WEATHER
New cold front expected
Miaoli in northern Taiwan recorded the lowest temperature of 7.5°C of all low-lying areas in Taiwan proper early yesterday morning as a strong continental cold air mass continued to grip the country, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Data compiled by the agency showed temperatures in most areas in northern and northeastern Taiwan dipped below 10°C early yesterday morning. The cold air mass is likely to weaken today, sending temperatures slightly higher, while brief rain is forecast in eastern Taiwan, the Hangchun Peninsula, as well as the mountainous areas in central and southern Taiwan, the CWA said. Another weather front is expected to set in tomorrow as a northeasterly wind system gathers momentum, it said, adding that it is likely to strengthen and affect the nation until Wednesday.
ARTS
Sundance returns to Taipei
The Sundance Film Festival Asia, an expansion of the independent film event in the US, is to be held in Taipei for the second time on Aug. 21 to 25. “2024 marks the 40th edition of the Sundance Film Festival in the United States,” a statement from the Sundance Institute and G2Go Entertainment said. “The continuation of Sundance Film Festival Asia in Taipei is a further celebration of this marvelous achievement and a commitment to invigorate local artists with outreach and dialogue.” The organizers have begun accepting submissions for a short-film competition for the film festival’s Asia event, which drew more than 250 entries last year, the statement said. Submissions are open until May 31, and the winner is to be announced at the opening event of the film festival and receive a NT$50,000 cash prize, it said.
CRIME
Woman arrested over drugs
A section assistant in the Taipei Department of Social Welfare who on Wednesday was allegedly found with more than 20g of cannabis has denied dealing the drug after her arrest by local police, sources said. Police from the Daan Precinct (大安) said they began investigating the city government employee, surnamed Liu (劉), after a man caught with cannabis during a roadside stop in January said he had bought drugs from her. Liu was arrested along with her boyfriend, surnamed Chou (周), following a series of searches and raids on Wednesday, during which police seized “dozens of grams of cannabis” as well as drug paraphernalia. Liu and Chou denied selling drugs, saying that the seized cannabis was for personal use only, a source familiar with the matter said. The pair were transferred to the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office and are currently being investigated for narcotics offenses.
ARTS
Biennale includes Idas Losin
Taiwanese oil painter Idas Losin is to be the second indigenous artist from Taiwan to participate in the Biennale of Sydney, titled “Ten Thousand Suns,” which runs from yesterday to June 10. The 48-year-old artist from the Truku and Atayal communities in Hualien County follows in the footsteps of Aluaiy Kaumakan (武玉玲), who attended the previous edition of the Australian event — one of the three biggest international art biennials in the world. Idas Losin’s murals are to be exhibited at the entrance of the University of New South Wales Galleries at the biennial, for which she reorganized three pieces related to Easter Island to represent the Moai statues and Rongorongo, a unique kind of hieroglyph. The other Taiwanese participant in the event is Li Jiun-yang (李俊陽).
An undersea cable to Penghu County has been severed, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said today, with a Chinese-funded ship suspected of being responsible. It comes just a month after a Chinese ship was suspected of severing an undersea cable north of Keelung Harbor. The National Communications and Cyber Security Center received a report at 3:03am today from Chunghwa Telecom that the No. 3 cable from Taiwan to Penghu was severed 14.7km off the coast of Tainan, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) upon receiving a report from Chunghwa Telecom began to monitor the Togolese-flagged Hong Tai (宏泰)
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
RISING TOURISM: A survey showed that tourist visits increased by 35 percent last year, while newly created attractions contributed almost half of the growth Changhua County’s Lukang Old Street (鹿港老街) and its surrounding historical area clinched first place among Taiwan’s most successful tourist attractions last year, while no location in eastern Taiwan achieved a spot in the top 20 list, the Tourism Administration said. The listing was created by the Tourism Administration’s Forward-looking Tourism Policy Research office. Last year, the Lukang Old Street and its surrounding area had 17.3 million visitors, more than the 16 million visitors for the Wenhua Road Night Market (文化路夜市) in Chiayi City and 14.5 million visitors at Tainan’s Anping (安平) historical area, it said. The Taipei 101 skyscraper and its environs —
Taiwan on Friday said a New Zealand hamburger restaurant has apologized for a racist remark to a Taiwanese customer after reports that it had first apologized to China sparked outrage in Taiwan. An image posted on Threads by a Taiwanese who ate at Fergburger in Queenstown showed that their receipt dated Sunday last week included the words “Ching Chang,” a racial slur. The Chinese Consulate-General in Christchurch in a statement on Thursday said it had received and accepted an apology from the restaurant over the incident. The comment triggered an online furor among Taiwanese who saw it as an insult to the
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