■ SPORTS
Council moving south
The Sports Affairs Council, currently located in Taipei, is moving south and will start its operations in Kaohsiung beginning next month, council Deputy Chairman Lee Kao-hsiang (李高祥) said yesterday. The move is part of the administration's policy to relocate some government offices to the south to balance regional development and follows the Council of Agriculture's Fisheries Agency move to Kaohsiung late last year. The council will be relocated to the National Sports Training Center in Tsoying (左營), Kaohsiung City. Lee said the Cabinet had appropriated NT$28.37 million (US$735,400) for the relocation, including a monthly living allowance of NT$20,000 for each of the 114 staffers as compensation for the inconvenience.
■ POLITICS
KMT confirms nominations
The Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) highest decision-making body yesterday confirmed the nomination of Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) and KMT Legislator Tseng Yung-chuan (曾永權) for the positions of speaker and deputy speaker respectively. The party decided to support Wang's proposed re-election as speaker after it won a landslide victory in the legislative elections, and selected Tseng as its deputy speaker candidate via a straw poll on Monday. The KMT's Central Standing Committee also passed amendments for the regulations on the establishment of the party's integrity committee yesterday, expanding its scope by increasing the number of members from 11 to 15. KMT spokesman Huang Yu-cheng (黃玉振) said the party is seeking to include more professionals in the committee to prevent inter-party corruption.
■ DIPLOMACY
Amendment includes Taiwan
By a vote of 25-3, the WHO executive board yesterday passed a China-sponsored amendment to the International Health Regulations of 2005 that includes Taiwan in the global health framework in principle, Taiwan's representative to Geneva Shen Lyu-shun (沈呂巡) told CNA yesterday. Despite earlier media reports saying that China wanted to block Taiwan's representation in the health agreement with its draft amendment, Shen said that Taiwan "did not lose" as the "universal application" clause proposed by Taiwan's allies, also called the "Taiwan clause," was in the amendment. The issue of Taiwan's representation in the regulations had been taken seriously and fully debated by the board, Shen said.
■ POLITICS
Alleged gangster released
A campaign worker for Democratic Progressive Party legislator-elect Yu Tien (余天), alleged gangster Wang Ying-lan (王瑛嵐), was released yesterday on NT$100,000 (US$3,000) bail over his alleged involvement in a case of threatening the supporters of an opposition candidate during the legislative election campaign. Police suspected that Wang warned a borough warden, Chuang Chin-lung (莊金龍), an entertainer better known as Kao Chun (高群), and other wardens not to support Yu's opponent, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chu Chun-hsiao (朱俊曉), and not to perform at Chu's campaign rallies. Police said Wang told Chuang he would gather some gangsters at Chung's home to "drink tea." Yu defeated Chu by a narrow margin in the Jan. 12 legislative elections, and Chu said he would file a lawsuit seeking to annul Yu's victory.
Civil society groups yesterday protested outside the Legislative Yuan, decrying Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) efforts to pass three major bills that they said would seriously harm Taiwan’s democracy, and called to oust KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁). It was the second night of the three-day “Bluebird wintertime action” protests in Taipei, with organizers announcing that 8,000 people attended. Organized by Taiwan Citizen Front, the Economic Democracy Union (EDU) and a coalition of civil groups, about 6,000 people began a demonstration in front of KMT party headquarters in Taipei on Wednesday, organizers said. For the third day, the organizers asked people to assemble
Taipei is participating in Osaka’s Festival of Lights this year, with a 3m-tall bubble tea light installation symbolizing Taiwan’s bubble tea culture. The installation is designed as a bubble tea cup and features illustrations of Taipei’s iconic landmarks, such as Taipei 101, the Red House and North Gate, as well as soup dumplings and the matchmaking deity the Old Man Under the Moon (月下老人), affectionately known as Yue Lao (月老). Taipei and Osaka have collaborated closely on tourism and culture since Taipei first participated in the festival in 2018, the Taipei City Department of Information and Tourism said. In February, Osaka represented
Taiwanese professional baseball should update sports stadiums and boost engagement to enhance fans’ experience, Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) commissioner Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) in an interview on Friday. The league has urged Farglory Group and the Taipei City Government to improve the Taipei Dome’s outdated equipment, including relatively rudimentary television and sound systems, and poor technology, he said. The Tokyo Dome has markedly better television and sound systems, despite being 30 years old, because its managers continually upgraded its equipment, Tsai said. In contrast, the Taipei Dome lacked even a room for referees
POOR IMPLEMENTATION: Teachers welcomed the suspension, saying that the scheme disrupted school schedules, quality of learning and the milk market A policy to offer free milk to all school-age children nationwide is to be suspended next year due to multiple problems arising from implementation of the policy, the Executive Yuan announced yesterday. The policy was designed to increase the calcium intake of school-age children in Taiwan by drinking milk, as more than 80 percent drink less than 240ml per day. The recommended amount is 480ml. It was also implemented to help Taiwanese dairy farmers counter competition from fresh milk produced in New Zealand, which is to be imported to Taiwan tariff-free next year when the Agreement Between New Zealand and
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