WEATHER
Koinu land warning lifted
The land warning for Typhoon Koinu was lifted yesterday morning as the storm left Taiwan and headed toward China, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that downpours were still likely in parts of the country. The sea warning was lifted at about 11:30am, it said. However, the CWA continued to issue heavy rain warnings in eastern, northern and southern Taiwan, cautioning against mudslides, falling rocks and flooding. Taitung County and mountainous regions of Pingtung County could be the hardest hit, with more than 200mm of rainfall expected within the day, or more than 100mm within 3 hours, the CWA said. In Yilan and Hualien counties, as well as in the rest of Pingtung and coastal areas in Taipei and New Taipei cities, rainfall could top 80mm during the day or 40mm in an hour, it said. People in the outlying counties of Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties should stay vigilant against the possibility of strong winds, which could reach 88kph, it added.
LITERATURE
Novel translation awarded
A Spain-based academic has won the 2023 PEN Catalan Translation Award with her translation of a work by Taiwanese novelist Wu Ming-yi (吳明益) into Catalan, the Ministry of Culture said yesterday. Autonomous University of Barcelona professor Mireia Vargas-Urpi, who teaches in the school’s Department of Translation and Interpretation and East Asia Studies, was awarded the honor for her translation of Wu’s The Man With the Compound Eyes (複眼人), the PEN Catala announced on Friday last week, the ministry said. Her Catalan translation published last year was the 18th translation of the novel since its publication in 2011.
CRIME
E-cigarette factory raided
An electronic cigarette factory was discovered on Wednesday in New Taipei City, the first illegal facility of its kind discovered in Taiwan since new tobacco control regulations took effect in March, the city government said on Thursday. E-cigarettes were banned in Taiwan starting March 22 as part of amendments to the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (菸害防治法). Acting on a tip-off, a National Immigration Agency brigade launched a search on Wednesday at a residential unit in Sanchong District (三重) and found four undocumented migrant workers and a foreigner who overstayed their visa at the location. The five individuals were found making and packaging e-cigarettes at the site, the city government said. Authorities found three e-cigarette packaging and filling machines, 84 cartons of finished vaping products, four cartons of semi-finished products and 35 bottles of e-cigarette liquids at the site, with a street value of nearly NT$10 million (US$310,492), which were seized and sealed, it said.
CRIME
Two arrested over drugs
Two suspects linked to an alleged cross-border drug trafficking scheme that involved disguising amphetamines as milk powder were arrested after a shipment of narcotics smuggled into Taiwan was seized earlier this year, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said on Tuesday. CIB Third Investigation Corps Captain Chang Wen-yuan (張文源) told a news conference that a man surnamed Hsiao (蕭), 35, and an accomplice surnamed Chen (陳), 28, were taken into custody after 10.46kg of amphetamines in 10 cans of milk powder, with a street value of more than NT$10 million, were seized in two raids in April.
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,
‘GRAY ZONE’ TACTICS: China continues to build up its military capacity while regularly deploying jets and warships around Taiwan, with the latest balloon spotted on Sunday The US is drawing up contingency plans for military deployments in Japan and the Philippines in case of a Taiwan emergency, Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported. They would be incorporated in a first joint operation plan to be formulated in December, Kyodo reported late on Sunday, citing sources familiar with Japan-US relations. A US Marine Corps regiment that possesses High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems — a light multiple rocket launcher — would be deployed along the Nansei Island chain stretching from Kyushu to Yonaguni near Taiwan, Kyodo said. According to US military guidelines for dispatching marines in small formations to several locations,
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
As Taiwan celebrated its baseball team’s victory in the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s Premier12 on Sunday, how politicians referred to the team in their congratulatory messages reflected the nation’s political divide. Taiwan, competing under the name Chinese Taipei (中華台北隊), made history with its first-ever Premier12 championship after beating Japan 4-0 at the Tokyo Dome. Right after the game, President William Lai (賴清德) congratulated the team via a post on his Facebook page. Besides the players, Lai also lauded the team’s coaching and medical staff, and the fans cheering for them in Tokyo or watching the live broadcast, saying that “every
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