■ TOURISM
PRC bank chief visits
People's Bank of China Deputy Governor Su Ning (蘇寧) arrived in Taiwan yesterday, leading a 22-member delegation to attend a seminar on the development of bills finance markets on both sides of the Strait. Su was scheduled to arrive last week for the seminar but postponed the trip because of the Dalai Lama's visit to Taiwan from Aug. 30 through Friday. Su said at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport that the Dalai Lama's visit to Taiwan was “regrettable” because it had “adversely affected peace in the Strait.” Nonetheless, Su said, his presence in Taipei shows that Beijing was still willing to make every effort to maintain the positive momentum of cross-strait relations. Aside from attending the seminar, which is starting today, Su will visit financial and banking institutions and travel to central and southern Taiwan during his stay.
■ SPORTS
Prizes to be auctioned
The Kaohsiung Organizing Committee said yesterday it would auction 7,803 unclaimed prizes from the World Games lucky draws and donate the proceeds to Typhoon Morakot relief efforts. The unclaimed prizes include the grand prize, a house, and the first prize, an imported car, said Emily Hsu (??, chief executive officer of the World Games 2009 Kaohsiung Organizing Committee. The Kaohsiung City Government is conducting a comprehensive review of the games and will publish the results when completed, Hsu said. The auction of the unclaimed prizes will be held at the end of this month after the review is completed, Hsu said. Of the 8,573 prizes that were up for grabs in the World Games draws, only 770 were claimed, Hsu said.
■ FISHING
Sierra Leone to deport 11
A court in Sierra Leone on Friday ordered the deportation of 11 fishermen from Taiwan after their boats were intercepted in the west African nation's exclusive zone, immigration officials said on Sunday. Each of the men was fined US$1,000 and were to be deported yesterday, the officials said on condition of anonymity. The two trawlers carrying the 11 men were caught in late July by a joint Sierra Leone Navy and US Coast Guard team patrolling the country's territorial waters. US Ambassador June Carter Perry recently said at an event in the capital, Freetown, that illegal fishing, drug trafficking and the smuggling of commodities were costing Sierra Leone US$100 million a year. “An enforcement of commercial fishing regulations could be major sources of duly needed income for the government and people of Sierra Leone,” she said.
■ TOURISM
Sun Moon Lake activities
A series of promotional activities will be launched to attract visitors to Sun Moon Lake as mounting concern about a possible swine flu outbreak takes a toll on the region's tourist industry, an official said yesterday. Tseng Kuo-chi (曾國基), director of the Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area Administration, said that average hotel occupancy in the region fell 15 percent year-on-year in the second half of last month. The activities will include a free lakeside concert by renowned violinist Lin Cho-liang (林昭亮) tomorrow and a mass cross-lake swimming contest on Sept. 20. On Oct. 2 and Oct. 3, fireworks shows will be staged near Sun Moon Lake to mark Mid-Autumn Festival. An international marathon will be held on Oct. 11 at Sun Moon Lake, with 8,000 athletes and cheerleaders from home and abroad expected to participate.
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Friday condemned Chinese and Russian authorities for escalating regional tensions, citing Chinese warplanes crossing the Taiwan Strait’s median line and joint China-Russia military activities breaching South Korea’s air defense identification zone (KADIZ) over the past two days. A total of 30 Chinese warplanes crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait on Thursday and Friday, entering Taiwan’s northern and southwestern airspace in coordination with 15 naval vessels and three high-altitude balloons, the MAC said in a statement. The Chinese military also carried out another “joint combat readiness patrol” targeting Taiwan on Thursday evening, the MAC said. On
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday confirmed that Chinese students visiting Taiwan at the invitation of the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation were almost all affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). During yesterday’s meeting convened by the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) asked whether the visit was a way to spread China’s so-called “united front” rhetoric, to which MAC Deputy Ministry Shen You-chung (沈有忠) responded with the CCP comment. The MAC noticed that the Chinese individuals visiting Taiwan, including those in sports, education, or religion, have had increasingly impressive backgrounds, demonstrating that the
MILITARY EXERCISES: China is expected to conduct more drills in the region after President William Lai’s office announced he would stopover in Hawaii and Guam China is likely to launch military drills in the coming days near Taiwan, using President William Lai’s (賴清德) upcoming trip to the Pacific and scheduled US transit as a pretext, regional security officials said. Lai is to begin a visit to Taipei’s three diplomatic allies in the Pacific on Saturday, and sources told Reuters he was planning stops in Hawaii and the US territory of Guam in a sensitive trip shortly after the US presidential election. Lai’s office has yet to confirm details of what are officially “stop-overs” in the US, but is expected to do so shortly before he departs, sources
Tasa Meng Corp (采盟), which runs Taiwan Duty Free, could be fined up to NT$1 million (US$30,737) after the owner and employees took center stage in a photograph with government officials and the returning Premier12 baseball champions at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Monday evening. When Taiwan’s national baseball team arrived home fresh from their World Baseball Softball Confederation Premier12 championship victory in Tokyo, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) was at the airport with Chinese Professional Baseball League commissioner Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) to welcome back the team. However, after Hsiao and Tsai took a photograph with the team, Tasa Meng chairwoman Ku
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