HEALTH
Vaccine compensations
A woman has received NT$400,000 (US$12,742) in compensation after she developed peripheral nerve disorders following a COVID- 19 vaccine shot, the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP) said. The VICP held a meeting on June 29 to discuss cases of reported health problems from vaccines and whether the patients should be compensated. The meeting discussed 170 cases, with 13 cases eligible for compensation ranging from NT$5,000 to NT$400,000. Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director General Tseng Shu-huai (曾淑慧) said on Friday the highest compensation of NT$400,000 was given to a Kaohsiung woman in her 40s. The woman felt weakness in her limbs after receiving an AstraZeneca shot and was later diagnosed with polyneuropathy, Tseng said.
BUSINESS
Union condemns layoffs
The Taoyuan Confederation of Trade Unions on Friday condemned a decision by Chemours, a Taoyuan-based US chemical company, to close its plant in Guanyin District (觀音) on Tuesday and lay off over 250 employees. In a Facebook post, the trade union expressed its frustration that the announcement of the plant closure was made public just four days before it takes effect. The condemnation came after the Taoyuan City Government’s Department of Labor released a statement earlier on Friday confirming it had received a proposal from Chemours regarding the closure of its Guanyin factory and laying off 259 workers from Sept. 30.
CINEMA
Love in Taipei to premiere
Love in Taipei, a coming-of-age film based on the best-selling novel Loveboat, Taipei, is to premiere on a subscription-based streaming platform in the US and Canada in August. Directed by Taiwanese-American Arvin Chen (陳駿霖), the movie stars Ashley Liao (廖艾莉), Ross Butler and Taiwan-based TV personality Janet Hsieh (謝怡芬). A 142-second trailer released online by Paramount+ earlier this week shows several of the city’s landmarks including the Taipei 101 building, the Grand Hotel and bustling night markets. The film is to premiere on Aug. 10 exclusively on Paramount+ in the US and Canada, on Aug. 11 in the UK and Australia, and on Aug. 25 in Latin America, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and France. The premiere dates for South Korea and additional territories are to be announced later, the streaming service said.
CRIME
Arrests over deer theft
Two men were arrested yesterday for stealing three Formosan sika deer in Pingtung County in the early hours of Thursday morning and killing one of them, the county’s police bureau said. Another man who is believed to have bought two of the animals was also arrested, it added. The arrested duo, surnamed Pan (潘) and Chen (陳), confessed to the police that they stole a buck and two fawns from a privately run animal park called “Paradise of Deer,” the police said. The two men told the police that they could not load the buck onto their truck, so they tied its legs tightly and left it outside the park on a stormy night, the police said. Park personnel found the tied-up buck, which had broken two of its legs, on Thursday morning. The adult deer is still undergoing emergency care, the park said. The suspects face charges under the Criminal Code and Animal Protection Act (動物保護法).
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
A woman who allegedly attacked a high-school student with a utility knife, injuring his face, on a Taipei metro train late on Friday has been transferred to prosecutors, police said yesterday. The incident occurred near MRT Xinpu Station at about 10:17pm on a Bannan Line train headed toward Dingpu, New Taipei City police said. Before police arrived at the station to arrest the suspect, a woman surnamed Wang (王) who is in her early 40s, she had already been subdued by four male passengers, one of whom was an off-duty Taipei police officer, police said. The student, 17, who sustained a cut about
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