SOCIETY
Moomins star in lantern festival
The Taichung City Government has chosen the Moomins to be featured in the main lantern of the Central Taiwan Lantern Festival, the city government announced yesterday. The city government yesterday displayed a 21m Moomin at Citizen Square, saying it would be on display until the festival. The main lantern area at Central Park would feature an immersive “Aurora Light Show,” created with Moomins as the theme, it said, adding that the lights would be on from Lunar New Year’s Eve on Feb. 15 until March 3. Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) also revealed a small lantern featuring a Moomin riding a bicycle. The lantern fits the Year of the Horse, she said, referencing the literal meaning of the Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese) term for bicycle — thih-be (鐵馬, “iron horse”).
Photo: Su Chin-feng, Taipei Times
RETAIL
Costco to raise fees
Costco Taiwan yesterday said it would raise its membership fees for the first time in 10 years, with the changes to take effect on April 1. The annual cost of Gold Star, Business and Business Add-on memberships would rise to a uniform price of NT$1,500 from NT$1,350, NT$1,150 and NT$900 respectively, the company said. Executive membership fees would remain unchanged, and exclusive services and rebates of up to NT$30,000 — the highest in Asia and the second-highest globally — would be maintained, it said. Each Business Add-on membership would still include one free household card, allowing entry for one cardholder and two others, it said. The company last adjusted its membership fees in 2016, it said.
DIPLOMACY
EU delegation in Taiwan
A 10-member European Parliament delegation led by European Taiwan Friendship Group Chairman Michael Gahler is visiting Taiwan from Sunday through Friday, during which they would meet with President William Lai (賴清德) and other senior officials to exchange views on issues of mutual concern, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. The delegation made up mainly of European People’s Party members is the first group from the European Parliament to visit Taiwan this year, the ministry said in a statement. The delegates would meet with academics and non-governmental organizations on countering disinformation and cyberattacks, whole-of-society resilience, Taiwan-EU economic cooperation, and Indo-Pacific and cross-strait issues, it said. The group would also visit Kinmen County, it added.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Puma Shen images removed
The Ministry of Digital Affairs on Sunday said that satellite images of Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Puma Shen’s (沈伯洋) home and workplace have been removed from social media. A user of China’s Sina Weibo site uploaded the images on Thursday along with threats to have Shen arrested for “secessionism.” The post was circulated by Chinese media outlets. The ministry condemned the post and its promotion as “digital coercion,” accusing Chinese media of maliciously exposing a Taiwanese lawmaker’s home and workplace on platforms including Facebook and YouTube. The ministry said it immediately requested platform operators to remove the posts, adding that Meta and Google on Sunday reported that images, text and videos related to the posts had been removed. Using social media to threaten a lawmaker in a democratic country crosses a clear line, the ministry said.
The Grand Hotel Taipei on Saturday confirmed that its information system had been illegally accessed and expressed its deepest apologies for the concern it has caused its customers, adding that the issue is being investigated by the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau. The hotel said that on Tuesday last week, it had discovered an external illegal intrusion into its information system. An initial digital forensic investigation confirmed that parts of the system had been accessed, it said, adding that the possibility that some customer data were stolen and leaked could not be ruled out. The actual scope and content of the affected data
‘LIKE-MINDED PARTNER’: Tako van Popta said it would be inappropriate to delay signing the deal with Taiwan because of China, adding he would promote the issue Canadian senators have stressed Taiwan’s importance for international trade and expressed enthusiasm for ensuring the Taiwan-Canada trade cooperation framework agreement is implemented this year. Representative to Canada Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) in an interview with the Central News Agency (CNA) said he was increasingly uneasy about Ottawa’s delays in signing the agreement, especially as Ottawa has warmed toward Beijing. There are “no negotiations left. Not only [is it] initialed, we have three versions of the text ready: English, French and Mandarin,” Tseng said. “That tells you how close we are to the final signature.” Tseng said that he hoped Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday bestowed one of Taiwan’s highest honors on Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) Ambassador Andrea Clare Bowman in recognition of her contributions to bilateral ties. “By conferring the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon on Ambassador Bowman today, I want to sincerely thank her, on behalf of the Taiwanese people, for her outstanding contribution to deepening diplomatic ties between Taiwan and SVG,” Lai said at a ceremony held at the Presidential Office in Taipei. He noted that Bowman became SVG’s first ambassador to Taiwan in 2019 and
POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT: Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the meeting next month, Japanese sources said The holding of a Japan-US leaders’ meeting ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to China is positive news for Taiwan, former Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association representative Hiroyasu Izumi said yesterday. After the Liberal Democratic Party’s landslide victory in Japan’s House of Representatives election, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is scheduled to visit the US next month, where she is to meet with Trump ahead of the US president’s planned visit to China from March 31 to April 2 for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the
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