TRAVEL
Passport drops in ranking
Taiwan’s passport was ranked the 72nd-most powerful globally, down three spots from last year, according to an annual index published by US consulting firm Nomad Capitalist. The index ranks 199 countries based on five factors: visa-free travel, which carries a 50 percent weighting; taxation (20 percent weighing); and perception, dual citizenship and personal freedom (10 percent weighing each). Taiwan’s passport scored 83 points on the index, which was topped by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) passport with 110.5 points. “This is largely due to recent changes allowing foreigners to apply for dual citizenship, which, combined with the travel freedoms afforded by a UAE passport, plus the country’s business-friendly environment and enviable tax system,” the firm said. Luxembourg and Switzerland were tied for second, followed by Ireland and Portugal in a tie. South Korea ranked 21st, Singapore 30th, Japan 38th and China 128th.
Photo: CNA
CULTURE
Opera singer dies at 72
Taiwanese opera singer Chen Mei-yun (陳美雲) passed away on Saturday night after a fall, the Chen Meiyun Opera Troupe (陳美雲歌劇團) said yesterday. She was 72 years old. Minister of Culture Shih Che (史哲) on Facebook thanked Chen for dedicating her life to Taiwanese opera, saying the energy and passion she brought to the stage were touching. Chen specialized in playing xiaosheng (小生, young male leads). She established her own troupe in 1979 to promote the traditional art form, and has won several awards and performed at the Presidential Office Building.
CULTURE
Events to celebrate troupe
The Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute on Saturday launched a series of special screenings to honor the Taiwanese contemporary dance troupe Cloud Gate Dance Theatre, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. The screenings are to run through April 2 at the institute’s headquarters, featuring motion picture versions of the five works premiered by the dance troupe from 1994 to 2020. Five Asian movies have also been selected to correspond to Cloud Gate’s five works during the four-week program, including Indian Bengali-language drama The World of Apu by director Satyajit Ray, Poetry by South Korea’s Lee Chang-dong and Your Face by Taiwan’s Tsai Ming-liang (蔡明亮), which won Best Documentary at the Golden Horse Awards. The troupe is to tour Taiwan as part of the celebrations starting next month, performing its 1978 work Legacy curated by its founder, Lin Hwai-min (林懷民).
CRIME
Suspected IEDs found
Police on Feb. 25 detained a motorcyclist for allegedly possessing narcotics and “possible” improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on his vehicle, the Taipei City Police Department said yesterday. The 31-year-old suspect, surnamed Yang (楊), was found with two bags of amphetamine, five objects believed to be IEDs and 150 steel balls used in the manufacture of such devices, police said, adding that officers found the objects after pulling Yang over because he looked suspicious. Yang, who was unable to explain why he had the illegal items in his possession, told police he made them out of curiosity. Prosecutors might press charges based on the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act (毒品危害防制條例) and the Controlling Guns, Ammunition and Knives Act (槍砲彈藥刀械管制條例), police said. If the objects are confirmed to be IEDs, Yang could face at least seven years in jail and a fine of up to NT$30 million (US$979,528).
Theaters and institutions in Taiwan have received 28 threatening e-mails, including bomb threats, since a documentary critical of China began being screened across the nation last month, the National Security Bureau said yesterday. The actions are part of China’s attempts to undermine Taiwan’s sovereignty, it said. State Organs (國有器官) documents allegations that Chinese government officials engage in organ harvesting and other illegal activities. From last month to Friday last week, 28 incidents have been reported of theaters or institutions receiving threats, including bomb and shooting threats, if they did not stop showing the documentary, the bureau said. Although the threats were not carried out,
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
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