SOCIETY
Chi Mei founder Hsu dies
Chi Mei Group founder Hsu Wen-lung (許文龍) passed away in hospital yesterday morning at the age of 95. Born in Tainan in 1928, Hsu founded Chi Mei Corp, the Chi Mei Hospital and the Chimei Museum, and dedicated his life to social welfare and promoting the arts. Presidential Office spokeswoman Lin Yu-chan (林聿禪) yesterday relayed President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) condolences to Hsu’s family. Hsu was well known in the international community and his Chimei Corp has been praised as a company that brings others happiness, Lin quoted Tsai as saying. Since his retirement, Hsu dedicated his time and energy to social welfare and the promotion of Taiwan’s arts and humanities, Lin said, adding that Hsu’s dedication to promoting local culture was commendable. Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) said that Hsu’s passing was a significant loss for residents of the city, and that his dedication and contributions to Taiwanese culture, art and democracy were irreplaceable and would never be forgotten. A number of politicians, including Vice President William Lai (賴清德), the Democratic Progressive Party’s presidential candidate, and Taiwan People’s Party Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), also expressed their condolences.
SOCIETY
Cartoonist Loic Hsiao dies
Artist Loic Hsiao (蕭言中), who was best known for his cartoons and his work as a theater director and TV host, died yesterday at the age of 58. Born in Nantou County in 1965, Hsiao had dreamed of becoming a cartoonist since he was young and studied at Fu-hsin Trade and Arts School’s Department of Arts and Crafts. In 1985, he published his first comic, Fairy Tales Untold (童話短路), and was propelled into the limelight, widely considered to be one of Taiwan’s four best cartoonists, along with Ao Yu-hsiang (敖幼祥), Chu Te-yung (朱德庸) and Tsai Chih-chung (蔡志忠). Hsiao had said that after being diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2019, he wanted his legacy to be his art and that he had always dreamed of creating a “cartoon city” to demonstrate to the public how cartoons can be meaningful works of art. He developed a unique painting method using simple strokes and in 2020 organized art exhibitions in Hualien and Paris, the event in the French capital prompting French President Emmanuel Macron to send Hsiao a letter of blessing.
SOCIETY
Zoo to remember panda
Taipei Zoo is to hold a commemorative event today to mark the anniversary of giant panda Tuan Tuan’s (團團) death, the zoo said in a statement on Friday. Zoo director Chen I-tsung (諶亦聰) said that a video featuring Tuan Tuan and other pandas would be played from 10am to 3pm. Visitors are also invited to write blessing cards to mark the date. The 18-year-old giant panda died from gemistocytic astrocytoma on Nov. 19, Chen said. The zoo said that it had preserved Tuan Tuan’s bones and fur, and frozen its sperm and fibroblasts after its death. It said that it was in the process of registering taxidermist Lin Wen-lung’s (林文龍) work on Tuan Tuan’s remains in accordance with the Wildlife Conservation Act (野生動物保育法). It planned to open an exhibition highlighting endangered species, such as giant pandas, as well as gorillas and pangolins, in the first half of next year, the zoo added. Tuan Tuan’s unique physiology and scientific research materials would one day feature in a themed building for use by researchers and educators, Chen said.
Travel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. The airline said that it has confirmed that the planned industrial action by its international wide-body cabin crew would go ahead on Thursday and Friday next week. While the Auckland-based carrier pledged to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of the workers’ strike, an Air New Zealand flight arriving at Taipei from Auckland on Thursday and another flight departing from Taipei for Auckland on Saturday would have to
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
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