Songkran Festival to be held on Sunday
The annual Songkran Festival, better known as the Water-Splashing Holiday, will be held at Taoyuan County Stadium on Sunday. Thousands of migrant workers from all over Taiwan are expected to take part in the event celebrating the beginning of the Thai New Year. It is also a day observed by many Southeast Asian cultures.
The Thailand Trade and Economic Office said that as the county has the largest population of Thai workers in Taiwan, the office had worked with the county government to host the festival. Everybody is invited to attend and sample Thai culture.
Aside from the traditional water-splashing, the event will also feature live music and dances performed by troupes from Thailand.
Documentary on Catholic nun premieres
A documentary of the life of Marjorie Ingeleiv Bly will premiere tomorrow in Penghu to commemorate the first anniversary of her passing and show her lifelong dedication to helping lepers in Taiwan. The American Catholic nun came to Taiwan in the 1950s during the peak of leprosy in the country. As a young woman, Bly chose to settle in Penghu, which at the time lacked medical care. The film, shot by Good TV, took one year to make and chronicles Bly’s life both growing up in the US and her work in Taiwan.
Tomorrow’s event is co-sponsored by the Penghu County Government, the Taiwan Lutheran Church and the United Association of Christian Groups in Penghu. For tickets, contact secretary-general of the association Lin Pei-chun (林姵君) at (06) 972-0414.
Hong Kong-based American singer-songwriter Khalil Fong (方大同) has passed away at the age of 41, Fong’s record label confirmed yesterday. “With unwavering optimism in the face of a relentless illness for five years, Khalil Fong gently and gracefully bid farewell to this world on the morning of February 21, 2025, stepping into the next realm of existence to carry forward his purpose and dreams,” Fu Music wrote on the company’s official Facebook page. “The music and graphic novels he gifted to the world remain an eternal testament to his luminous spirit, a timeless treasure for generations to come,” it said. Although Fong’s
China’s military buildup in the southern portion of the first island chain poses a serious threat to Taiwan’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply, a defense analyst warned. Writing in a bulletin on the National Defense and Security Research’s Web site on Thursday, Huang Tsung-ting (黃宗鼎) said that China might choke off Taiwan’s energy supply without it. Beginning last year, China entrenched its position in the southern region of the first island chain, often with Russia’s active support, he said. In May of the same year, a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) force consisting of a Type 054A destroyer, Type 055 destroyer,
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
POLICY UNCHANGED? Despite Trump’s remarks, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio assured that US policy toward Taiwan has remained consistent since the 1970s US President Donald Trump on Wednesday again refused to make clear his stance on protecting Taiwan from a hypothetical takeover by China during his presidency. Asked by a reporter during a Cabinet meeting whether it was his policy that China would never take Taiwan by force while he is president, Trump declined to give a definitive answer. “I never comment on that,” he said. “I don’t comment on it because I don’t want to ever put myself in that position.” Trump also reiterated that he has a “great relationship” with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and said that Washington welcomes good relations with