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.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit
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