■POLITICS
No ‘push’ for raise
The Presidential Office denied yesterday that it had pushed for raises for the secretaries-general of the Presidential Office and the National Security Council (NSC). Presidential Office Spokesman Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦) said that Presidential Office Secretary-General Chan Chun-po (詹春柏) and NSC Secretary-General Su Chi (蘇起) would respect the legislature’s decision on whether to increase their salaries. The legislature is reviewing a bill on political appointees’ salaries. Minister of Civil Service Chang Che-chen (張哲琛) said the raises were necessary because the salaries for the two positions were equal with those of the heads of other government branches. The legislature resolved in 2004 to lower the pay of the Presidential Office NSC secretaries-general to the level of government ministers.
■POLITICS
Ma to sign UN covenants
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is scheduled to sign two UN covenants tomorrow, the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy said yesterday. The foundation is planning to hold a news conference today to urge the Ma administration to use the international conventions in amending the controversial Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法). The amendments to the act have raised tensions between the ruling and opposition parties, with the opposition vowing to block the amendments on the legislative floor. Ma supports the proposal but has asked the Cabinet to reduce the fine for violators. At Ma’s behest, the legislature on March 31 ratified the UN’s International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights — 42 years after the nation signed them. The legislature also approved the Act Governing Execution of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (公民與政治權利國際公約及經濟社會文化權利國際公約施行法), making the two covenants legally binding. The Presidential Office has blamed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the delay in signing the two covenants.
■PETROLEUM
CPC plans expansion
State-owned oil refiner CPC Corp is expected to further cooperation with the China-based Chinese National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC), which will expand the range of their oil exploration ventures to cover the northern continental areas of the South China Sea, Ministry of Economic Affairs officials said yesterday. The two sides reached a consensus on the issue in March during a visit to Beijing by CPC executives, and are likely to sign the contract by the end of this year, the officials said.
An undersea cable to Penghu County has been severed, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said today, with a Chinese-funded ship suspected of being responsible. It comes just a month after a Chinese ship was suspected of severing an undersea cable north of Keelung Harbor. The National Communications and Cyber Security Center received a report at 3:03am today from Chunghwa Telecom that the No. 3 cable from Taiwan to Penghu was severed 14.7km off the coast of Tainan, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) upon receiving a report from Chunghwa Telecom began to monitor the Togolese-flagged Hong Tai (宏泰)
EVA Air is prohibiting the use of portable chargers on board all flights starting from Saturday, while China Airlines is advising passengers not to use them, following the lead of South Korean airlines. Current regulations prohibit portable chargers and lithium batteries from check-in luggage and require them to be properly packed in carry-on baggage, EVA Air said. To improve onboard safety, portable chargers and spare lithium batteries would be prohibited from use on all fights starting on Saturday, it said. Passengers are advised to fully charge electronic devices before boarding and use the AC and USB charging outlets at their seat, it said. South
WAR SIMULATION: The developers of the board game ‘2045’ consulted experts and analysts, and made maps based on real-life Chinese People’s Liberation Army exercises To stop invading Chinese forces seizing Taiwan, board gamer Ruth Zhong chooses the nuclear option: Dropping an atomic bomb on Taipei to secure the nation’s freedom and her victory. The Taiwanese board game 2045 is a zero-sum contest of military strategy and individual self-interest that puts players on the front lines of a simulated Chinese attack. Their battlefield game tactics would determine the theoretical future of Taiwan, which in the real world faces the constant threat of a Chinese invasion. “The most interesting part of this game is that you have to make continuous decisions based on the evolving situation,
Actor Lee Wei (李威) was released on bail on Monday after being named as a suspect in the death of a woman whose body was found in the meeting place of a Buddhist group in Taipei’s Daan District (大安) last year, prosecutors said. Lee, 44, was released on NT$300,000 (US$9,148) bail, while his wife, surnamed Chien (簡), was released on NT$150,000 bail after both were summoned to give statements regarding the woman’s death. The home of Lee, who has retreated from the entertainment business in the past few years, was also searched by prosecutors and police earlier on Monday. Lee was questioned three
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