■ SOCIETY
Chinese gets extended stay
The Mainland Affairs Council agreed yesterday to extend the period of stay for a Chinese national who requested political asylum in Taiwan two days ago. During a news conference on Monday, Wu Yalin (吳亞林), who arrived in Taiwan with a group of Chinese tourists on Dec. 27, asked the government to grant him asylum. Wu said he was wanted by Chinese authorities for his alleged role in the distribution of a Falun Gong book titled Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party (九評共產黨). Council officials said the council had granted Wu "a longer period" of stay on special humanitarian considerations. As to his request for political asylum, they said no decision would be made until all government agencies involved in the matter had met.
■ DIPLOMACY
MOFA praises Solomons
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement yesterday to congratulate the Solomon Islands for its peaceful transfer of power, saying that Taiwan would continue to work with the new government under the principles of reciprocity and mutual benefit. The statement said relations between Taipei and Honiara were expected to remain steady as Solomon Islands Prime Minister Derek Sikua has been friendly toward Taiwan, while his deputy, Fred Fono, and his foreign affairs and trade minister, William Haomae, have been on good terms with Taipei. President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) telephoned Sikua on Thursday to congratulate him on his victory. The ministry said Taiwan would cooperate with Australia and New Zealand to support political and economic development and social stability in the Solomon Islands.
■ ENVIRONMENT
Tainan tackles idling cars
Tainan City became the nation's first city on Tuesday to ban idling vehicles, threatening fines of as much as NT$2,000 for drivers leaving their engine running for more than three minutes when their vehicle is not in use. The anti-idling policy includes fines of NT$500 for motorcycles, NT$1,000 for small automobiles and NT$2,000 for large automobiles. Drivers who try to evade, interfere with or refuse inspections will face a fine ranging from NT$500 to NT$2,000. Inspectors said that Tainan residents were mostly aware of the policy, but drivers from other cities and counties visiting the city seemed unaware that they had to shut down their engine when making a stop lasting more than three minutes.
■ ENVIRONMENT
COA wants more trees
The Council of Agriculture said yesterday that it would promote a tree-planting campaign to help increase the ratio of green land. Council Chairman Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) made the announcement at a year-end news conference and expressed the hope that each person in the country would plant at least one tree during his or her lifetime. Su said that if 10 million people answered the call within five years, the amount of green land could increase by 20,000 hectares, bringing the green land coverage ratio up 0.5 percent to reach 59.09 percent. The tree-planting campaign was seen as a symbol of people's commitment to the earth and the development of a relationship with the land, he said. Su said the council would coordinate with the National Property Administration and Taiwan Sugar Co, as well as with local governments, for land contributions for the project.
■ SOCIETY
Party organizer questioned
A police officer confirmed yesterday that the organizer of a New Year's Eve party at which male dancers in police uniform stripped on stage had been summoned for questioning over the incident. The officer, from the Xinyi precinct of the Taipei Police Department, said civilians who don police uniforms in public might be committing the crime of wearing official ranks and emblems, which is punishable with a fine of up to NT$500, according to the Criminal Code (刑法). The officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said his office has asked Jason Tang (唐志中), organizer of the party, to report to the branch for questioning. Videotapes allegedly taken at the party show six male dancers wearing police uniforms dancing with scantily clad female dancers and removing their clothes down to a G-string.
■ SOCIETY
Lotto winner gives NT$26m
A lottery jackpot winner in Taichung City has become the biggest donor in the country's lottery history after donating NT$26 million (US$801,500) to two charitable organizations. Taiwan Lottery Co, a subsidiary of Chinatrust Financial Holding Co, said the anonymous winner, a 23-year-old office worker, bought 10 sets of numbers on Dec. 18 from a lottery store in Taichung and hit a jackpot of NT$320 million. The lucky man asked Taiwan Lottery president Joy Huang (黃瓊儀) to donate NT$25 million to the "Light Up the Fire of Life" fundraising campaign and NT$1 million to the Children Charity Association on his behalf. He also asked Huang to give NT$60,000 to the owner of the lottery stand that sold him the winning ticket.
Death row inmate Huang Lin-kai (黃麟凱), who was convicted for the double murder of his former girlfriend and her mother, is to be executed at the Taipei Detention Center tonight, the Ministry of Justice announced. Huang, who was a military conscript at the time, was convicted for the rape and murder of his ex-girlfriend, surnamed Wang (王), and the murder of her mother, after breaking into their home on Oct. 1, 2013. Prosecutors cited anger over the breakup and a dispute about money as the motives behind the double homicide. This is the first time that Minister of Justice Cheng Ming-chien (鄭銘謙) has
BITTERLY COLD: The inauguration ceremony for US president-elect Donald Trump has been moved indoors due to cold weather, with the new venue lacking capacity A delegation of cross-party lawmakers from Taiwan, led by Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), for the inauguration of US president-elect Donald Trump, would not be able to attend the ceremony, as it is being moved indoors due to forecasts of intense cold weather in Washington tomorrow. The inauguration ceremony for Trump and US vice president-elect JD Vance is to be held inside the Capitol Rotunda, which has a capacity of about 2,000 people. A person familiar with the issue yesterday said although the outdoor inauguration ceremony has been relocated, Taiwan’s legislative delegation has decided to head off to Washington as scheduled. The delegation
TRANSPORT CONVENIENCE: The new ticket gates would accept a variety of mobile payment methods, and buses would be installed with QR code readers for ease of use New ticketing gates for the Taipei metro system are expected to begin service in October, allowing users to swipe with cellphones and select credit cards partnered with Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC), the company said on Tuesday. TRTC said its gates in use are experiencing difficulty due to their age, as they were first installed in 2007. Maintenance is increasingly expensive and challenging as the manufacturing of components is halted or becoming harder to find, the company said. Currently, the gates only accept EasyCard, iPass and electronic icash tickets, or one-time-use tickets purchased at kiosks, the company said. Since 2023, the company said it
Another wave of cold air would affect Taiwan starting from Friday and could evolve into a continental cold mass, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Temperatures could drop below 10°C across Taiwan on Monday and Tuesday next week, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said. Seasonal northeasterly winds could bring rain, he said. Meanwhile, due to the continental cold mass and radiative cooling, it would be cold in northern and northeastern Taiwan today and tomorrow, according to the CWA. From last night to this morning, temperatures could drop below 10°C in northern Taiwan, it said. A thin coat of snow
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