WEATHER
Unstable weather forecast
A front north of Taiwan is forecast to bring unstable weather to the country for a week, the Central Weather Bureau said yesterday. Much of Taiwan could see intermittent rain or thundershowers in the next few days, with parts of the country likely to experience heavy or torrential rain, the bureau said. People should take an umbrella or raincoat when going outdoors, it said. Hot weather is also forecast, with temperatures across the country expected to reach 30°C to 33°C, it said. Mountainous areas in the south could have even higher temperatures, it said. Typhoon Guchol, the third so far this year, as of 2am yesterday was 1,050km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving northward, the bureau said, adding that its trajectory indicated it would not directly affect Taiwan. However, Keelung, the Hengchun Peninsula and Lienchiang County would likely have high swells, it said.
EMERGENCY SERVICES
Couple rescued from sea
A Taiwanese man and his Singaporean partner were rescued unharmed after being dragged out to sea while paddleboarding in Taitung County yesterday, the Coast Guard Administration said. It is suspected that the pair, both in their early 40s, were caught in a current and were unable to make it back to shore due to exhaustion, the coast guard said. The woman was about 10m from shore and her partner 50m out when they were rescued, it said. Rescue personnel threw a lifebuoy to the woman and swam to the man, it said, adding that the two were brought back to shore by 7:06am. They were not sent to hospital, it said.
SPORTS
Fourth grader wins gold
Cheng Yu-chieh (鄭宇傑), a fourth-grade student on the taekwondo team of Hualien County’s Jiali Elementary School, won gold at the National Junior Taekwondo Championship on Saturday last week. The school’s taekwondo coach, Yen Hsiang-ping (閻祥玶), on Tuesday said that Cheng only received his black belt at the beginning of this year. He performed really well in his first performance at a national competition and demonstrated maturity beyond his years, Yen said. He showed no fear, even after losing the first engagement in the final, he said. His calm in the face of an initial setback and his ability to follow instructions demonstrated that he can perform well under duress, he said, adding that Cheng had made the final by winning two bouts without dropping a point.
ENTERTAINMENT
‘Dao V2.0’ announced
U Theatre is to mark its 35th anniversary this year with a new version of its 2017 piece Dao, showcasing the troupe’s signature tai chi-infused moves and visceral drumming. Dao was inspired by the “vivid and energetic” strokes that make up the collection of works by calligrapher Tong Yang-tze (董陽孜), titled The Sayings of Laozi and Zhuangzi, said Huang Chih-chun (黃誌群), U Theatre’s artistic and musical director. The revamped version, Dao V2.0, is an “upgraded” version of the original, featuring two completely revamped acts that focus on tai chi to better embody the philosophies of Chinese philosophers Zhuangzi (莊子) and Laozi (老子), U Theatre founder and director Liu Ruo-yu (劉若瑀) said. Dao V2.0 is scheduled to be performed at the National Theater in Taipei from Sept. 22 to 24, at the National Taichung Theater on Nov. 25 and 26, and at the National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts (Weiwuying) on Dec. 9 and 10.
A decision to describe a Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement on Singapore’s Taiwan policy as “erroneous” was made because the city-state has its own “one China policy” and has not followed Beijing’s “one China principle,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tien Chung-kwang (田中光) said yesterday. It has been a longstanding practice for the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to speak on other countries’ behalf concerning Taiwan, Tien said. The latest example was a statement issued by the PRC after a meeting between Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) on the sidelines of the APEC summit
Taiwan’s passport ranked 34th in the world, with access to 141 visa-free destinations, according to the latest update to the Henley Passport Index released today. The index put together by Henley & Partners ranks 199 passports globally based on the number of destinations holders can access without a visa out of 227, and is updated monthly. The 141 visa-free destinations for Taiwanese passport holders are a slight decrease from last year, when holders had access to 145 destinations. Botswana and Columbia are among the countries that have recently ended visa-free status for Taiwanese after “bowing to pressure from the Chinese government,” the Ministry
HEALTHCARE: Following a 2022 Constitutional Court ruling, Taiwanese traveling overseas for six months would no longer be able to suspend their insurance Measures allowing people to suspend National Health Insurance (NHI) services if they plan to leave the country for six months would be abolished starting Dec. 23, NHIA Director-General Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said yesterday. The decision followed the Constitutional Court’s ruling in 2022 that the regulation was unconstitutional and that it would invalidate the regulation automatically unless the NHIA amended it to conform with the Constitution. The agency would amend the regulations to remove the articles and sections that allow the suspension of NHI services, and also introduce provisional clauses for those who suspended their NHI services before Dec. 23, Shih said. According to
Minister of Labor Ho Pei-shan (何佩珊) yesterday apologized after the suicide of a civil servant earlier this month and announced that a supervisor accused of workplace bullying would be demoted. On Nov. 4, a 39-year-old information analyst at the Workforce Development Agency’s (WDA) northern branch, which covers greater Taipei and Keelung, as well as Yilan, Lienchiang and Kinmen counties, was found dead in their office. WDA northern branch director Hsieh Yi-jung (謝宜容), who has been accused of involvement in workplace bullying, would be demoted to a nonsupervisory position, Ho told a news conference in Taipei. WDA Director-General Tsai Meng-liang (蔡孟良) said he would
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