ECONOMY
Taiwan 12th in gold reserves
Taiwan ranked 12th in global gold reserves in the first quarter of the year, according to a Forbes report, citing data from the World Gold Council (WGC). Taiwan had 423 tonnes of gold reserves, equivalent to about US$28 billion, Forbes reported on Friday last week. The US had the most gold reserves in the world, with almost as much as the combined total of the next three countries on the list, the magazine reported. According to the WGC data, the US had 8,133 tonnes of gold reserves, worth about US$579 billion. It was followed by Germany with 3,352 tonnes (US$238 billion), Italy with 2,451 tonnes (US$174 billion) and France with 2,436 tonnes (US$173 billion). Rounding out the top 10 list were Russia, China, Switzerland, Japan, India and the Netherlands, the WGC data showed. Gold reserves are critical for the economic stability of a country, acting as a reliable store of value, particularly during financial uncertainties, the magazine said.
Photo: Bloomberg
SEISMICITY
Two quakes jolt Hualien
An earthquake, which measured 4.8 on the Richter scale, struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 9:27am yesterday, followed by a magnitude 4.4 earthquake a minute later, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the first earthquake was at sea, 21.2km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 5.4km, CWA data showed. The temblor’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, was highest in Hualien County, where it measured 4 on the nation’s 7-tier intensity scale. The second earthquake’s epicenter was also at sea, 21.2km south-southwest of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 6.1km. Its intensity was highest in Hualien County, where it measured 4. No immediate damage or injuries were reported.
CRIME
Police investigate death
Yilan County police are investigating the case of an absconded Thai migrant worker who died and whose body was allegedly dumped at a dam last week by his employer, wife and two friends. Police said it launched an investigation after it was contacted on Tuesday by the Thailand Trade and Economic Office. Relatives of the man, who was in his 30s, contacted the office after being notified that he had died, police said. The relatives, who live in Thailand, provided information including the license plate number of the man’s boss. Police summoned the employer, surnamed Lin (林), who admitted the man died on Monday afternoon last week. According to police, Lin said he did not report the death because he had been employing the man, who had illegally overstayed his visa. Lin said he, along with the man’s wife and two Thai friends, disposed of the man’s body at a dam. The man’s wife said he had become ill recently and did not seek medical attention because of his undocumented status, police said. After the man’s death, the wife contacted Lin to ask for help and they decided to dispose of his body, it said. Based on Lin’s account, police were able to locate the man’s body, which did not have any signs of external injury. Police are waiting for an autopsy to determine cause of death. They have referred Lin, the man’s wife and two friends to Yilan prosecutors on suspicion of abandoning of a corpse. Lin would also face penalties for illegally employing a foreign worker, police said.
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
MULTIPRONGED APPROACH: China has sought to pressure Palau across a number of fronts, but the island nation has staunchly resisted overtures to ditch Taiwan Palau has been firm in backing Taiwan despite Chinese pressure that uses tourism economics, cyberattacks and criminal infiltration as tools to threaten the Pacific ally into renouncing its recognition of Taiwan as a sovereign state. The Presidential Office yesterday announced that Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) would visit Palau from Saturday to Wednesday next week at the invitation of Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr. Whipps in April said in an interview that China had outspokenly asked Palau to “denounce Taiwan.” “And we have said: ‘We have no enemies, but nobody tells us who our friends are,’” he said. Whipps has told reporters multiple times
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