■ EDUCATION
Tuition increases limited
Increases in tuition and miscellaneous fees at domestic universities will not exceed more than 2.88 percent for the academic year starting in September, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. Based on the rate, tuition and miscellaneous fees can rise between NT$327 and NT$1,928, according to different departments and universities, the ministry said in a statement. The announcement came amid reports that many universities were planning to apply to the ministry to raise fees by between 5 percent and 10 percent for the next academic year. Opposition legislators have expressed concern that the hikes would deal another blow to cash-strapped households already hurt by inflation. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Pan Meng-an (潘孟安) said a 5 percent hike would push public university tuition and miscellaneous fees into the range of NT$26,000 to NT$42,000 per semester and those of private universities to NT$45,000 to NT$74,000 per semester.
■ AID
Taiwanese pledge millions
Taiwanese people and firms pledged more than US$9 million in one night to help rebuild schools in China’s earthquake-hit region, China’s state press reported yesterday. The donations were made to a television show on Thursday evening aired to raise money for victims of the May 12 earthquake that devastated Sichuan Province and killed more than 69,000 people, Xinhua news agency said. Taiwanese and Chinese singers performed on the three-hour show, which also featured video clips. The report did not give details of the donors, other than to say they pledged a total of 64 million yuan (US$9.38 million) to rebuild the many schools that collapsed in the quake, killing thousands of students. By the end of last month Taiwanese had also donated 2,000 tonnes of cement, 100 satellite telephones, 100 tonnes of tents, sleeping bags, medical supplies and other relief materials, the report said, citing the Chinese government’s Taiwan Affairs Office.
■ FLOODING
Authorities to investigate
The Kaohsiung City Government will assess the city’s drainage system following flooding on Thursday, Kaohsiung City Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) said yesterday. Thursday’s torrential rains in central and southern Taiwan left many places in Kaohsiung flooded, with some low-lying areas submerged in knee-high rainwater for hours. The city received about 240mm of rainfall on Thursday, receiving up to 90mm in one hour. The drainage system is designed to handle 79mm per hour. Residents complained that a concrete wall built by the city government for dredging at Lotus Lake (蓮池潭), the city’s famous scenic spot, blocked the drainage facilities and turned out to be the major cause of the flooding. Chen said the city government’s Public Works Bureau and related authorities will investigate the reason for the flooding and if the investigation shows the cause was the concrete wall, the construction company that built it and the city government will take responsibility.
■ SPORTS
First lady for Paralympics?
Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) yesterday suggested that first lady Chow Mei-ching (周美青) lead the nation’s delegation to the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games, which will be held in September. After resigning as the head of the legal department at Mega International Commercial Bank, Chow decided to serve as honorary chairperson of Taiwan’s Red Cross Society.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was questioned by prosecutors for allegedly orchestrating an attack on a taxi driver after he was allegedly driven on a longer than necessary route in a car he disliked. The questioning at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office was ongoing as of press time last night. Police have recommended charges of attempted murder. The legally embattled actor — known for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代) — is under a separate investigation for allegedly using fake medical documents to evade mandatory military service. According to local media reports, police said Wang earlier last year ordered a
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
President William Lai (賴清德) should protect Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), and stop supporting domestic strife and discord, former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) wrote on Facebook yesterday. US President Donald Trump and TSMC on Monday jointly announced that the company would invest an additional US$100 billion over the next few years to expand its semiconductor manufacturing operations in the US. The TSMC plans have promoted concern in Taiwan that it would effectively lead to the chipmaking giant becoming Americanized. The Lai administration lacks tangible policies to address concerns that Taiwan might follow in Ukraine’s footsteps, Ma wrote. Instead, it seems to think it could
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
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