■ Diplomacy
US losing patience: official
A high-ranking official speaking on condition of anonymity yesterday said that Washington has warned Taiwan to pass the arms procurement package within six months, or else the US may lose interest in Taiwan's affairs. The official said that the US' acting National Security Council director for Asia Dennis Wilder and the US State Department's Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs revealed this position to Taiwan during Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-Pyng's (王金平) recent visit to the US. The US officials told Wang that people who have always taken Taiwan's side in cross-strait disputes are losing sympathy and are starting to doubt Taiwan's determination to defend itself.
■ Culture
Ma lauds traditional script
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has urged the UN to declare traditional Chinese characters a world cultural heritage, fearing they are fading into oblivion. At a meeting with Taiwanese in Geneva, Ma said the adoption by China of simplified characters has rendered them less and less recognizable in the Chinese-speaking world. Ma said he was barred from applying to the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization to preserve the traditional characters because Taiwan is not a UN member.
■ Diplomacy
`Hongbao' faux pas denied
Minister of Foreign Affairs James Huang (黃志芳) yesterday dismissed claims in the local media that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) insulted foreign dignitaries by giving red envelopes to foreign ambassadors and representatives on Thursday. Huang said the foreign dignitaries all responded very positively to the president's gesture. During a Lunar New Year gala on Thursday night, Chen offered each of the ambassadors and representatives a specially designed red envelope containing a NT$10 coin. Local media claimed yesterday that since older people give traditionally give red envelopes to young people, the action of giving red envelopes to foreign dignitaries acquires a condescending meaning.
■ Security
Airport security fails again
Premier Su Tseng-chang yesterday (蘇貞昌) ordered the creation of an inter-ministerial coordination mechanism to beef up the government's management of CKS International Airport, which recently saw a passenger slip through unstopped during customs inspection. Su instructed Minister without Portfolio Lin Si-yao (林錫耀) to get all the relevant authorities together to upgrade security and efficiency at the airport. Meanwhile, another passenger slipped through customs yesterday afternoon. Canadian Robert George flew to Taipei from Hong Kong in possession of an overdue passport and decided to make a run for the airport exit, according to a CNA report. He was caught as he tried to hail a taxi and deported last night.
■ Culture
Gifts overpackaged: EPA
The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) yesterday released the results of a survey showing that 70 percent of the Valentine's Day gifts sold locally come with excessive packaging. A total of 450 packaged gifts from five department stores were sampled for the survey, EPA officials said. Of 250 processed food products surveyed, less than 20 percent passed the inspection, while about half the 200 cosmetics products surveyed passed the inspection, the officials said.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
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