■ Indonesia
Taipei ends Ramadan
Indonesians across Taiwan yesterday flocked to celebrations in Taipei, organized by the Taipei City Government's department of labor and the Council of Labor's bureau of employment and vocational training, to mark the end of the Ramadan fast on Friday. Lasting for a month, the Ramadan fast occurs on the ninth month of the Muslim calendar. During this month Muslims fast and refrain from sex during the daylight hours, eating only small meals in the evening. The head of the department of labor, Shih Yu-ling (師豫玲) said that out of respect for all religions, the event was organized to provide some spiritual relief following a month's abstinence.
PHOTO: LIN CHENG-KUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
■ Environment
Make laws: conference
Participants of a conference on environmen-tal protection that was commissioned by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) yesterday concluded that there was an urgent need for laws controlling the emission of greenhouse gases. The 20-person committee which included lawyers, teachers, laborers, accountants and designers, said that steps to achieve the goals of the protocol included changes in the daily habits of the public. EPA Minister Chang Kuo-lung (張國龍) said that although discussion of draft laws regarding the control of gas emissions has taken place many times internally, it was important to consult professionals from all walks of life to make the laws more complete and to have what he called a "biting force."
■ Diplomacy
Senegal goes after billions
Senegal received more than NT5 billion (US$148.8 million) in aid from Taiwan before switching its diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing, President Chen Shui-bian was quoted as saying yesterday. Revelation of the amount, which Chen said was paid over the past 10 years, surprised the foreign ministry because the amount of Taiwan's foreign aid has long been confidential, a Chinese-language newspaper reported. Taiwan's foreign ministry spokesman Michel Lu declined to comment.
■ Human rights
Mothers nurse grievance
Thirty mothers gathered yesterday to express their hope of winning some respect for mothers who wish to breastfeed in public places. The mothers, organized by the Taiwan Breastfeeding Association, gathered in the plaza near the Taipei Story House in Yuanshan where they breastfed their infants during a picnic-like event to send a message to the gallery and restaurant, as well as the Taiwanese public, that mothers should be allowed to breastfeed their babies in public or in the workplace. The mothers chose the lawn outside the Taipei Story House to breastfeed after management kicked a breastfeeding mother out of the restaurant last month in the name of "maintaining the place's decency and professionalism." Taiwan Breastfeeding Association Chairwoman Chen Yi-chun and the mothers appealed to the Taiwanese public for a free breastfeeding environ-ment in an effort to protect the human rights of breastfeeding mothers and their babies.
INFRASTRUCTURE: Work on the second segment, from Kaohsiung to Pingtung, is expected to begin in 2028 and be completed by 2039, the railway bureau said Planned high-speed rail (HSR) extensions would blanket Taiwan proper in four 90-minute commute blocs to facilitate regional economic and livelihood integration, Railway Bureau Deputy Director-General Yang Cheng-chun (楊正君) said in an interview published yesterday. A project to extend the high-speed rail from Zuoying Station in Kaohsiung to Pingtung County’s Lioukuaicuo Township (六塊厝) is the first part of the bureau’s greater plan to expand rail coverage, he told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). The bureau’s long-term plan is to build a loop to circle Taiwan proper that would consist of four sections running from Taipei to Hualien, Hualien to
The Civil Aviation Administration yesterday said that it is considering punishments for China Airlines (CAL) and Starlux Airlines for making hard landings and overworking their cabin crew when the nation was hit by Typhoon Kong-rey in October last year. The civil aviation authority launched an investigation after media reported that many airlines were forced to divert their flights to different airports or go around after failing to land when the typhoon affected the nation on Oct. 30 and 31 last year. The agency reviewed 503 flights dispatched by Taiwanese airlines during those two days, as well as weather data, flight hours
Three people have had their citizenship revoked after authorities confirmed that they hold Chinese ID cards, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said yesterday. Two of the three people were featured in a recent video about Beijing’s “united front” tactics by YouTuber Pa Chiung (八炯) and Taiwanese rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源), including Su Shi-en (蘇士恩), who displayed a Chinese ID card in the video, and taekwondo athlete Lee Tung-hsien (李東憲), who mentioned he had obtained a Chinese ID card in a telephone call with Chen, Liang told the council’s weekly news conference. Lee, who reportedly worked in
A relatively large earthquake may strike within the next two weeks, following a magnitude 5.2 temblor that shook Taitung County this morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. An earthquake struck at 8:18am today 10.2km west of Taitung County Hall in Taitung City at a relatively shallow depth of 6.5km, CWA data showed. The largest intensity of 4 was felt in Taitung and Pingtung counties, which received an alert notice, while areas north of Taichung did not feel any shaking, the CWA said. The earthquake was the result of the collision between the Philippine Plate and the Eurasian Plate, the agency said, adding
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