■ POLITICS
KMT to hold candidate polls
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) said yesterday it would determine the candidates for the Taitung and Taichung legislative by-elections via polls. The party will hold polls from Friday to Sunday and announce the result next Monday. KMT Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) will approve the nominees on Nov. 11, the KMT said. The Taitung legislative by-election is to be held after former KMT legislator Justin Huang (黃健庭) resigned on Oct. 15 to run in the Taitung County commissioner election. Taitung County Commissioner Kuang Li-chen (鄺麗貞) may also join the race. The Taichung legislative by-election will be held to fill the seat left vacant by former KMT legislator Chiang Lien-fu (江連福), whose election status was annulled over vote-buying.
■ SOCIETY
Poppy Day registration
People interested in taking part in the annual Remembrance Day Event on Nov. 15 and the banquet on the evening of Nov. 14 should register with the British Trade and Cultural Office (BTCO) in Taipei, organizers said. The annual service will be held at the former Kinkaseki prisoner of war camp in Jinguashih (金瓜石), Taipei County. Bus transportation will be available. Reservations for both the banquet and bus can be made by calling Clare Lear at the BTCO on (02) 8758-2056 or by e-mail: Clare.Lear@fco.gov.uk.
■ HEALTH
Vaccines may come soon
Free cervical cancer vaccines might be available for young Aboriginal and low-income women by the end of this year, the Department of Health said. “As long as the policy is approved by the legislature’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee, it can be implemented starting in December,” Bureau of Health Promotion Deputy Director Chao Kun-yu (趙坤郁) said in response to complaints about a delay in implementing the policy.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
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