TRAFFIC
Emu on the loose
A pet emu was captured while walking along a public thoroughfare without its owner on Yuguang Island (魚光島) off Tainan early on Saturday. It was confirmed that this was the second time the bird escaped from its enclosure in Anping District (安平) over the past two years. The emu was eventually captured by personnel dispatched by the Tainan City Agricultural Bureau after it received reports of the incident from the owner and members of the public, bureau officials said yesterday. The bird was handed to a company contracted by the bureau to care for it after the owner asked for assistance, expressing concern that the bird has escaped twice in two years. Yuguang Borough Warden Lin Ning-feng (林寧峰) said that the owner no longer wants to look after the bird and asked the bureau to find someone willing to house it. Emus are endemic to Australia and are the second-largest land bird after ostriches. With its three-toed legs, the flightless emu can reach a top running speed of 50kph.
Photo courtesy of Takao Nozaki
ARTS
Ko to star on stage
Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) confirmed he is to feature in the musical Dump the Garbage as himself in performances alongside actress Tammy Lai (賴佩霞). Lai was the running mate of Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) in January’s presidential election. TPP spokeswoman Wu Yi-hsuan (吳怡萱) on Friday said that Ko accepted the role in the musical after the stage director and Lai invited him to join, adding that party members supported his participation in the production, which centers on the topic of urban renewal. Ko’s condition was that his character must be a relatively accurate reflection of his personality, Wu said. Dump the Garbage has seven performances lined up, with four in Taipei scheduled for next month, one in Kaohsiung in June and two in Taichung in September.
MILITARY
Sergeant declared dead
A sergeant, surnamed Chiang (江), of the Marine Corps 66 Brigade, was declared dead on Friday despite his girlfriend calling the ambulance after finding him unconscious in his car. The Marine Corps Command expressed its regrets in a statement saying Chiang died from “committing self-harm” on his day off. It would provide surviving family members with assistance, it said, adding that an investigation is being launched. The statement added that the command would continue efforts to raise awareness of stress, encourage a positive attitude, and encourage people to cherish their lives. In other news, the Military Police Command has denied claims that its service personnel, especially on shift at the Presidential Office, were overworked. The denial was in response to medical reports that an armed military guard at the Presidential Office, surnamed Ku (古), committed suicide while at his post earlier this month because of overwork, working for two hours and resting for two hours before reporting for duty again. The command said it is investigating measures to reduce workloads and ensure respect of individual rights.
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 —
Actor Lee Wei (李威) was released on bail on Monday after being named as a suspect in the death of a woman whose body was found in the meeting place of a Buddhist group in Taipei’s Daan District (大安) last year, prosecutors said. Lee, 44, was released on NT$300,000 (US$9,148) bail, while his wife, surnamed Chien (簡), was released on NT$150,000 bail after both were summoned to give statements regarding the woman’s death. The home of Lee, who has retreated from the entertainment business in the past few years, was also searched by prosecutors and police earlier on Monday. Lee was questioned three
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