signs, whereas she needed three before Monday, a doctor said. The brother, 7, had only minor bruises and is resting at home.
POLITICS
Tsai’s holdings ris, Lai’s drop
President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) cash holdings increased by NT$3.53 million (US$111,815) to nearly NT$63 million last year, a Control Yuan asset declaration report published yesterday showed. Tsai had NT$62,981,136 in her bank accounts, the report dated Nov. 1 last year showed, up about NT$3.53 million from her November 2022 filing. She also declared part ownership of land in Taipei and New Taipei City. She declared NT$4.13 million in securities, including NT$1.1 million in Tong Dao Co, a company owned by her family, the report said. Tsai also leased land to Tong Dao for NT$90,000 per month. Meanwhile, Vice President William Lai’s (賴清德) assets declined by about NT$340,000 to NT$2.15 million, the report showed. Lai, the president-elect, declared ownership of a plot of land and a property in Tainan. He also owns a Toyota vehicle and NT$2.15 million in savings, dropping by about NT$340,000 from 2022.
ANOTHER EMERGES: The CWA yesterday said this year’s fourth storm of the typhoon season had formed in the South China Sea, but was not expected to affect Taiwan Tropical Storm Gaemi has intensified slightly as it heads toward Taiwan, where it is expected to affect the country in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, the 120km-radius storm was 800km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving at 9kph northwest, the agency said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued tonight at the earliest, it said, adding that the storm is projected to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday. Gaemi’s potential effect on Taiwan remains unclear, as that would depend on its direction, radius and intensity, forecasters said. Former Weather Forecast
As COVID-19 cases in Japan have been increasing for 10 consecutive weeks, people should get vaccinated before visiting the nation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said. The centers reported 773 hospitalizations and 124 deaths related to COVID-19 in Taiwan last week. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) on Tuesday said the number of weekly COVID-19 cases reported in Japan has been increasing since mid-May and surpassed 55,000 cases from July 8 to July 14. The average number of COVID-19 patients at Japan’s healthcare facilities that week was also 1.39 times that of the week before and KP.3 is the dominant
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) working group for Taiwan-related policies is likely to be upgraded to a committee-level body, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said. As Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is increasingly likely to upgrade the CCP’s Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, Taiwanese authorities should prepare by researching Xi and the CCP, the report said. At the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP, which ended on Thursday last week, the party set a target of 2029 for the completion of some tasks, meaning that Xi is likely preparing to
US-CHINA TRADE DISPUTE: Despite Beijing’s offer of preferential treatment, the lure of China has dimmed as Taiwanese and international investors move out Japan and the US have become the favored destinations for Taiwanese graduates as China’s attraction has waned over the years, the Ministry of Labor said. According to the ministry’s latest income and employment advisory published this month, 3,215 Taiwanese university graduates from the class of 2020 went to Japan, surpassing for the first time the 2,881 graduates who went to China. A total of 2,300 graduates from the class of 2021 went to the US, compared with the 2,262 who went to China, the document showed. The trend continued for the class of 2023, of whom 1,460 went to Japan, 1,334 went to