Datasets:

myvision

/

CS4248-T15-LUN

like 0

Japan's memory chip maker Elpida Memory Inc., Taiwan's United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC) and Powertech Technology Inc. will join forces to develop semiconductor-related production technology, a Powertech official said Monday. The three parties are scheduled to sign an integrated circuit technology cooperation agreement Monday afternoon at UMC headquarters in Hsinchu, northern Taiwan, the official said, but he declined to disclose other details about the deal. 'We will not release the details about the cooperation agreement until the agreement is signed this afternoon,' he said. The Commercial Times reported Monday the three companies will co-develop cutting edge 'through silicon via' (TSV) chip production technology, focusing on vertically stacked chips to occupy less space. The report said the three partners are expected to develop the technology for dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips and logic memory chips targeting the cell phone, gaming console and home appliance markets. UMC, the world's second-largest contract chip maker, also declined to comment on the report. Since 2007, UMC has worked with Elpida on chip technology cooperation. Powertech is a semiconductor packaging and testing service provider. Elpida President Yukio Sakamoto, UMC Chief Executive Officer Sun Shih-wei and Powertech Chairman Tsai Tu-kung are expected to attend the signing ceremony.

A charity group in southern Taiwan's Kaohsiung City has donated NT$1 million (US$31,511) to help fund an elementary school football team's trip to Hungary to compete in an international youth tournament, school officials said Monday. The spirits of Houjing Elementary School's football team were boosted at the prospect of traveling to the European country in late July to play in the Kun Cup, a trip made possible by the donation from the Chen Chung-ho Charity Foundation and presented to the school by Legislator Huang Chao-shun that day. 'We get to compete abroad! ' exulted the players. The children said they would train even harder and that they were confident of winning the tournament. Yang Kuang-ming, the school's principal, expressed appreciation for Huang's efforts to raise funds for the team, and said the school itself has raised around NT$300,000, including profits from selling cookies at a local night market that were baked by the students' mothers. Yang said the Kaohsiung city government and the Cabinet-level Sports Affairs Council have also donated some NT$1 million to subsidize the cost of the trip for the 32-member team, which won a national children's soccer championship in May, giving it the right to compete in the Kun Cup in the Hungarian city of Szolnok scheduled for August.

Chen Shu-chu, the vegetable vendor named by Time Magazine as one of the world's 100 most influential people in 2010, underwent surgery Monday for varicose veins just hours after receiving a medal for her contributions to the country's education. Chen had the procedure done at Taipei Veterans General Hospital. Lai Hsiao-ting, the surgeon in charge of Chen's case, said the 59-year-old philanthropist had suffered from the disorder in her left leg for over 20 years. The ailment turned worse last month and led to cellulitis, said Lai, who performed a laser procedure on Chen that lasted 70 minutes. Chen was allowed to go home after the procedure, and Lai said she would be able to sell vegetables at her stand on Tuesday. Earlier Monday, the vegetable vendor from Taitung City in southeastern Taiwan, who has donated nearly NT$10 million (US$320,000) to various charitable causes in past decades, was honored by the Ministry of Education with the first Class Professional Education-Culture Medal. Chen was the 18th person awarded with the medal and also the only recipient with only an elementary school education. Other recipients of the national medal include former Academia Sinica President Lee Yuan-tseh. During the ceremony, Chen said she will set up a fund to care for less- privileged students. Chen dropped out of school and took over her mother's vegetable stand at a traditional market in Taitung to support the family when she was 13 years old after her mother died while giving birth. The money she has donated over the years financed the construction of a library at the elementary school she attended and helped many poor children continue their school education.

The National Youth Commission said on Monday that when Canada begins accepting work-holiday applications on July 1, young Taiwanese traveling to Canada will be allowed to apply for loans of up to NT$120,000 (US$3,780) to help finance their trips. 'So far we only accept applicants going to New Zealand, Australia and Japan, but we will change the regulation to include Canada in the near future, ' Alice Chang, section chief of the commission under the Executive Yuan, told the Central News Agency by telephone. In April, Canada signed a working-holiday agreement with Taiwan, permitting young people to travel and work in the two countries, she said. Taiwanese and Canadians aged 18 to 35 who meet the requirements will be allowed to work while traveling in each other's countries on multi-entry visas valid for up to one year. 'Canada became the fourth country to sign a working-holiday agreement with Taiwan, after Japan, New Zealand and Australia,' Chang said. One unique aspect of the Taiwan-Canada deal is the age requirement, Chang noted. The other three countries stipulate applicants be between 18 and 30. In the early stages, however, Canada will only provide 200 such visas a year. Japan currently accepts up to 2,000 applications annually, and New Zealand's quota is 600. Australia accepted more than 10,000 last year. The commission held a seminar last week to inform young people of their options, inviting a Canadian Trade office in Taipei official to explain the procedure. 'Many young people attended the seminar and were happy to have an opportunity to extend their views and experiences,' Chang said. In the seminar, the official reminded applicants to present applications starting July 1, 2010. 'The office will only accept applications post-marked on July 1 or after, ' Chang indicated, adding that detailed information can be found at the Canadian office website: www.canada.org.tw.

Taiwanese and Chinese police are cooperating in efforts to fight fraudsters and have launched the biggest-ever coordinated operation on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, the Criminal Investigation Bureau said Monday. The bureau said Taiwanese police cracked down on 57 locations in 12 counties that day, arresting 66 suspects and seizing NT$60 million (US$1.87 million) , while police in China simultaneously struck thousands of locations in more than 20 provinces. Stopping scams has been named as the top priority this year for China's police. Taiwan and China signed an agreement in April 2009 to assist each other on judicial matters and cooperate in fighting crime. Since then, the two sides have held a series of meetings and discussions in which they agreed to work together on scams, as they are a major problem for both, the bureau said. The two sides have together busted more than 60 scam groups operating across the Taiwan Strait, with over 400 people arrested and some NT$10 billion in unlawful gains seized since the agreement went into effect last year. The bureau said that compared to the more-than 24,000 cases of scam and fraud involving some NT$7 billion in the first half of 2009, about 20,000 cases involving NT$4 billion were reported in the same period of this year, which shows that the situation remains serious.

A local performance group will present the romantic comedy 'Apartment 3A, ' written by Hollywood actor Jeff Daniels, for the first time in Taiwan on July 3 and 4 at Crown Theater in Taipei, the group said Monday. Don Tung, the head of the Tungco Performance Group and the play's director, said Apartment 3A, to be staged in English with Chinese subtitles, will give audiences a new definition of love and relationships, Apartment 3A was written in 1996 -- two years after Daniels starred in Dumb and Dumber with Jim Carrey. The play premiered in New York at the ArcLight Theater and has toured around America since then, Tung said. The play, described as ' written with wit, conviction and a real affection for its characters' by the New York Times in 2006, tells the story of a modern career woman who decides to start a new life after seeing her boyfriend commit an act of infidelity, but whose life becomes more chaotic after moving into Apartment 3A. According to Tung, Daniels expresses the anger and dissatisfaction people in modern society feel and shows how even though they never stop complaining about life, they still insist on doing what they feel is right. 'Daniels captures this sense of 'being disappointed because they care too much' incisively and sympathetically,' Tung said.

The government has launched a campaign encouraging workers at various government agencies and schools to take action during the summer to help cut carbon dioxide emissions and conserve energy. Among the actions under the campaign, men in the public sector are being asked to take the lead in not wearing suits and ties to save on air conditioning. According to data compiled by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, between 2007 and 2009, electricity consumption at various government agencies and schools decreased by 124.74 million kilowatt hours (kWh) , which translates into a reduction of 77,700 tons of carbon emissions. Setting air conditioners one degree Celsius higher than usual will help save 6 percent in power consumption, the MOEA said in citing related reports, which would save 1 billion kilowatts in energy annually nationwide. The Executive Yuan has also organized a competition encouraging central and local government agencies and public colleges or universities to move to cut carbon emissions and save energy as part of the country's efforts to curb global warming and move toward a low-carbon country. Questioning the effects of the carbon reduction drive, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng asked 'how much energy can be saved only by removing one suit? ' He said a good energy policy is much more important in bringing more positive results. Wang said that if Taiwan could increase nuclear power's share of the country's total power generation from the existing 17.3 percent to 38.6 percent, the same percentage of nuclear energy used by South Korea, then an approximate 44 million tons of carbon missions could be saved a year. 'This would be much more efficient, ' he suggested.

Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Hwang Jung-chiou is visiting the U.S. city of Detroit as head of a 60-member electric vehicle industry delegation. The main purpose of Hwang's trip was to preside over the opening of the June 21-22 Taiwan Automotive International Forum and Exhibition 2010 in the U.S. city, according to a statement released Monday by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Chicago. The trade show brought together 28 automakers and suppliers from Taiwan, with 49 innovative products and 59 Taiwan-developed technologies on display. They included Luxgen intelligent electric vehicles, electric scooters by CMC Motor and Kwang Yang Motor, and STOBA battery technology developed by Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute, as well as motors and power electronics modules by Teco, Chroma and Fukuta. Among the participants at the event were representatives of major automakers in North America, including General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler, the statement said.

The Republic of China Embassy in El Salvador said Tuesday it will provide US$50,000 to help improve the offices of the central American country's Presidential Commission for Customer Protection. The Taiwanese government will purchase office equipment including laptops, PCs, scanners and printers for the Presidential Commission's help centers, the embassy said. Improving customer protection is a worldwide trend and since the commission was established in El Salvador, it has helped to safeguard customer rights by setting up centers in major cities across the country, the embassy said. The centers have received an increasing number of customer complaints and successfully assisted consumers in obtaining record levels of compensation from corporations, it said. El Salvador has expressed its appreciation to Ambassador Carlos Liao and the Taiwanese government, saying that Taiwan's donation will help the commission boost its efficiency and enhance customer protection.

Nine of the soccer teams in the 2010 World Cup are wearing uniforms made of recycled materials manufactured by Taiwanese textile companies, the European Parliament magazine reported recently. Wang Chen-tai, head of the news division at the Taipei Representative Office in the EU and Belgium, was quoted in the magazine as saying that while Taiwan does not have a team in the World Cup, it has supplied uniforms for the international sports event. Wang said the uniforms are evidence of Taiwan's cutting-edge technology in the textile sector and its commitment to reducing carbon emissions and protecting the global environment. The Taiwan sportswear supplied to the nine teams and retailers were made from 13 million recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles, with each sports shirt requiring eight recycled PET bottles on average, he said. The World Cup teams wearing the Taiwan-made sports uniforms are Brazil, the Netherlands, Portugal, the United States, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Serbia and Slovakia. The manufacturing process involved breaking down the PET bottles which were then extruded into polyester fiber and spun into fabric, according to the Taiwan Textile Research Institute (TTRI). To color the shirts, the Taiwan manufacturers employed a dyeing technology that meets global green standards, which is an indication that Taiwan has become a world leader in that particular production area, the institute said. It took years of research by the Taiwan textile sector and the TTRI to develop that manufacturing technology, it added. Apart from its entry into the world's premier soccer competition, Wang said, Taiwan-made environmentally friendly sportswear has also become popular among multinational sports goods brands.

Taiwan share prices closed down 0.40 percent Wednesday in thin trading after investors took their cues from a Wall Street fall overnight on disappointing U.S. existing home sales data, dealers said. The weighted index fell 30.53 points to 7,582.15, after fluctuating between 7,549.98 and 7,615.44, on turnover of NT$77.26 billion (US$2.41 billion). The market opened 0.48 percent lower amid renewed worries over the pace of the global economic recovery, and pressure persisted throughout the trading session ahead of the nearest technical resistance at around the 7,600-point mark, according to the dealers. A total of 1,729 stocks closed down and 1,166 were up, with 335 stocks remaining unchanged. The paper and pulp sector suffered the heaviest pressure, down 0.9 percent. Financial shares closed down 0.7 percent, cement shares were 0.6 percent lower, plastics and chemicals were down 0.5 percent lower and the machinery and electronics sector ended the day down 0.4 percent. Textile stocks gained 1.3 percent and foodstuff shares rose 0.9 percent, while the construction sector closed unchanged. Tom Tang, an analyst with MasterLink Securities, said the Wall Street losses provided investors with an excuse to pocket profits from recent significant gains on the local bourse. 'Investors are watching closely how U.S. markets perform after Tuesday's pullback,' Tang said. 'If Wall Street continues to fall, foreign institutional investors might move their funds out of Asia to meet redemption demand at home,' Tang said. Judging from reduced turnover in the past two sessions, Tang said, many investors preferred to stay on the sidelines amid fears of possible heavy pressure ahead of 7,600 points. United Microelectronics Corp. dropped 1.00 percent to NT$14.80 and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. fell 0.80 percent to NT$62.10. Flat panel maker Chimei Innolux dropped 1.51 percent to NT$35.90 and Hon Hai Precision, the world's largest contract producer of electronic goods, dropped 0.81 percent to NT$122.50. 'A good strategy for now is to keep cash. If the market stages a rebound, investors had better lower their holdings,' Tang said. However, he said that as optimism over the possible signing of an economic cooperation framework agreement with China in the middle of this year remains in place, firms that have close business ties with China might outperform the broader market. Among the retailers that have built distribution networks in China, Ruentex added 3.02 percent to close at NT$88.70 and Synnex rose 1.52 percent to end the day at NT$73.60.

The central bank is likely to leave interest rates unchanged in the upcoming quarterly policy-making meeting despite strong economic growth in the first quarter because the global economy remains haunted by debt problems in Europe, analysts said Wednesday. The central bank is scheduled to hold its quarterly director and supervisor meeting Thursday, when it will set its monetary policy and comment on the state of the economy at home and abroad. With the local economy battered by a global financial meltdown, the central bank has cut its discount rate seven times since September 2008, slashing 2.375 percentage points to a new low of 1.25 percent. Cheng Cheng-mount, chief economist at Citibank in Taiwan, said that while the improving local economy provides the central bank with a chance to hike interest rates, debt problems in Europe have added uncertainty to the global economy and are expected to prompt the central bank to give rate hikes a second thought. Cheng said that as local consumer prices remain tame with low inflation risk, it is unlikely the central bank will raise interest rates anytime soon. In the first quarter of this year, Taiwan's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 13.27 percent, marking the strongest performance since the third quarter of 1978. The government has raised its forecast for 2010 GDP growth to 6.14 percent from the previous 4.72 percent. Cheng said he expects that the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates by 0.25 percentage points in the first quarter of next year at the earliest, and that Taiwan will follow suit. Previously, Cheng had predicted the earliest possible central bank interest rate hike in the third quarter of this year. Tony Phoo, an economist with Standard Chartered Bank in Taiwan, agreed, saying the central bank fears that any immediate interest rate hikes will interrupt the pace of local economic recovery. Phoo said that although Taiwan scored double digit GDP growth in the first quarter of this year, the local jobless rate remains high, adding that because the economic growth for the second half of this year will be moderate, it is unlikely the central bank will boost interest rates now. Qu Hongbin, chief China economist with HSBC, said that with inflation not a concern, the central bank is expected to keep key interest rates the same in Thursday's meeting. Qu said that because Taiwan has enjoyed strong export growth on rising global demand, HSBC is likely to raise its forecast for the island's 2010 GDP growth. In April, HSBC forecast Taiwan's economy would grow 6.4 percent in 2010.

Skype, the online phone provider, aims to be available on every device connected to the Internet at some point in the future, Skype CEO Josh Silverman said Wednesday in Taipei. 'Our vision is ubiquity in which communications flow like water from device to device, from mode to mode, to meet the needs of the customers wherever and however they are,' he said at a press meeting. 'All computing devices tied to the Internet become communication devices with the simple addition of our software,' he noted. Silverman also unveiled a new software development kit called SkypeKit, which will help consumer electronic and desktop software innovators to embed Skype into their products. SkypeKit will initially be available as a beta on an invitation-only basis, according to the company's website. Skype is now making good progress in becoming a personal computer necessity, Silverman said. At present, eight of the 10 leading PC original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) ship the Internet voice call software already installed, the chief executive said. 'We aspire to have 100 million PCs shipped with Skype preloaded in 2011,' Silverman noted. Globally, there were 560 million registered Skype users at the end of 2009, with 300,000 new users added every day. At the press meet, Silverman also showed no fear of challengers, such as search engine giant Google. He said that when eBay acquired Skype in 2005, Google had just launched Google Talk, which was widely regarded as a 'Skype killer.' 'Today, we are about 10 times bigger than we were in 2005, ' Silverman said.

Opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen called on the government Wednesday to make public the process and the outcome of negotiations over a proposed trade pact with China. Tsai also said that the Legislative Yuan should hold hearings to gather public opinion on the issue now that the items on the planned cross-strait economic cooperation framework agreement's (ECFA's) 'early harvest' list are nearly finalized. The early harvest list refers to goods and services that will be eligible for tariff concessions or exemptions or be granted preferential market access treatment. At a press conference to promote a DPP-planned mass protest against the ECFA on June 26, Tsai said that during talks on the trade accord, Taiwan's negotiators paid the most attention to whether Taiwan's petrochemical and machine tool industries will be included on the list. Not enough attention is paid to what Chinese items are on the list for import into Taiwan and what types of Taiwanese industries will be hurt by the pact, Tsai added. She accused the government of rushing to sign the ECFA by setting a timetable. Tsai said the most unacceptable part of the deal was the Executive Yuan Referendum Review Commission's 'strange and incomprehensible' denial of a proposal by the opposition Taiwan Solidarity Union to put the ECFA to a referendum, despite the fact the proposal was endorsed by more than 100,000 people. Tsai and members of the DPP Central Standing Committee will take the lead at a march on June 26 to show their resolution to protect Taiwan's democracy and the people's right to referendum, a DPP spokesman said at the press conference, which was also attended by 20 pro-Taiwan independence groups.

Former President Chen Shui-bian has filed an appeal with Taiwan's Supreme Court, challenging his conviction on corruption, forgery and money laundering charges and a 20-year jail sentence handed down by a lower court, Chen's attorney said Tuesday. The Taiwan High Court in a ruling on June 11 reduced the sentences of Chen and his wife Wu Shu-jen on graft charges from life to 20 years, saying the amount that Chen was accused of embezzling was less than that recognized by the Taipei District Court in the initial trial. The court also cut the fines for Chen to NT$170 million (US$5.2 million) from NT$200 million and for Wu to NT$200 million from NT$300 million. In the June 11 ruling, the former president's son, Chen Chih- chung, and his wife Huang Jui-ching, both charged with money laundering, received sentences of 14 months and one year, respectively, a reduction from 30 months and 20 months. The former president filed the appeal on the grounds that the state affairs funds that he was charged with embezzling were used in accordance with past practice. He also argued that there was no evidence to prove his involvement in the Longtan land acquisition case, and that other payments received from business people, allegedly for favors, were political contributions. Chen also appealed against the extension of his detention for two months handed down by the Taiwan High Court on June 18. The High Court said Chen's detention, which was set to end June 23, would be extended until August 23 because Chen might flee Taiwan and he has yet to return all the money he was convicted of laundering abroad.

Shares of the notebook computer firm Asustek Computer Inc. closed sharply higher Thursday on the first day of its trade resumption, as investors were upbeat about its earnings outlook after the spinoff of its manufacturing arm Pegatron Technology Corp., dealers said. Asustek rose 6.89 percent to NT$240.50, with 3.09 million shares changing, while Pegatron gained 8.19 percent to reach NT$38.95 in its debut on the main board. The weighted index closed up 0.10 percent at 7,589.89. 'Investors are in favor of the spinoff idea, as the gross margin for contract notebook computer production is on the decline amid fierce competition, ' Taiwan International Securities analyst Michael Chiang said. 'With the spinoff, Asustek will now be able to put more into promoting its brand worldwide, as Acer is doing,' Chiang said. Trade of Asustek shares was suspended in mid-May after it announced that it will list Pegatron on the local bourse following the spinoff. An analyst with a regional brokerage firm said the gains posted by Pegatron reflected a low listing price of NT$36. 'There are concerns about the falling gross margin. Investors want to see Pegatron come up with business diversification strategies to offset its disadvantages,' the analyst said. He forecast that Pegatron's gross margin will be about 5 percent, adding that he was cautious about Pegatron's earnings outlook. Pegatron President Cheng Chien-chung said that with the fading impact of the debt problems in Europe, his company has seen an increase in orders based on recovering demand in Europe. Cheng said he expects Pegatron's sales in the second half to grow about 20 percent from the first half. Calvin Huang, an analyst with Daiwa-Cathay Capital Markets, said he has set a target price of NT$300 for Asustek and expects the stock to outperform the broader market. The spinoff leaves Asustek without the financial burden of rising labor costs in China, and its operations are unlikely to be affected by a stronger Chinese yen, Huang said. Asustek has built itself as a strong PC brand in China and is likely to use its strength to expand there, he said. He forecast that China will absorb more than 25 percent of Asustek's sales by the end of 2010, compared with the current 20 percent.

Taiwan and China are expected to sign an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) next week after finalizing their respective 'early harvest' lists Thursday. The signing of the ECFA is not a panacea that will automatically reactivate Taiwan's economic engine and create a 'golden decade.' The government needs to continue to work to improve Taiwan's investment environment, enhance its economic fundamentals and reduce unemployment. Although the ECFA will benefit 539 Taiwanese export items, it will also open Taiwan's market to 267 Chinese products. Finding ways to expand Taiwan's gains and reduce its losses is an immediate problem that the government needs to face. The government should also take into account the possible political repercussions, because any negative impact of the ECFA will be scrutinized under a magnifying glass by its opponents. Another challenge facing the government is whether it can conclude free trade agreements with other countries after the ECFA takes effect. Following the signing of the ECFA, Taiwan will certainly benefit more from closer economic and trade ties with China. The biggest challenge facing the anti-ECFA Democratic Progressive Party is whether it can present a new and convincing argument with regard to Taiwan's ties with China. (June 25, 2010)

Vice President Vincent Siew said Friday that President Ma Ying-jeou hopes Taiwanese businesses will change their operational structures from contract to own-brand manufacturing in the post-economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) era. To achieve this goal, the government and private enterprises should 'be prepared mentally and should work out implementation measures, ' Siew said at a conference in which he addressed Taiwan's moves to promote the signing of the ECFA with China. He also reminded businessmen to be clearly aware that China is undergoing policy changes amid changes in its domestic market, in which wages are being hiked and calls are mounting for environmental protection measures. Siew explained that economic development undergoes a transformation every 20 years and that China is at present going through its transformation, attaching importance to the development of new energy, new materials, biotechnology and cloud computing. China appears to want to catch up with the developed countries while placing importance on domestic demand. As a result, it is attempting to get rid of its full dependence on exports and is hoping to narrow the economic development gap between its inland and coastal regions and between urban and rural areas. Amid the changes in China, Siew suggested, Taiwanese businesses operating there should adjust their operational structures and perspectives. ECFA, he said, comes 'at the right time' because it will push companies to redefine the China market and initiate new business strategies. The one-day conference on Taiwanese businesses and China's economic development was organized by the Institute for National Policy Research and the Taipei-based Chinese National Federation of Industries.

Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) Taiwan announced Friday that from July 5 it will no longer give away toys with its children's meals -- a promotional method commonly adopted by fast food chains that has been blamed for encouraging unhealthy diets among children. In line with the decision, the price of KFC's children meals will be reduced from NT$89 to NT$69, the company said. Ku Wen-chen, a senior manager with KFC's public affairs department, explained that the new policy is based mainly out of environmental concerns, because most children already have a lot of toys. 'The toys obtained from fast food restaurants very often end up in recycling bins, so we think it would be better to set a realistic price to give back to consumers,' Ku said. KFC will also donate NT$1 for each children's meal sold to World Vision Taiwan to sponsor the charity group's meal delivery services for children living in remote areas, Ku said. The decision came one month after a group of 17 legislators, led by the ruling Kuomintang's Chiang Nai-shin, signed a petition calling for a ban on toys given away with children's meals to address the increasing problem of childhood obesity. Citing the results of a survey by the Bureau of Health Promotion, Chiang said the obesity rate among the 2-18 age group in Taiwan has risen from 6 percent to 25 percent over the past 10 years. Another survey by the John Tung Foundation shows that approximately 30 percent of school children eat fast food four to five times a month, Chiang said. Asked about the issue Friday, Chao Min-su, public relations manager for Burger King in Taiwan, said her company welcomes KFC's decision. Chao also said Burger King is evaluating whether to stop giving away toys with its children's meals, although she added that even if it decides to do so, the measure will only be implemented next year at the earliest because the toys are purchased annually. McDonald's, whose Happy Meals are very popular among children in Taiwan, declined to comment.

The Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taipei celebrated the 112th anniversary of the founding of the Philippines Friday in a cocktail reception with diplomats from the Philippines and Taiwan calling for deeper and closer relationships under the new Philippine administration. Benigno Simeon C. Aquino will be sworn in as Philippine president on June 30. Taiwan 'is our sixth-largest trading partner and our fifth-largest source of foreign direct investments. It ranks fifth in tourist arrivals and is host to almost 90,000 Filipino workers, of which 65 percent work in the high-tech manufacturing industry, ' said Antonio Basilio, managing director of the MECO, the Philippine authority in Taiwan in the absence of official diplomatic ties. Basilio told around 300 guests, including Taiwan diplomats, businesspeople and foreign representatives in Taiwan, that 21 memorandums of understanding (MOUs) on a wide range of areas have been signed by both sides in the last five years -- evidence of a strong friendship. Taiwan is keen to forge a closer partnership with its closest neighbor to the south because the countries 'share the same democratic values' and the economies of Taiwan and the Philippines complement each other well, said Shen Ssu-tsun, deputy minister of Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Basilio and Shen both said that warming cross-Taiwan Strait relations have had a positive impact on peace and stability in the region and created new dynamics that favor economic growth and integration in the region. 'This has also opened new pathways of friendship and cooperation between Taiwan and the Philippines,' Basilio said.

Premier Wu Den-yih said Friday that an estimated 260,000 jobs are expected to be created in Taiwan after it signs a trade pact with China later this month. Wu was rebutting media reports that said the trade deal will cause 150,000 local people to lose their jobs, a day after Taiwan and China finalized the early harvest lists for goods and services to enjoy preferential treatment under the trade pact. According to the finalized lists, a total of 539 Taiwanese products and services will be given tariff cuts or improved market access under the cross-strait economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) , more than double the 267 Chinese products and services included. At a ceremony to mark the reopening of the Alishan Highway to large vehicles, Wu said Taiwan managed to place more items than expected on its early harvest list and predicted the trade accord would help boost Taiwan's employment. Wu also said that most financial and economic scholars in Taiwan and abroad predicted Taiwan would benefit considerably from the ECFA even though it may negatively impact some local industries and services. However, the government has devised measures and earmarked funds to help sectors that could be affected by the ECFA to deal with the challenges and strengthen their competitiveness through industrial transformation and upgrading, the premier added.

Tens of thousands of opposition party supporters took to the streets in Taipei Saturday to protest a soon-to-be-signed trade agreement with China that they fear will undermine Taiwan's sovereign status and hurt its economy. Addressing the rally in front of the Presidential Office, opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen urged the public to cast a no- confidence vote in the year-end mayoral elections in five special municipalities to show their opposition to the cross-strait economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) that will be signed in Chongqing, China June 29. Former President Lee Teng-hui also led the demonstrators in chanting anti-ECFA slogans and urged the public to help the DPP secure all five mayoral seats up for grabs in the pivotal Nov. 27 elections. Commenting on the DPP-organized protest march, President Ma Ying-jeou said it would be more conducive to national development if the opposition camp joined the efforts to closely and rationally monitor the implementation of the ECFA. The following are excerpts from local media coverage of the issue: United Daily News: Su Tseng-chang, the DPP candidate for Taipei mayor in the November election, said at Saturday's rally that the ECFA panders to big corporations at the expense of small and medium-size enterprises and would eventually lead to a further widening of the wealth gap in Taiwan. Under the agreement, Taiwan will open its doors to some of China's service industries, which Su said could affect the job prospects of Taipei residents in the long run because over 80 percent of the city's employed population is working in the service sector. In response, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin, who is seeking a second term, ridiculed Su as lacking knowledge of Taipei's economic structure and having no confidence in its strength. According to Hau, Su is aware of the positive effects the ECFA will have on Taipei City but dares not voice support for the pact for fear of alienating die- hard pro-independence voters. Hau further said Taipei is not afraid of competition but rather is afraid of lack of progress. 'Su's lack of confidence in the city's development potential renders him incapable of leading the city to become a world-class metropolis,' Hau contended. (June 27, 2010). China Times: For the first time since he announced his candidacy for Taipei City mayor earlier this year, Su expressed open opposition to the ECFA Saturday. Stressing that Taipei is part of Taiwan, Su said it is unlikely that the city by itself would benefit from a policy initiative that would hurt Taiwan as a whole. The adverse effects of the ECFA will gradually spread from the agricultural and industrial sectors to the service sector, and Taipei will eventually be affected because service industries form the backbone of the city's economy, he said. In contrast, incumbent Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin said the ECFA will contribute to Taipei City's technology, cultural and filmmaking industries. 'Many local filmmakers told me at the opening of the 2010 Taipei Film Festival that the ECFA will help Taiwan tap into the vast Chinese movie market, Hau said at a farm produce trade fair Saturday. (June 27, 2010). Liberty Times: Former President Lee said at Saturday's protest rally that the ECFA would incorporate Taiwanese businesses into China's industrial chain step by step and make Taiwan's economy part of China's, which would serve China's long-term goal of bringing Taiwan under its control. Lee urged all opposition supporters to unite to ensure that the DPP candidates win the mayoral elections in five special municipalities -- Taipei, Xinbei, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung. Many of the DPP politicians who spoke at the rally said that Taiwan may gain short-term benefits from tariff cuts under the ECFA, but that a number of local factories may be forced to shut down within a few years as a result of the ECFA- prescribed market opening and a flood of cheap Chinese imports. After the ECFA is signed, China will definitely increase the pressure on Taiwan to start political talks on sensitive issues such as the establishment of a military confidence building mechanism and signing of a peace agreement, which would lead to eventual annexation of Taiwan, they warned. (June 27, 2010).

Taiwan's Lu Yen-Hsun and his partner Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia advanced to Wimbledon's round of 16 in the men's doubles Saturday, a day after Lu made history by reaching the fourth round of a grand slam tournament at the event in men's singles. Lu added another record to his tennis career Saturday as he and Tipsarevic fought past sixth seeded Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marchin Matkowske of Poland 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5, 12-10 in the second round of the men's doubles. In 2009, Lu made his debut in the men's doubles at Wimbledon but was defeated in the first round. On Friday, he became the first Taiwanese man to reach the fourth round of a grand slam tennis tournament when his third-round opponent withdrew in the third set because of an injury with Lu ahead. It was Lu's best performance since he began competing grand slam tournaments in 2004. His previous best efforts at Wimbledon were when he reached the second round in 2004 and 2005. He had also reached the third round of the Australian Open in 2009.

Su Jia-chyuan, the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) mayoral candidate in the municipality of Taichung City, officially launched his campaign office in that central Taiwan city Sunday. He promised to conduct an honest campaign to win support by projecting his visions for the city rather than by trying to belittle his opponent. He expressed gratitude to DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen, who joined him in unveiling a name plaque for the office, saying that it was very kind of Tsai to take time off from her own campaign for mayor of Xinbei City to attend the opening of his campaign office. Su, a former DPP secretary-general, vowed to do his best to win the election and lead the central Taiwan city to compete with Xinbei City, which he said hopefully will be led by Tsai. Former Government Information Office Minister Lin Chia-lung, who agreed to serve as Su's campaign manager after an unsuccessful bid for his party's nomination in Taichung, said at the opening that Tsai did a great job in the selection process because Su is the party's best chance of winning the election. Tsai praised Lin as a promising DPP star who puts the interests of the party before his own. With Lin's help, Su's victory is assured, she said. She said that a scandal which exposed a close association between senior police officers and gangsters in Taichung cast a cloud over the city, but that Su, a former interior minister and Pingtung County magistrate, would work to ensure the safety of life in the city. In response, Su said that when he was magistrate of Pingtung County, he kept close tabs on the social order situation there and was always informed within one hour of any incidents, not after four days. He was referring the fact that his Kuomintang rival in the mayoral race, the incumbent Taichung Mayor Jason Hu, was not aware of the extent of the recent scandal until four days after it erupted. Although there are various DPP factions in Taichung, they have all rallied behind his candidacy, Su said. He promised to forbid his aides from engaging in any personal character attacks during the campaign. Also on Sunday, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng who was elected in Kaohsiung County, promised to give full support to the Kuomintang mayoral candidate in that southern county, Huang Chao-shun. However, Wang said he cannot serve as Huang's campaign manager because of his demanding job in the legislature. 'I can only help her to campaign in Kaohsiung on weekends, therefore, I'd rather to serve as the nominal director of her campaign office.' Wang said. Although the incumbent Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu is considered the favorite in the race, Wang said Huang has chance because the KMT won three of the four legislative seats in Kaohsiung County two years ago.

The Taiwan Stock Exchange's main index opened higher Monday from its previous close, moving up 32.44 points at 7,507.15 on a turnover of NT$1.69 billion (US$52.81 million). The weighted price index fell 115.18 points, or 1.51 percent, to close at 7,474.71 Friday.

The U.S. dollar was traded at NT$32.023 at 9:45 a.m. Monday on the Taipei Foreign Exchange, down NT$0.157 from Friday's close.

Taiwan should speed up the pace of restructuring its old economy sector to alleviate impact after the imminent signing of the economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China, an economist said Monday. Chu Yun-peng, an economist with National Central University, said the government should make upgrading the island's traditional industries its top priority when mapping out strategies for economic development after the ECFA takes effect. Chu, a former minister without portfolio in the administration of President Ma Ying-jeou, said it is very positive that the 'early harvest' list under the trade pact makes old economy industries such as textiles, rubber and plastic products subject to tariff waivers for the mainland market. He said Taiwan should seize the opportunity to reshape its old economy sector and change its habit of concentrating its financial resources on the high-tech sector. Chu's comments came after Ma said Sunday that the government would announce new strategies for Taiwan's economic future on July 1 in a follow-up to signing the ECFA. Taiwan and China are scheduled to sign the trade pact on June 29. Chu said the transformation of the local old economy sector is expected to help Taiwan take on challenges from South Korea, which is boosting its business ties with China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Apart from the restructuring of the country's old economy sector, Chu suggested Taiwan try to introduce foreign funds, saying foreign firms will be eager to use Taiwan as a springboard to the mainland market after the ECFA is signed. According to a government estimate, the ECFA is expected to attract about US$8.9 billion in foreign direct investment. Chu said Taiwan also has to build its own brands to polish its global image and enhance its international visibility as the country competes with Japan and the United States. Late last year, the government announced it would spend NT$95 billion (US$3 billion) over the next 10 years to reshape its old economy sector, helping the sector upgrade production technology, intensify efforts in on-the-job training of blue collar workers and grant subsidies to workers affected by the ECFA.

Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin signed a contract Monday with a corporation founded by Hon Hai Group to build the 'Taipei Information Park' on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis. Hau said the park's construction is scheduled to start next year and will come into operation in 2014. The city hopes to open a Taipei version of Akihabara -- a major shopping area in Japan for electronics and computer goods -- and even replace Akihabara as Asia's most important hub for information products, he said. The mayor also said that Hon Hai Group Chairman Terry Gou promised a few days ago that the group will invest NT$200 million (US$6.24 million) to establish an innovation development fund to help young people start businesses and sponsor students to participate in international information products design competitions. Chang Jui-lin, chairman of the Hon Hai-affiliated company, said that once the park's construction is completed, it will not only be able to provide creative products and innovative services, but will also create about 1,500 jobs. He said the park will house 3C (computer, communication, consumer) and information product markets, brand-name flagship stores, multifunctional display areas, high-end product exhibition centers, a digital entertainment zone, a global electronics product testing center, an innovation incubation center, a high-rise garden and a parking area. Occupying a land area of 2,686 ping (8,864 square meters) and a floor area of 7,893 ping, the complex will provide 200 extra parking spaces for cars and an extra 450 places for bicycles and motorcycles, in addition to a legally required number of parking spaces. According to the Taipei City Department of Finance, after the park becomes operational, the city will be able to collect NT$1 billion in franchise fees and NT$17.05 million a year in land leases. It also expects to collect a total of about NT$7.06 billion in business tax and business income tax revenues under the BOT project, which will be carried out over 50 years.

Major food packaging and machinery makers who attended a just-concluded food fair in Taipei are looking forward to more overseas orders in the second half of this year, the fair organizer said Monday. 'There were many more foreign buyers visiting our booth than in previous years, ' Benison & Co. President Liao Ben-chuan said in a press statement. 'Therefore, I am very optimistic about orders in the next six months.' Aston Machinery Co. President Tu Shun-lung said in the statement that his company sold several machines during the food fair and that he believes future orders will continue to grow. Robert Ou-Young, chairman of Anko Food Machine Co., said that buyers from Japan, the United States, the Middle East and Eastern Europe placed orders for his company's products during the fair. He expected more orders from other buyers who visited his company's booth, and attributed the order growth to the recovering economy, according to the statement released by the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), the organizer of the event. The companies, however, did not provide the number of orders they received or the value of the orders in the statement. The organizer said that the four-day food fair -- which concluded on June 26 -- helped foreign buyers appreciate Taiwan's upstream and downstream food industry, with 295 domestic companies in 931 booths displaying various types of food machinery and equipment. Leo Couprie, one of the founders of Canada's Couprie, Fenton Inc., which has business partnerships in over 40 countries, told the organizer that his first visit to the food fair, now in its 20th year, was aimed at buying frozen vegetables and seafood from Taiwan. Describing the fair as very diverse, Couprie said he will assess the possibility of importing Taiwanese food products into Canada. Jozsef Rozsa, the managing director of Daisyland Hungary Ltd., said his company plans to buy canned green tea and other types of soft drinks from Taiwan and introduce them to central Europe. A total of 4,512 foreign buyers visited the food fair, up 5.67 percent from last year, with major buyers coming from China, Japan, Malaysia, Hong Kong and the Philippines. In addition, a record 959 exhibitors from 28 countries showcased various food products in 1,822 booths, the organizer said.

The pace of economic growth will slow in the second half of this year and private investment will be the main force keeping it going, Hu Chung-ying, deputy minister of the Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD), said Monday. Hu made his predictions after the CEPD reported earlier in the day that Taiwan's economy flashed a 'yellow-red' light in May, indicating the local economy is booming and ending a four-month overheating 'red light' streak. The growth rate will slow in the next six months due to the relative high comparison base for the same period last year, Hu said. He added, however, that with stable growth in production, trade and consumption, and an improvement in the labor market, overall economic growth will continue. Noting that economic growth is closely related to private sector confidence, Hu said a planned economic cooperation framework agreement that Taiwan will soon sign with China is expected to boost private enterprises' confidence and spur investment in Taiwan by foreign businesses and overseas Taiwanese companies. Nonetheless, the introduction of the Industry Innovation Act and a revised bill reducing the corporate income tax to 17 percent will also help stimulate private investment and consumption and provide good momentum for growth in the second half of this year, Hu added. He also noted that the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) on June 9 sharply raised its forecast for Taiwan's GDP growth this year to 8.5 percent from 5.6 percent, largely based on private investment. The key for EIU to revise upward its forecast was the ECFA, because the unit predicted the agreement will give Taiwan an edge in competing with South Korea in the Chinese market. It also forecast the deal will be conducive to Taiwan's efforts to join regional economic blocs or establish free trade agreements with other countries, according to Hu.

The Taiwan Stock Exchange's main index opened higher Tuesday from its previous close, moving up 53.99 points at 7,554.78 on a turnover of NT$2.54 billion (US$78.94 million). The weighted price index gained 26.08 points, or 0.34 percent, to close at 7,500.79 Monday.

Taiwan's economic monitoring indicators flashed a 'yellow-red' light in May, ending a four-month streak of 'red, ' which signals overheating, because of subdued growth in money supply and a drop in share prices. 'The new signal means that the pace of our economic expansion has slowed but the economy is still posting healthy growth, ' said Hung Jui-bin, director-general of the Economic Research Department under the Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) , at a news conference Monday. In the months ahead, Hung predicted, the domestic economy will continue its steady growth, with the monitoring indicators flashing 'green' because of relatively higher comparison bases recorded for the second half of last year. Meanwhile, CEPD Vice Chairman Hu Chung-ying said major international economic research institutions have revised upward their GDP growth forecasts for Taiwan for 2010 as they believe a new cross-Taiwan Strait trade pact will accelerate the country's economic development. Among others, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) raised its growth forecast for Taiwan to 8.5 percent earlier this month, up from its previous estimate of 5.6 percent. According to Hu, an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) is the key that will spur the country's fixed capital investment and improve job prospects. In the first five months alone, private investment already exceeded NT$447 billion, he added. The following are excerpts from the local media coverage of the issue: Commercial Times: President Ma Ying-jeou forecast optimistically Monday that Taiwan's economy is likely to post a hefty 8 percent growth this year, up from the original estimate of 6.14 percent, because the ECFA will help spur investment and industrial development. He made the remarks during a dinner with senior administration officials and heavyweight ruling Kuomintang (KMT) lawmakers on the eve of the signing of the landmark cross-strait agreement in Chongqing, China, to seek legislative support for the pact. Ma, who concurrently serves as KMT chairman, said he hopes the Legislative Yuan will hold an extra session by the end of August to screen and approve the ECFA so that the agreement can take effect in mid-September to facilitate follow-up cross-strait negotiations on investment protection and further trade liberalization. Describing the pact as very important to Taiwan's economic well-being, Ma said Taiwan's exports to China will spike on tariff cuts under the ECFA's 'early harvest' program, which will in turn fuel overall economic growth and generate more jobs. 'Up to 23,000 small- and medium-sized enterprises, with a combined work force of 420,000, will benefit from the ECFA, ' according to Ma. (June 29, 2010). Economic Daily News: The two sides of the Taiwan Strait have agreed to speed up the establishment of a cross-strait economic cooperation committee to resolve trade disputes that might arise from the implementation of the 'early harvest' program under the ECFA. Sources familiar with cross-strait affairs said China intends to assign officials from 17 of its various government departments to join the proposed cross-strait committee to address trade disputes. Those departments include China's finance and commerce ministries, as well as its customs and quality control agencies. (June 29, 2010) United Daily News: China reportedly would very much like to sign a cultural exchange agreement with Taiwan in the post-ECFA era. Chinese officials have been quoted as saying they hope the proposal can be included on the agenda of the biannual high-level cross-strait talks scheduled for the second half of this year. China especially wants to strengthen information and news exchanges with Taiwan in the hope that its media outlets will be allowed to set up offices in Taiwan. Relevant proposals, however, have received a lukewarm response from Taiwan. According to Taiwanese officials, cultural and news exchanges can be more effectively conducted by means of private or civic channels rather than through official channels. Taiwan reportedly instead most looks forward to signing an investment protection pact and a health care exchange pact in the next round of talks. (June 29, 2010). Liberty Times: It was decided during a dinner hosted by President and KMT Chairman Ma Monday in honor of KMT lawmakers that the ECFA will not be subject to a 'clause by clause' screening by the legislature and will instead be put up for screening in a whole package. The KMT-dominated legislature is expected to call an extraordinary session on July 5 at the earliest to screen the ECFA, political sources said. (June 29, 2010).

Flat panel maker Chimei Innolux Corp. said Tuesday that the monthly capacity of its 8.5th generation thin-film-transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) plant is expected to rise to 57,000 units in the third quarter of next year from the current 24,000 units. The expansion of capacity is expected to meet demand for large-sized flat panels, the company said. After the company's annual general meeting, company chief executive officer C.H. Tuan said products from the 8.5G plant have been overbooked, with monthly orders reaching 55,000 to 56,000 units. Tuan said the company has poured more than NT$40 billion (US$1.25 billion) into capacity expenditure so far this year, mainly to expand the capacity of the 8.5G plant and an older 6G plant. At the end of this year, the 8.5G plant is expected to be producing 27,000 units per month, he said. The 8.5G plant started operations at the beginning of this year, churning out flat panels for 50-inch TVs or larger. The company's 2010 capital expenditure is expected to total NT$100 billion. While rival AU Optronics sought regulatory approval in March to set up a 7.5G plant in Kunshan, in China's Jiangsu Province, after the government lifted a ban on such high tech investment, Tuan said Chimei Innolux has no immediate plans to do likewise. Tuan said the company will wait until the 8.5G plant has expanded its capacity to a certain level before going to China. The government in February relaxed China investment restrictions for the local high tech sector by allowing flat panel makers to build up to three 6G or above flat panel plants in China. However, local flat panel producers who want to build plants above 6G must operate plants in Taiwan that are at least one generation ahead in technology.

between Taiwan and China on Tuesday marked a major, historic step. The deal will not only boost bilateral economic and trade exchanges but also take cross-Taiwan Strait relations to a new milestone. Judging from the ECFA's 'early-harvest' program, which includes 539 Taiwan goods and 267 China products, Beijing has indeed displayed its sincerity and goodwill by honoring its promise to make concessions to Taiwan. The agreement will help increase mutual understanding and eliminate hostility between the two sides, laying a solid foundation for creating a future of coexistence and co-prosperity. However, many things remain to be done after the trade pact's conclusion. One of them is sending the agreement to the Legislative Yuan for review, and partisan wrangling is bound to erupt. Another issue will be the progress of Taiwan's bids to seal free trade agreements with other countries, which will be a barometer of China's goodwill. How to protect weak industries and workers from the impact of the ECFA will also be a challenge that the two sides will have to face.

President Ma Ying-jeou reiterated Friday that he has requested China not to hinder or block Taiwan's bid to forge free trade agreements (FTAs) with other countries, but he did not indicate if he has received a response. 'As a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) , Taiwan is entitled to signing the FTAs, ' the president said while meeting a group of presidential advisers on industrial affairs. China has been said to be behind Taiwan's failed attempt to reach FTA arrangements with the world's major economic players. On the proposed economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) that his administration hopes to sign with China in June, Ma said it is a part of Taiwan's global economic strategy. 'The ECFA is just one important step in Taiwan participating in regional economic integration,' the president said. Taiwan stands a greater chance to strike FTAs with other countries after inking the trade pact with China, as it is expected to help Taiwan become stronger, establish better links with other parts of the Asia Pacific region, and reshape its global deployment. President Ma said he will personally lead a government task force to expedite Taiwan's FTA drive. He also told his advisers that the International Monetary Fund has recently forecast 6.5 percent economic growth for Taiwan this year, showing that the country is doing well in reviving its economy and the government also foresees continued improvement in the near future.

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) said Friday that although Taiwan is no longer on the USTR Special 301 watch list, this does not mean there is no dispute between Taipei and Washington on the issue of intellectual property rights (IPR) protection. The United States will continue to talk with Taiwan on the issue, the office said. The office made the statement after publishing its 2010 Special Report earlier in the day. The annual report examines IPR protection adequacy and effectiveness in many countries around the world. Nations that fall short of U.S.-set standards can be placed on the Priority Watch List, the Watch List, and/or Section 306 Monitoring status. The lists are used as a reference by the U.S. government when it decides whether or not to impose trade sanctions against those that it considers have not adopted strict enough copyright laws and those it feels have not taken an active role in combating copyright infringements. Since Taiwan was first placed on the Special 301 watch list in 1989, its name has usually remained there. In 2009, it was left off the list for the first time in over a decade, and the exclusion continued in the 2010 report. However, IPR disputes between the U.S. and Taiwan still exist, USTR officials noted, underlining that the U.S. will continue trying to talk with its trade partners to resolve IPR problems. Meanwhile, Taiwan's representative office in the U.S. said it was delighted to hear that Taiwan had been left off the watch list.

A Taiwanese medical team has treated more than 2,700 people during a 10-day mission to Nepal, the head of the team said Saturday as it prepared to return to Taiwan via New Delhi after winding up its mission. Chen Chih-fu, head of the Taiwan International Health Action (Taiwan IHA) under the International Cooperation and Development Fund, said the 14-member team included internal, surgical and pediatric doctors, as well as obstetricians and gynecologists, family medicine doctors, dentists, pharmacists, nurses and other volunteers. Chen said the team went to the villages of Balambu, Sitapaila, Khokana, Thecho and Tokha around Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, to provide the medical services. He said the quality of basic medical care in the area is poor and that he will seek support for the region from medical institutions after returning to Taiwan. Chen expressed hope that they will provide medicine or dispatch medical personnel once or twice per year to offer treatment. 'We will definitely return next year,' he went on. In addition, he said, the Taiwan IHA has traveled to Darjeeling in West Bengal every year for the past five years to provide medical services, and he is planning to go there again at the end of this year or early next year.

The Taiwan historical site known as the Red House has undergone renovation and now plays a community role that draws a varied crowd of artists, tourists, moviegoers and people with alternative lifestyles. 'The goal of the team assigned to manage the historical site is to set up the place as a platform for developing a multi-cultural environment, transforming it into a development center for cultural and creative industries in Taipei, ' said Liu Wen-ting, vice supervisor of the Red House under the Taipei Culture Foundation. The Red House is a Western-style brick structure in Taipei's Ximending area, built in 1908 during Japanese occupation. The location originally served as one of Taipei's earliest public markets. The Department of Cultural Affairs of the Taipei City Government commissioned the Taipei Culture Foundation to manage the Red House in November 2007. The area started to undertake a series of cultural transformations, including the creation of a 'Creative Boutique' marketplace for artists and designers in the Cruciform Building section of the Red House; the opening of the Moonlight Movie Theater every weekend; and reorganization of an outdoor cafe. 'After the renovation, about 300,000 visitors come every month, 40 percent of them from other countries, ' Liu told the Central News Agency, adding that most of the tourists come from Hong Kong or Japan. Many tourists from mainland China also visit to learn how the place has been managed and revitalized, Liu said. The key mission of the management team now is to go from helping young, amateur creators present their works to helping artists have their own boutiques and develop their art careers, Liu said. 'Currently we have 16 boutiques inside the Red House, and we have also started to hold exhibitions to present some of the artwork here in the main area. The first of these are the works of the artist Heidi (Huang) -- this exhibit runs through the end of June, ' Liu said, adding that the foundation will take artists to Shanghai in June to promote their works there as well. Another development is centered in the south plaza behind the building: The area has become a popular hangout for the gay community. The square is surrounded by many cafes and bars with open-air seating; at night people gather to enjoy live bands and cocktails. 'This area used to be called 'Rainbow Plaza' due to its open and free attitude toward homosexuals, ' said Vincent Lee, owner of the Taipei Bear Bar. 'But now many people bring their families, and tourists come here too; in the future, I believe, the place will belong to everyone,' he said. An owner who goes by the name Gaga agreed. 'I have many customers, not just gays, from Japan and other countries. The reason they come here so often is because we have become good friends. They come here to see me and I will introduce them to some interesting new places, even be their tour guide, ' he said. Gaga has operated a bar in the plaza for more than five years, and said Ximending has traditionally been gay-friendly. 'That's probably why many gay friends like to come here, ' he said. Gaga said he is optimistic about the development of the neighborhood. 'The area has convenient public transportation as well as many restaurants, cafes and gyms that attract people, not just gay friends but also tourists from other countries and local friends too, ' he said. Gaga said the area's charm was so irresistible that he closed another store in Taipei's Neihu Technology Park so he could move to Ximending to live two years ago. By Sunnie Chen selfnews Staff Reporter

Taiwan's freedom of the press has been declining since 2008. According to a new report released on Thursday by US-based non- profit watchdog Freedom House, Taiwan's freedom of the press ranked 47th globally, a drop of four places from last year. The report said a revival of 'embedded marketing' caused by economic difficulties, action by media owners and government influence over the editorial content of publicly owned outlets posed challenges for media independence in Taiwan. In a democratic country, the government should not threaten or seduce media to serve as a mouthpiece of the government. During the economic slump, however, the government has paid the media for packaging the government's propaganda in their news content so the audience cannot distinguish the truth. The government has also tried to pressure the media by amending laws and suing media for breaking the law. In addition, it has used its power to threaten specific media and to keep people's mouths shut. If the government's attitude of controlling media does not change, Taiwan's press freedom rating will continue to drop. (May 1, 2010)

Prominent names in Taiwan's performing arts circle, including the Contemporary Legend Theatre and the Ming Hua Yuan Arts and Cultural Group, will present acclaimed productions at the Shanghai World Expo 2010, as major attractions of the show's June 3-29 Taipei Culture Week. As a series of cultural events, including painting exhibitions, musical performances and screening of Taiwanese films will be held during the four-week cultural event, the Taipei city government has invited prominent artists to showcase Taiwan's performing arts achievements. Ming Hua Yuan Arts and Cultural Group, which is famous for employing modern stage effects in presenting traditional Taiwanese opera, the U- Theatre, with its powerful drum performances, Guoguang Opera Company, with its name for adapting new themes and attempting new interpretations of old stories, as well as Taiwan's pioneer of new theater -- the Contemporary Legend Theater -- will present productions. On June 16 -- Taipei Day at the expo -- the U-Theatre will collaborate with the Taipei Chinese Orchestra and the Taipei symphony Orchestra to unveil a showcase of Taiwan's theater groups. As the Dragon Boat festival, which falls on the fifth day of the fifth moon, falls on June 16 this year, the Ming Hua Yuan has decided to stage the romantic 'Legend of the White Snake, ' a popular folk opera during the Dragon Boat Festival season for centuries. The famous Peking opera diva Wei Hai-min and the Guoguang Opera Company will present a new production adapted from renowned contemporary novelist Eileen Chang's novel titled 'Golden Cangue.' The late novelist's name is a familiar one in Chinese communities around the world. Under the leadership of Wu Hsing-kuo, a group of Peking opera actors and contemporary dancers founded the Contemporary Legend Theatre in 1986 and its first production, titled 'Kingdom of Desire' -- an adaptation of Shakespeare's tragedy 'Macbeth' -- won high acclaim, both at home and abroad. The Contemporary Legend Theatre will also present 'Kingdom of Desire' at the expo and show audiences the experimental fusing of Western theatrical forms into the singing, acting, reciting and acrobatic technique of traditional Chinese opera. Meanwhile, the Ping Fond Acting Troupe, which is famous for its modern comedies, will present its recent production 'Can Three Make It Part I,' an award- winning show that mocks the absurdity and chaos of urban life.

Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen said Sunday the party 'does not rule out the possibility of entering into direct and substantial dialogue with China if there are no political preconditions.' The DPP cannot let the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) dominate Taiwan's channels of communication to the international community and China, she said. Tsai's remarks signaled the DPP is likely to introduce radical changes to its China policy. The following are excerpts from local media coverage of the issue: China Times: Tsai made the comments at a seminar preparing her proposal for a 10-year DPP political platform that will address the challenges Taiwan faces in the coming decade. Tsai said that the KMT's strategy to approach the world through Beijing could lead to Taiwan only reaching China and eventually being regarded as part of China by the international community. The strategy could cost Taiwan its sovereignty and strip the people of their rights to decide the country's future, Tsai contended. On the other hand, the DPP's strategy of developing relations with China gradually has taken into consideration the nation's sovereignty, national security and economic security, Tsai said. The DPP leader added that her party holds fast to the principles that Taiwan and China maintain relations that are reciprocal and not discriminatory, peaceful and not confrontational, and equal and not subordinate. She said that although the DPP is not a ruling party, it can live up to public expectations and represent the mainstream better than the KMT. Therefore, she said, the DPP has a responsibility to accurately convey public opinion to the international community. (May 3, 2010). Liberty Times: Tsai made it clear for the first time Sunday that the international community and China should not view Taiwan through the ruling KMT and that the DPP does not exclude direct talks with China to communicate the views of the Taiwan people. Former Mainland Affairs Council Chairman Chen Ming-tong said that the DPP chairwoman's remarks can be considered as a message to China. Chen suggested that Taiwan and China establish official representatives in each other's capitals to replace quasi-official relations between Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) and China's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS). Responding to DPP criticism, Presidential Office spokesman Lo Chih-chiang criticized the former DPP administration for not opening direct flights between Taiwan and China. With the opening, President Ma Ying-jeou has successfully helped the people save a lot in flight tickets and travel time. Lo also criticized the DPP for saying the government is too hasty in pursuing a proposed trade pact with China, after the DPP government did not sign free trade agreements with any of its major partners while in power. (May 3, 2010) United Daily News: Tsai also said that the DPP would not accept the 'one China' framework and that Taiwan's most important safeguard against Beijing was its vibrant democracy, love of liberty and respect for human rights. She said that any new policy on China would be formulated in accordance with democratic procedures, and would only become national policy after it wins public support through a referendum. (May 3, 2010).

The U.S. dollar gained ground against the New Taiwan dollar on the Taipei Foreign Exchange Monday, rising NT$0.101 to close at the day's high of NT$31.519. A total of US$778 million changed hands during the trading session. The U.S. dollar opened at NT$31.418 and fell to NT$31.362 before rebounding.

An international court of arbitration has ruled that the French company that sold six Lafayette-class frigates to Taiwan in 1991 violated a provision in the contract that barred the payment of commissions, the Ministry of National Defense said Monday. According to the ruling, Thales -- the French contractor that sold the Lafayette frigates to Taiwan when it was still known as Thomson-CSF -- will have to pay Taiwan a penalty of US$591 million as well as interest, litigation fees and other related expenses. Altogether, the French contractor will have to pay Taiwan over NT$18 billion, the ministry said. As the deal concerns Taiwan's national interests and the military's honor, the ministry said it will insist that the French contractor faithfully fulfill its obligations in accordance with the ruling given by the ICC International Court of Arbitration. The main reason Thales lost the arbitration was because it violated Article 18 of the US$2.5 billion Lafayette contract, which prohibited payments of commission. The request for arbitration was filed by Taiwan's navy in 2001. Taiwan demanded the repayment of US$520 million of unlawful kickbacks, including US$495 million paid to Andrew Wang, a Taiwanese arms broker and US$25 million paid to Alfred Sirven, a former vice chairman of the French oil firm Elf- Aquitaine. Sirven was known to play the role of money laundering and allocation of the kickbacks. Wang, the French arms supplier Thompson-CSF's agent in Taiwan, fled Taiwan following the death of Navy Capt. Yin Ching-feng under suspicious circumstances in late 1993. Yin is believed to have been poised to blow the whistle on colleagues who had allegedly received kickbacks from the Lafayette deal. Wang has been wanted by Taiwan authorities on a murder charge since September 2000.

The Taiwan Stock Exchange's main index opened higher Tuesday than its previous close, moving up 54.62 points at 8,006.79 on a turnover of NT$2.79 billion (US$88.52 million). The weighted price index lost 52.08 points, or 0.65 percent, to close at 7,952.17 Monday.

The Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) has approved a request by Taiwan's carriers to increase fuel surcharges on international routes to help them offset an increase in aviation fuel prices. The new measures, to take effect on tickets issued from May 17, will see the fuel surcharge raised to US$20 from US$17.50 per passenger for each short-haul flight and to US$52 from US$45.50 for each long-haul flight. That means the round-trip fuel charge will be increased by NT$157 (US$5) per person for short-haul flights and by NT$408 per person for long-haul flights, the CAA said in a statement issued Monday. A fuel surcharge is a fee added to a ticket by an airline to temporarily offset increases in jet fuel prices. The increase came after state-run oil refiner CPC Corp., Taiwan announced Monday it would raise the price of aviation fuel to US$103.18 per barrel, prompting local carriers flying international routes to petition the CAA for an increase in the surcharge. This is the first time Taiwan's airlines have hiked fuel surcharges since Dec. 15, 2009. Meanwhile, Taiwan's China Airlines and EVA Airways Corp., the country's biggest carriers, will from May 11 raise the surcharges on flights between Taiwan and Hong Kong by US$1 to US$11.8 based on Hong Kong's adjustment mechanism.

The United States reacted favorably to President Ma Ying-jeou's recent interview on CNN, while Chinese scholars saw a controversial remark he made as signaling his determination to pursue better ties with China. 'The United States welcomes the recent reduction of tensions in the Taiwan Strait that President Ma referred to in his interview, ' said Chris Kavanaugh, spokesman of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) , which represents the U.S. in Taiwan in the absence of formal diplomatic ties. 'We believe continued cross-Strait dialogue furthers regional peace, stability and prosperity. We hope these efforts continue,' he said. Kavanaugh gave the e-mail statement in response to a question on how the U.S. interpreted Ma's most controversial comment -- that 'we will never ask the American[s] to fight for Taiwan' -- in the interview with CNN host Chritiane Amanpour, broadcast April 30. 'United States policy toward Taiwan is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act and the three U.S.-China Joint Communiques. There has been no change to our 'One China' policy, ' Kavanaugh said. According to its 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, the U.S. has the obligation to help defend Taiwan and to provide Taiwan with defensive weapons. Meanwhile, Beijing-based English-language newspaper China Daily quoted Chinese experts as saying that Ma's pledge that Taiwan will never ask the U.S. to help fight a war with the mainland demonstrates his determination to push for better ties across the Taiwan Strait. Ma was the first Taiwanese 'leader' who dared to say 'never' to U.S. help, China Daily quoted Chen Xiancai, a researcher at the Taiwan Studies Center at Xiamen University, as saying. Li Jiaquan, a senior researcher with the Institute of Taiwan Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said while the pro-independence opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) always attempted to drag America into a war to help its push for Taiwan independence, Ma is trying to rule out such a possibility, the newspaper reported. President Ma has received strong support from within his party for his comments, with Legislative Yuan speaker Wang Jin-pyng saying Monday that Taiwan's government has actively sought arms sales from the U.S., reflecting its strong determination to defend itself. 'Only when we are capable of defending ourselves can we be treated equally and fairly at the negotiating table with China, ' Wang said. Taichung Mayor Jason Hu, who served as foreign minister before the DPP took power in 2000, also defended the president's remark. Hu said that Ma's comment underlined Taiwan's dignity and determination -- dignity in cross-strait relations and determination to defend itself. Following protests from the DPP, Government Information Office Minister Johnny Chiang said Monday that Ma's remarks did not preclude Washington from helping Taiwan defend itself, as the United States could decide on its own whether to come to Taiwan's defense. Hsiao Bi-khim, director of the DPP's International Affairs Department, accused Ma Sunday of undermining national security by eliminating the vagueness Washington has deliberately maintained on how it would respond to a possible Chinese attack against Taiwan. The pro-independence Formosan Association for Public Affairs (FAPA) , a Washington-based grassroots organization representing Taiwanese-Americans, argued that the comment could increase rather than ease cross-Strait tensions. 'A statement as made by Mr. Ma actually invites aggression from China, which has been threatening Taiwan's free and democratic existence for many years,' the group said in a statement.

An economic growth rate of more than 5 percent appears attainable for Taiwan in 2010, given the excellent performance of major indices, Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-shiang said Tuesday. Addressing a seminar on Asia's political and economic outlook held by the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER) , Shih said Taiwan's economy is recovering steadily, a trend which he said has been highlighted in many forecasts and statistics. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has predicted that Taiwan will post 6.5 percent economic growth this year, and the TIER is expecting 5.11 percent growth, Shih said. The government's official forecast is 4.72 percent. In addition, Taiwan's industrial production index and export orders both recorded historical highs in March, while the wholesale and retail sectors are improving as well, Shih said. The minister cautioned, however, that Taiwan needed to pay attention to four potential problems ahead as the economy continues to improve. Unemployment is one of them, he said, and although there is no quick solution to Taiwan's structural unemployment, the government is creating more job opportunities in an effort to lower the jobless rate. Shih also expressed concerns that the already big gap between rich and poor may widen further. Commodity price volatility is another problem likely to accompany economic growth, he said. Taking rising oil prices as an example, the minister said the government has the responsibility to help prevent large price fluctuations, but he acknowledged it was limited in what it could do because Taiwan is a free market. Taiwan's uneven industrial structure was the other problem mentioned by Shih. The government, he said, should ensure that every sector is equally developed to strengthen the overall industrial structure.

The ratio of enterovirus infection has already surpassed the alert level in Taiwan, with the peak epidemic season still roughly a month away, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) warned Tuesday. Deputy CDC Director-General Lin Ting quoted national health insurance data as indicating that 6.6 people out of every 1,000 patients seeking emergency medical attention last week were suffering from enterovirus. The ratio was above the alert level, set at 5.24 people out of every 1,000 patients, the CDC said. Most of the reported cases were mild bouts of the virus, Ting said, but he warned that more severe cases could emerge among children under the age of 5 as the number of mild cases grows and spreads to them. Lin said that as of Monday, seven severe enterovirus cases had been confirmed around the country this year, including a 2-year-old girl who had been in critical condition but has gradually recovered since. Enteroviruses are the most common cause of aseptic meningitis and can be deadly, especially in infants. Enterovirus type 71 (EV71) is the deadliest type of the virus and one of the major causes of hand-foot-and-mouth syndrome. It is also sometimes associated with severe central nervous system diseases, according to the CDC. In 1998, Taiwan experienced a serious outbreak of EV71, with 405 severe infections recorded, 78 of which were fatal. Another EV71 outbreak in 2005 resulted in 145 severe infections, 15 of which were fatal. Lin said that although as many as 90 percent of adults who regularly take care of infants or young children in Taiwan know they must wash their hands before feeding or touching a child, less than 70 percent of them maintain proper sanitary habits. If a child begins to experience enterovirus symptoms, such as high fever, vomiting and cramps, they should be immediately taken to a hospital instead of a neighborhood clinic for treatment, he said. In another finding of a recent survey conducted by the CDC, 32 percent of adults have no idea that seizures and acute flaccid paralysis were enterovirus-related symptoms, Lin said.

An exhibition featuring 146 cultural and historical artifacts from 32 museums in 11 provinces of China will open at the National Museum of History (NMH) in Taipei in June, according to the NMU. The exhibition was held in several cities in Japan last year and recently is touring in China, but Taipeis exhibit features not only the historical relics, but integrates them with new technology and online games,said Pauline Kao, Deputy Director of the NMH. The Three Kingdoms era is a period in the history of China around the time of 220 and 280 AD. The period is relatively short, only about 60 years, but is one of the well- known eras in Chinese history because of the classic fictional epicRomance of the Three Kingdomsand the recent movieRed Cliff , Kao said. The exhibit, entitledLegends of HeroesXThe Heritage of the Three Kingdoms Era,will showcase more than 60 pieces of state-class or first grade antiques among 146 artifacts, said Victoria Lu, the organizer of the event. The exhibit will present many aspects of the period, such as the culture, arts, politics, and economy of those times, she indicated. One of the largest relics that will be on display is a burial suit that was made for the father of a warlord during that period, Cao Cao, following the father's death, Kao said. The suit is threaded with silver lining onto more than 2,000 decorative jade pieces. The tomb of Cao Cao was unearthed in Luoyang, Henan last year, according to Kao, adding that other than Japan and mainland China, the burial suit had never been shown anywhere else. In addition to displaying the relics, the museum will also use 3D virtual technology and modern online games to raise the interest of younger generation, Kao stressed. The exhibit will open on June 5 and run until Sept. 5.

The Taiwan branch of U.S. software giant Microsoft Corp. showcased cloud computing applications created by local companies on Microsoft platforms, at a summit Tuesday in Taipei, with the aim of forging closer partnerships in a country known for its technology strength. At the Microsoft Taiwan event that featured remote server-enabled Internet applications and services, Jose Liao, a senior manager at Asus Taiwan, displayed what he called a 'Biking Map' on a tablet personal computer with a multi-touch screen and a global positioning system (GPS). The 'Biking Map' allows travelers to share photos and articles anywhere they have access to the Internet, and to show a trip timeline using Microsoft's Bing Maps, he said. In a presentation on how consultants can better advise clients on retirement wealth management, director of Acer Taiwan's marketing division Lawrence Lin displayed different charts and figures via a multi-touch computer screen. John Kalkman, a Microsoft vice president who has been in Taiwan for the past three months promoting stronger partnerships with local companies, showed a video that envisioned a digital future. In the digital world of the future, people will be able to read digital newspapers, store all their credit card information on one small card, communicate via real-time translation screens, and move images from a big screen to a hand-held device, the video demonstrated. 'I think it's possible to do that with a lot of collaboration, ' Kalkman said. 'We can't do what you just saw without a great vibrant ecosystem like there is here in Taiwan, ' he told an audience of over 500 representatives from local companies. Microsoft Taiwan hopes to work with Taiwanese companies to build a sound ecosystem for cloud computing, according to its general manager Davis Tsai. 'We alone cannot build such an ecosystem. It is important for us to work with our partners in Taiwan to achieve this, ' he said in his opening remarks. On the sidelines of the summit, Microsoft Taiwan also arranged meetings for its hardware and software partners to forge alliances with local companies. Microsoft will invest US$9.5 billion in research and development (R&D) this year, according to Tsai. 'Seventy percent of the R&D this year is being spent on cloud computing, while the ratio will increase to 90 percent next year,' he said. In the field of cloud computing, Microsoft now has 19 business partners in Taiwan, including Taiwan's largest telecom operator, Chunghwa Telecom Co. Microsoft has also formed alliances with government agencies and educational institutions in Taiwan. The Taiwan government recently unveiled a NT$24 billion investment plan to be rolled out over the next five years with the aim of boosting the country's industrial output in cloud computing to NT$1 trillion.

The Central Election Commission (CEC) passed a referendum proposal Tuesday initiated by the opposition Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) on a planned cross- Taiwan Strait trade pact. TSU Chairman Huang Kun-hui initiated the proposal, in which he asked if the public agrees with the government's signing of an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China. The CEC said that according to the Referendum Law, a referendum proposal, in order to become valid, requires the signatures collected to reach 0.5 percent of the total eligible voters in the latest presidential election. As the number of eligible voters in the 2008 presidential election was 17.32 million, this means Huang needed to collect more than 86,600 signatures in order for the process to continue to the next stage. However, Huang collected 109,720 signatures, the CEC said, adding that the petition will now be sent to the Referendum Screening Committee under the Executive Yuan for confirmation. The committee will notify the CEC of the confirmation results within 30 days. The TSU head, who believes the signing of the ECFA will compromise Taiwan's sovereignty and make the country even more reliant on China, will then require to collect more than 866,000 signatures -- 5 percent of the number of eligible voters in the last presidential election -- in order for the ECFA question to be put to a referendum.

Opposition Democratic Progressive Party Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen has argued that the signing of an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) between Taiwan and China would create a 'China-centered East Asia' and would weaken and marginalize the U.S. role in the region. Tsai received a slap in the face, however, when the American Institute in Taiwan said the United States welcomed the establishment of the cross-Taiwan Strait trade pact. The U.S. approval of President Ma Ying-jeou's cross-strait policy indicates a shift in Washington's strategic thinking: In dealing with China, Taiwan must move from confrontation to peace, and from military and political wrestling to economic and trade co-opetition. Washington probably is well aware that it would be impossible for the United States to meddle in cross-strait relations with military means; and the best way to balance cross-strait ties is to help Taiwan become a regional economic platform. Blocking the ECFA would be equal to denying foreign and Chinese businesses access to Taiwan, which would in turn undermine Taiwan's strategic goal of using an international economic and trade network to build up its national security system. What Taiwan can and should do is open its doors rapidly and improve its economic and trade environment, allowing businesses from Taiwan, China, the United States and other countries to form an intricate 'interest group' in Taiwan and become Taiwan's security system. Signing the ECFA with China will only be a very small step. However, without this small step, Taiwan will not have anything else.

The U.S. dollar gained ground against the New Taiwan dollar on the Taipei Foreign Exchange Wednesday, rising NT$0.14 to close at NT$31.6. A total of US$1.38 billion changed hands during the trading session. The U.S. dollar opened at NT$31.56 and fluctuated between NT$31.48 and NT$31.602. (By Olivia Wang)

The government would seek to terminate the future economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China if the deal were vetoed by the people in a referendum, Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-shiang said Wednesday. According to Shih, if the ECFA were rejected in a referendum, it would mean that the agreement is invalid in Taiwan. 'We would then notify the mainland, in accordance with a 'termination clause, ' to have the agreement terminated within a certain period of time, ' the minister told legislators during a meeting of the Legislative Yuan's Economics Committee. The administration of President Ma Ying-jeou has set a goal of signing the trade pact with China in June. Concerned that the ECFA would undermine Taiwan's sovereignty, the pro- independence camp led by the opposition Democratic Progressive Party and the Taiwan Solidarity Union is strongly against the plan and is currently pushing for a referendum on the trade pact. Shih said if the ECFA is signed in June as planned, the Cabinet will submit the agreement to the legislature for review in June or July. Even after the agreement has obtained the legislature's endorsement, the people can still express their objections to it through a referendum, Shih said. 'We must respect public opinion. Referendums are one of the options available to the people,' he said. The minister stressed that the government would not agree to measures that harm Taiwan's interests, citing a recent statement by Ma that he would give up the ECFA if Taiwan's interests cannot be secured in the deal.

Movie producer Hsu Li-kong called for support Wednesday from the Kinmen County government to film a sequel to the award-winning 'Eat Drink Man Woman.' The movie, which won the best film award at the Asia Pacific Film Festival in 1994, tells the story of a semi-retired widowed master chef and his three daughters and includes numerous scenes of the technique and artistry of gourmet Chinese cuisine. The highly acclaimed film was produced by Hsu and directed by Ang Lee. Now, 16 years later, Hsu is aiming to achieve similar success with a sequel. Hsu said he would like the sequel to feature Kinmen's famous Kaoliang (sorghum) liquor and its well-preserved architecture that originated in Fujian province, southern China. Kinmen County Magistrate Lee Wo-shi welcomed Hsu's ideas, saying that the filming will be 'a prime opportunity to market the county.' According to Hsu, the sequel will address the issues of global warming and environmental protection. 'For this reason, vegetarian dishes in gourmet Chinese cuisine will also be featured,' he said. The plot involves six decades of separation on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, the military confrontations in the 1950s, the thawing of cross-strait relations and the establishment of direct transport links between Kinmen and Fujian province in 2001, he revealed. Hsu is seeking funding of 20 million yuan (around US$2,929,390) for the film and is hoping that each side of Taiwan Strait will meet half of the budget. The movie will be filmed in mid-September and will premiere in Kinmen and Xiamen on Feb. 14, 2011, he said.

A Taiwanese vegetable vendor who received Time magazine's 100 most influential people award for 2010 said Wednesday she prefers living in quiet and peaceful Taitung to crowded New York, although she added that Americans are very friendly. The 61-year-old Chen Shu-chu asked the press not to follow her as she went sightseeing in the Big Apple Wednesday after attending the awards banquet at Time Warner Center the previous day. Shen said that given her low-key personality, too much media attention would make her uncomfortable. Chen said she enjoys her life of haggling over prices at a market in Taitung City on Taiwan's east coast, where she has worked since she was 13 years old. Over the years, Chen has donated nearly NT$10 million (US$320,000) to various charities from her modest income. To her surprise, her generosity is now earning her international accolades. As for a party her family is planning to welcome her when she returns to Taiwan, Chen said that she only wants a bowl of noodles, and that she will ask her family to make the event as frugal as possible. During her first three days in New York, Chen took a horse-drawn carriage ride through Central Park. She said that it was her first time in such a carriage and that the city was full of picturesque views. She also visited Times Square and the United Nations headquarters before being interviewed by The Associated Press and Voice of America. Chen will head to San Francisco Thursday for a flight home on May 8.

Taiwan enjoys equal treatment as other observers in the World Health Assembly (WHA) , an official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Thursday. Hsu Lee-wen, deputy director of the MOFA's International Organizations Department, was rebutting a reported statement by the leader of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) that Taiwan participated in the WHA last year as a non-governmental organization affiliated to China. The Taiwan delegation was given the same rights and opportunities as other observers to participate in WHA activities last year, said Hsu at a news conference, in response to comments attributed to DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen in a local newspaper. The Liberty Times, citing Tsai, questioned Tuesday the conditions under which Taiwan was allowed to participate in the WHA last year and called on the administration of President Ma Ying-jeou to make public its negotiation process with the assembly, which is the executive arm of the World Health Organization. But Hsu stressed that the Taiwan delegation was given the same rights and opportunities as other observers in the WHA last year. She said that Department of Health (DOH) Minister Yaung Chih-liang will lead a delegation to the WHA this year from May 17-21 in Geneva and will give a speech there. Meanwhile, Yuang stressed the importance of taking part in the annual global event and noted that last year he received the WHA invitation in his capacity as health minister. This was an indication that Taiwan was viewed as a country, he added. 'Our attendance (this year) will underscore the existence of Taiwan, and our next step is to take part in the WHA using our official title of the Republic of China,' he said. Taiwan participated in the WHA for the first time in 2009, with observer status and under the name 'Chinese Taipei,' after 12 years of failed attempts to do so. Along with the Vatican, the international Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Taiwan gained an observer status in the World Health Assembly in May last year.

President Ma Ying-jeou does not plan to visit Taiwan's diplomatic allies in Africa this year, as he is expected to be preoccupied with domestic affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Thursday. 'The president is expected to be busy taking precautions against possible natural disasters for the coming summer period, as well as the country's economic affairs and the year-end elections in the five special municipalities, ' Chen Shih-liang, director-general of the MOFA's Department of African Affairs, said at a press conference. Local media had earlier reported that Ma will pay a visit to Taiwan's African allies -- Swaziland, Burkina Faso, Sao Tome and Principe and the Gambia -- in the autumn. He said that in line with Africa Day celebrations May 25, MOFA will stage a series of activities in celebration of the 50th anniversary of African countries that became independent in 1960. The activities, Chen said, will include a Taiwan-Africa football friendly championship, exhibitions featuring Taiwanese assistance to Africa and an Africa-themed carnival. Ma will also attend an Africa Day cocktail party to be held at Taipei City's Huashan Culture Park May 25, Chen said.

About 34 percent of Taiwanese women between the ages of 45 and 60 suffer from menopause silently because they fear being stigmatized, the Taiwanese Association of Menopause said Tuesday, urging menopausal women to seek early medical attention which can reduce the discomfort. Studies show that 45 percent of Taiwanese women of menopausal age complain of the usual discomfort that accompanies menopause, including flushes, insomnia, vaginal dryness, fatigue, excessive sweating, reduced libido, frequent urination, and mood swings, according to Lee Chyi-long, chairman of the association. However, 34 percent Taiwanese women who suffer such symptoms are reluctant to seek professional help for fear of being labeled, said Lee, who is also director of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital's Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Instead, many suffering women turn to nutritional supplements or exercise to help alleviate their discomfort, Lee said. While some supplements such as calcium, and regular aerobic exercise can help lessen minor complications, it is important to seek professional medical help, such as hormone replacement therapy (HRT), if the symptoms linger or worsen, Lee advised. A 58 year-old cosmetologist surnamed Chia said during menopause that 'my life was turned upside down.' 'I was sweating so much that it felt like I had plunged into the pool three or four times a day. It was embarrassing and humiliating, 'she said, adding that her severe mood swings also took a toll on her relationship with her family. Chia said at first she did not know that she was experiencing menopause so she went to different doctors, such as an orthopedic specialist for her back pain and other complications. But she finally realized that she was going through menopause, and sought proper help. The quality of her life improved dramatically after a few months of proper diet and hormone replacement therapy. But the percentage of Taiwanese women of menopausal age suffering from menopause is actually much lower than the over 80 percent of their American and European counterparts, said Lee. A possible explanation for the difference is that Taiwanese women consume a high-legume, soy bean-based diet, which contains phytoestrogen, a natural chemical some believe helps ease the discomfort. Lee shared. Moreover, due to the close-knit structure of families in Taiwan, many women feel emotionally supported through the process, he added.

A proposed cross-Taiwan Strait economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) will help Taiwan achieve sustained economic growth once it is signed, an economist with the United Nations said Thursday. Nagesh Kumar, chief and top economist of the Macroeconomic Policy and Development Division under the U.N.'s Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) , said in an interview with selfnews that China is the fastest-growing economy in the world and that the Asia-Pacific countries will benefit as a result. Earlier that day at its Bangkok headquarters, ESCAP released its 'Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2010' in which it forecasts a 4.5 percent economic growth for Taiwan. Kumar suggested that Taiwan should not back off from its economic stimulus measures too early, as its economy relies heavily on exports, making it vulnerable to market shrinkages in the United States and Europe. He also urged Taiwan, in addition to continuing its current economic development policy, to also make efforts to expand its domestic market and take part in regional economic integration, including with China. Taiwan hopes to sign the ECFA with China in June in an effort to further sharpen its competitiveness.

The government will not issue any policy instructions on recent fluctuations on the Taiwan Stock Exchange because it wants the bourse to develop in a healthy manner, Premier Wu Den-yih said Friday. Wu was responding to press inquiries about a possible government response after the weighted price index fell nearly 200 points upon opening earlier in the day in reaction to drastic falls on almost all the world's stock markets due to concern about the national debt crisis in Greece. Stressing that the government's main role in stock trading is to prevent irregularities and scandals, Wu said the Cabinet is focused on creating a favorable economic environment for healthy stock market development. Despite the recent stock market falls, Wu said, there are still many encouraging economic news reports. 'I hope stock investors will remain calm and will refrain from panicking,' he added.

With Mother's Day just around the corner, major social welfare groups have released the results of opinion surveys on issues facing mothers as they are raising their children. Meanwhile, the Taipei city government unveiled a generous incentive program Thursday to encourage new births, which will be implemented next year. The following are the excerpts from local media coverage of the issue: China Times: One out of every five local young mothers is unhappy, according to the results of a recent survey by the Child Welfare League Foundation. The online survey of mothers with children under 3 was conducted March 16-April 13, with 2,229 valid samples collected from 23 cities and counties around Taiwan. More than 60 percent of the respondents said they are not considering having more children and nearly 80 percent said they would consider having more children only if the government offers child-bearing subsidies. Up to 40 percent of those surveyed said they choose not to work so that they can look after their children on their own, because child-minding fees are too high. Nearly 50 percent said they can afford less than NT$10,000 in child-minding charges per month, lower than the general market average of NT$15,000. (May 7, 2010). United Daily News: From Jan. 1, 2011, the Taipei city government will offer a subsidy of NT$20,000 for each newborn in the city as part of its efforts to encourage women to have more babies. Under its new birth incentive program, the city government will also offer a monthly subsidy of NT$2,500 for each child born to families with less than NT$1.13 million in total household annual income in the city. From next year, newborns with at least one parent with a registered legal abode in Taipei City for at least one full year and a total household annual income below NT$1.13 million will be entitled to a NT$2,500-a-month subsidy until the children are 5 years old. This means that each couple who gives birth to a child next year will be able to receive a total of NT$170,000 in child-bearing and raising subsidies, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin said Thursday. 'The city's birth rate has been on a steady decline. The trend, coupled with the greying of the population, will have a serious impact on our city's long-term development, ' Hau said, adding that the new incentive program is expected to help stimulate births. An estimated 110,000 children will benefit from the new program, Hau went on, adding that the city government will earmark NT$3 billion in its 2011 budget plan to finance the incentive project. (May 7, 2010). Liberty Times: Chi Hui-jung, chief executive officer of the Garden of Hope Foundation, said at a pre-Mother's Day news conference Thursday that an estimated 3,000 babies are born to unmarried teenage mothers each year in Taiwan. 'Many young mothers are left alone to face discrimination from their peers, families and schools,' Chi said. Noting that the traditional way of dealing with teenage pregnancy -- scolding and sometimes abandonment -- is harmful and counterproductive, Chi said the government should craft solid programs to assist and guide unwed teenage mothers. She also called on more local people to consider adopting babies, saying that approximately 3,000 infants in Taiwan are either abandoned or put up for adoption each year. (May 7, 2010).

AU Optronics, the world's third-largest flat panel maker, said Friday it plans to make inroads into northern China by setting up a joint venture with a Chinese home appliance giant. AU Optronics said it has agreed with Haier Group, the largest home appliance company in China, to establish a liquid crystal display (LCD) TV panel assembly plant in Qingdao, Shandong province. The joint venture will cost US$7 million (NT$221.7 million), with Haier paying 70 percent and AU Optronics 30 percent. 'Haier is one of AU Optronics' important customers in China, ' said Hsiao Ya- wen, a company spokeswoman. 'The joint venture is a strategic alliance that will allow AU Optronics to get closer to our customer,' Hsiao said. Currently, AU Optronics runs LCD panel assembly plants in eastern, southern and western China. Hsiao said the company expects the Qingdao plant will begin operation in the second half of this year. China's Xinhua News Agency cited Haier as saying it expects to take advantage of AU Optronics' cutting edge production technology to provide high quality TVs to its global customers. Haier produces 15 million TVs a year and sells its products to more than 80 countries in the world, Xinhua reported.

A liner of Star Cruises, the largest cruise line in the Asia-Pacific region, arrived in Keelung Harbor Friday to begin its seasonal cruise service connecting the northern Taiwan port city and Japan's Ryukyu Islands. The vessel, the SuperStar Libra was scheduled to depart from Keelung at 10 p.m. Friday with 1,400 passengers on board for Japan's Yonaguni Island. The four-day cruise will make port calls at several destinations in the Ryukyu Island chain, including Ishigaki Island, said Lu Kuan-chun, president of Star Cruises' Taiwan operations. Yonaguni Island is the westernmost island of Japan and the last of the Ryukyu Island chain, and it lies 108 kilometers east of Taiwan's east coast. The SuperStar Libra, which has 740 cabins, is scheduled to operate 74 tours between Keelung and the Ryukyu Islands from now until Oct. 24, Lu said. Keelung Harbor Bureau authorities welcomed the start of the cruise season. Last year, the SuperStar Libra served 178,208 passengers who boarded the ship in Keelung, bureau officials said. The bureau forecast that over 400,000 cruise passengers, including passengers taking cruises to the Ryukyu Islands aboard the SuperStar Libra, will pass through Keelung in 2010, far exceeding the total at other ports in Taiwan. Keelung has long been the top destination of foreign cruises visiting Taiwan because of its proximity to Taipei.

The opening of an office in Taipei by the Beijing-based Cross-Strait Tourism Association (CSTA) marks a new milestone in tourist exchanges across the Taiwan Strait, China's top travel administrator said Friday. 'The inauguration of the CSTA office in Taipei is a landmark event in the development of our tourism exchanges, ' said Shao Qiwei, director of China's National Tourism Administration who concurrently serves as CSTA president. Shao, who arrived in Taipei earlier in the day to preside over the inauguration of CSTA's Taipei office -- the first office of any kind established by China in Taiwan -- said Beijing will seriously study the feasibility of allowing Chinese citizens to travel on their own to Taiwan. At present, Chinese citizens can only make group tours of Taiwan. Local tour operators have expressed hope that China will lift the restriction. Shao was the first Chinese official to suggest that Beijing might allow citizens to visit Taiwan individually, a local tourist official said. In his speech, Shao also guaranteed that the number of Chinese tourist arrivals will break the 1 million mark this year. Moreover, he went on, China will allow residents in Inner Mongolia, Tibet, Gansu, Qinghai, Ningxia and Xinjiang to make sightseeing trips to Taiwan, bringing the total number of its provinces and regions eligible to send tourists to Taiwan to 31. Chinese nationals have made more than 1.07 visits to Taiwan since the two sides formally signed an agreement on tourist exchanges in July 2008. The number of Chinese arrivals has reached 416,000 so far this year, 95 percent higher than during the same period last year. Under the agreement signed between the two quasi-official intermediary bodies -- Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation and China's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait -- Taiwan allows entry of up to 3,000 Chinese tourists per day. But the number of daily arrivals has already averaged 3,219 this year. Shao said if the total arrivals break the 1 million mark this year, the two sides will discuss an increase in the daily quota. On Tuesday, the CSTA's Taiwanese counterpart -- the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association (TSTA) -- also opened a representative office in Beijing to promote travel in Taiwan to potential Chinese tourists. The exchange of offices of the two organizations is expected to offer cross- strait travelers more and better services, said Janice Lai, director-general of Taiwan's Tourism Bureau who also attended the CSTA office opening ceremony held at Grand Hotel. The two associations serve as quasi-official intermediary bodies to handle cross-strait tourist exchanges in the absence of official ties.

A liner of Star Cruises, the largest cruise line in the Asia-Pacific region, arrived in Keelung Harbor Friday to begin its seasonal cruise service connecting the northern Taiwan port city and Japan's Ryukyu Islands. The vessel, the SuperStar Libra was scheduled to depart from Keelung at 10 p.m. Friday with 1,400 passengers on board for Japan's Yonaguni Island. The four-day cruise will make port calls at several destinations in the Ryukyu Island chain, including Ishigaki Island, said Lu Kuan-chun, president of Star Cruises' Taiwan operations. Yonaguni Island is the westernmost island of Japan and the last of the Ryukyu Island chain, and it lies 108 kilometers east of Taiwan's east coast. The SuperStar Libra, which has 740 cabins, is scheduled to operate 74 tours between Keelung and the Ryukyu Islands from now until Oct. 24, Lu said. Keelung Harbor Bureau authorities welcomed the start of the cruise season. Last year, the SuperStar Libra served 178,208 passengers who boarded the ship in Keelung, bureau officials said. The bureau forecast that over 400,000 cruise passengers, including passengers taking cruises to the Ryukyu Islands aboard the SuperStar Libra, will pass through Keelung in 2010, far exceeding the total at other ports in Taiwan. Keelung has long been the top destination of foreign cruises visiting Taiwan because of its proximity to Taipei.

A local hospital's medical team has saved two African boys suffering from severe burns in an emergency medical relief mission coordinated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), the ministry and hospital said Friday. The two unrelated 7-year-old boys, from Taiwan's western African diplomatic ally Sao Tome and Principe, arrived in Taiwan on April 11 for emergency treatment due to the lack of medical support in the country and its neighbors, said Foreign Affairs Minister Timothy C.T. Yang. The boys' initial prognosis was not optimistic, said Tsui Kang, spokesman of Wan Fang Hospital. They had both suffered second-to-third degree burns, with one boy, named Fernando, having burns covering 40 percent of his body surface area (BSA) and the other, Aurelio, having a 9 percent BSA. Fernando underwent two skin-grafting operations, including one that lasted 10 hours, while Aurelio had one operation. Both are now recovering well, Tsui said. Fernando, who sustained burns when a pot of hot oil and water fell on him after he bumped into his mother in their kitchen, could barely stretch out his arm when he arrived in Taiwan, but his range of motion increased from just 20 degrees to 160 degrees after several skin grafts, Tsui said. Aurelio sustained burns to the backs of his knees after spilling and igniting an oil container, leaving him unable to bend his knees, Tsui said. He can now stretch his legs straight and also jump on one foot, according to the spokesman. 'When the accident happened I told myself 'this is it' and my son's chances of recovering were slim. I'd never imagine that we would be here in Taiwan with the medical team and the first-class treatment, ' Shela comis Lopes, Fernando's mother, told selfnews through an interpreter. The boys are scheduled to fly back to Sao Tome and Principe May 17 with their families. A third child who was also suffering from severe wounds was scheduled to be brought to Taiwan for treatment as part of the group but died prior to the trip, said Yang, who initiated the mission after learning of the accidents from a friend. The mission showed that Taiwan had extended its goodwill and friendship to its allies through concrete actions rather than lip service, said Sao Tome and Principe Ambassador to Taiwan Jorge Amado. 'Today's event is the most valuable testimony of 13 years of bilateral friendship between Sao Tome and Principe and Taiwan,' Amado said. The mission was only one part of Taiwan's continuous effort to take advantage of its medical expertise and provide medical relief to countries around the world, Yang said. Taiwan has used different formats and services in various countries in practicing medical diplomacy, Yang added, noting that Taiwan has overseas-based medical teams as well as touring medical teams to provide medical care for special diseases. It also helps other countries train medical staff, he said.

A renowned pianist from Mexico will come to Taiwan to present a concert at the National Taiwan Library in Zhonghe City on May 13, the Mexican Trade Services Documentation and Cultural Office in Taiwan announced Saturday. I am pleased and feel honored to share my music with the people in Taiwan, said Jose Luis Altamirano in a statement he sent to the office. He added that he hopes Taiwanese audiences will like his music. Martin Munoz Ledo Villegas, head of the Mexican office, told the Central News Agency, that the concert, titledInspiration Mexicana,' will help promote understanding between the two cultures. Cultural communication is the most natural and best way to let Taiwanese people know more about Mexico, he said. The concert is part of a series of cultural programs the Mexican office has planned for this year in Taiwan. Altamirano is one of the most successful composers/pianists in Mexico. He has previously taken his music to many venues, such as Canada, the Caribbean, Belgium, Frances Eiffel Tower, and the United States. He has also been invited by the president of Mexico to provide inspiration through his musical talent at private events for dignitaries.

Legislator Lai Ching-te has emerged as the opposition Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP's) candidate for the Tainan municipality mayoral election in late November, it was announced Friday after he topped the list of hopefuls in a public opinion survey. Lai came out on top with an average approval rating of 44.28 percent compared with runner-up Tainan Mayor Hsu Tain-tsair's 32.6 percent in three public opinion polls held by the DPP to select its candidate. The other hopefuls in the primary for the municipality, which will be a merger of Tainan City and Tainan County, included incumbent Tainan Magistrate Su Huan- jhih and legislators Yeh Yi-jin and Lee Chun-yee. Hsu did not immediately commit to full support of the winner of the primary, as the magistrates of Tainan and Kaohsiung did when the DPP candidates for the two new municipalities in those areas were announced. This has given rise to speculations that Hsu, who has had a credible performance in office and has long been interested in running for mayor of the new Tianan municipality, could leave the party and compete as an independent. The following are excerpts from local media coverage of the issue: China Times: DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen said she has already called Hsu and that the latter has shown good sportsmanship but he may need some time to 'think things over.' Tsai expressed appreciation for Hsu's response, saying that he has contributed to the smooth running of the party's nomination and primary process. She also said all DPP members think that party solidarity is very important. 'I think Mayor Hsu has a deep attachment to the party, and that he will play a very important role in its future development, ' she said. However, it is understood that Hsu's campaign is not happy with the results of the public opinion polls and that some hawkish supporters have expressed the hope that Hsu would throw his hat into the ring. Hsu's campaign has questioned the fairness of the public opinion polls and has also attributed his loss by a wide margin to Kuomintang supporters' backing of Lai. But some DPP sources in Tainan said that Hsu has served for two terms, and that Lai won the hearts of voters with the theme of his campaign, which was 'it's time to pass the baton to someone new.' United Daily News: According to the UDN's latest public opinion polls, Lai will beat the KMT candidate in Tainan by at least 40 percentage points, whether the ruling party KMT nominates Kuo Tien-tsai or Lee Chuan-chiao -- two former legislators. The UDN's survey found that in a Lai-Lee matchup, the DPP candidate will prevail by 59 percent to Lee's 15 percent. If Lai comes up against Kuo, the DPP candidate will win with 57 percent of the vote, while Kuo will take 15 percent, according to the poll. Further analysis shows that Lai has overwhelming support within the DPP-led pan- green camp and among middle-of-the-road voters, Even among supporters of the KMT-led pan-blue camp, Lai's approval rating is higher than Lee or Kuo's, the analysis found. Liberty Times: Tainan County Magistrate Su said that he respects the results of the primary and will throw his weight behind the DPP candidate in the interest of party solidarity and ideology. Tainan Mayor Hsu has not appeared in public since the primary was completed. His aides have said it is not important for him to make any public statements and that it is cruel to ask a newly vanquished nominee to show 'party solidarity.' Hu has said via his aides that he 'needs time to think things over and then he will state his intentions.' He has not yet come out of the shadow of defeat, but he is heartened by the warmth extended to him, according to his aides. Legislators Lee and Yeah said that they have accepted the results of the primary and will now throw their weight behind the party's candidates in the five municipality elections. (May 8, 2010)

For three consecutive months, Taiwan's business indicators have been flashing a red light, which indicates that the economy is overheated. The situation can be partly attributed to a liquidity glut that has been creating housing and stock bubbles. The phenomenon, however, is not unique to Taiwan, but is a global one. In the wake of the global financial crisis that broke in September 2008, the United States lowered its federal interest rate to near zero. Countries around the world scrambled to follow suit and to adopt a 'qualitative easing' policy, which lead to a global flood of liquidity. In Taiwan, excessively low interest rates are attracting an increasingly larger number of speculators to the housing market. The lower the interest rates and the higher the housing prices, the bigger the bubble gets. The United States has continued to keep interest rates low for fear its economic recovery might stall. However, it's now time to deal with the global economic bubble. If the United States and China make the first move to allow their interest rates to return to normal, other countries, including Taiwan, will definitely follow suit. A plunge in housing prices and a sharp rise in interest rates will pose the greatest risk to the markets. The Financial Supervisory Commission and the central bank must prepare for the challenge. (May 8, 2010)

A 15-year old junior high school student died of influenza A (H1N1) three days ago at a northern Taiwan medical center, the first such case in Taiwan in three months, health authorities said Saturday. The new death puts the total number of H1N1 fatalities in Taiwan at 42, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) under the Department of Health. The centers said the girl developed a cough, sore throat and bellyache April 27, but only sought medical attention at a local clinic a week later when she began suffering tachypnoea. On May 4, the patient was transferred to a regional medical center for treatment for tachpynoea and vomiting and was unconscious. The doctors tried cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) , but she died the next day due to kidney failure. She had a record of diabetes, the CDC said. Taiwan has recorded a total of 922 H1N1 cases since July 2009, and 80 percent of those who died had records of cardiovascular, liver, or kidney disease or other disorders, the CDC said. Forty-one of those who died had not been vaccinated against H1N1, it said. Taiwan has touted its success in fighting against H1N1 with a national immunization program under which 25 percent of its total population has been immunized.

For three consecutive months, Taiwan's business indicators have been flashing a red light, which indicates that the economy is overheated. The situation can be partly attributed to a liquidity glut that has been creating housing and stock bubbles. The phenomenon, however, is not unique to Taiwan, but is a global one. In the wake of the global financial crisis that broke in September 2008, the United States lowered its federal interest rate to near zero. Countries around the world scrambled to follow suit and to adopt a 'qualitative easing' policy, which lead to a global flood of liquidity. In Taiwan, excessively low interest rates are attracting an increasingly larger number of speculators to the housing market. The lower the interest rates and the higher the housing prices, the bigger the bubble gets. The United States has continued to keep interest rates low for fear its economic recovery might stall. However, it's now time to deal with the global economic bubble. If the United States and China make the first move to allow their interest rates to return to normal, other countries, including Taiwan, will definitely follow suit. A plunge in housing prices and a sharp rise in interest rates will pose the greatest risk to the markets. The Financial Supervisory Commission and the central bank must prepare for the challenge. (May 8, 2010)

Travel agencies will be permitted to handle the 'OK to board' tag service for incoming Chinese tourists on behalf of air carriers from late May, travel industry sources said Sunday. The 'OK to board' tag is an expedient measure in international travel management. Air carriers sometimes allow passengers without visas to board their flights at the port of embarkation if they are told that these passengers would obtain their permits upon arrival at their destination. Under the arrangement, the air carrier serves as a guarantor for the pasengers to make the trip. The measure is taken only in emergency situation, but the practice is often employed in the case of Chinese tourists because of the complicated application process in their country for visits to Taiwan. The National Immigration Agency (NIA) agreed last week to allow travel agencies to handle the 'OK to board' tag service for inbound Chinese tourists on behalf of the airlines. If all goes smoothly, the Travel Agent Association of the Republic of China will begin to offer the service late this month, travel sources said. Under the arrangement, the association will set up a counter in the restricted area in the country's airports to handle the 'OK to board' service and hand over the entry permits, obtained from the NIA, to inbound Chinese tourists before they clear immigration. It is hoped that this will resolve the controversy that arose after some air carriers started in February to charge fees of NT$100 per person or NT$600 per tourist group for 'OK to board' service. Noting that about half of the 5,000 Chinese tourists arriving in Taiwan every day use 'OK to board' service, Hsu Kao-ching, secretary-general of the ROC Travel Agent Association, said the new arrangement will save local travel agencies quite a lot of money. He said the cost of providing the service, which will be about NT$400,000 a month, will be borne by the travel agencies at about NT$50 per passenger and will be less than the fees currently charged by the airlines. The new arrangement will be put in place by the end of May, subject to approval by the Civil Aeronautics Administration that manages the country's airports. Airlines offering 'OK to board' tag run the risk of being fined by aviation authorities for carrying passengers without proper travel documents. An official from the Tourism Bureau under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications warned that the new arrangement will not protect air carriers from being fined if they bring in passengers in violation of the regulations. According to government statistics, China replaced Japan as Taiwan's largest source of tourists in the first quarter of this year, with 340,000 arrivals.

Travel agencies will be permitted to handle the 'OK to board' tag service for incoming Chinese tourists on behalf of air carriers from late May, travel industry sources said Sunday. The 'OK to board' tag is an expedient measure in international travel management. Air carriers sometimes allow passengers without visas to board their flights at the port of embarkation if they are told that these passengers would obtain their permits upon arrival at their destination. Under the arrangement, the air carrier serves as a guarantor for the pasengers to make the trip. The measure is taken only in emergency situation, but the practice is often employed in the case of Chinese tourists because of the complicated application process in their country for visits to Taiwan. The National Immigration Agency (NIA) agreed last week to allow travel agencies to handle the 'OK to board' tag service for inbound Chinese tourists on behalf of the airlines. If all goes smoothly, the Travel Agent Association of the Republic of China will begin to offer the service late this month, travel sources said. Under the arrangement, the association will set up a counter in the restricted area in the country's airports to handle the 'OK to board' service and hand over the entry permits, obtained from the NIA, to inbound Chinese tourists before they clear immigration. It is hoped that this will resolve the controversy that arose after some air carriers started in February to charge fees of NT$100 per person or NT$600 per tourist group for 'OK to board' service. Noting that about half of the 5,000 Chinese tourists arriving in Taiwan every day use 'OK to board' service, Hsu Kao-ching, secretary-general of the ROC Travel Agent Association, said the new arrangement will save local travel agencies quite a lot of money. He said the cost of providing the service, which will be about NT$400,000 a month, will be borne by the travel agencies at about NT$50 per passenger and will be less than the fees currently charged by the airlines. The new arrangement will be put in place by the end of May, subject to approval by the Civil Aeronautics Administration that manages the country's airports. Airlines offering 'OK to board' tag run the risk of being fined by aviation authorities for carrying passengers without proper travel documents. An official from the Tourism Bureau under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications warned that the new arrangement will not protect air carriers from being fined if they bring in passengers in violation of the regulations. According to government statistics, China replaced Japan as Taiwan's largest source of tourists in the first quarter of this year, with 340,000 arrivals.

Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) said Monday that it is stepping up random checks after one of its drivers was found to have dozed off while on duty. The random checks will be increased from 25 percent to 40 percent of all drivers, the company said. Under current practices, drivers undergo a regular physical checkup every year. They also have to undergo irregular random urine checks and alcohol and blood pressure tests before going on duty. The train in question departed from Zuoying at 4:30 p.m. on April 24. But both the company's traffic control center and train conductor detected warning signals at 5 p.m. and 5: 01 p.m., respectively, to indicate that the train was running without being operated by the driver. The traffic control center then authorized the train's conductor to check the driver's cabin and he was found in a semi-conscious state and was slow to respond. The conductor suggested that a new driver be brought on board. The sleepy driver, who was found to have taken too many sleeping pills when examined at a hospital later in the day, was replaced when the train reached Taichung Station. THSRC explained Monday that the driver has a sleeping disorder, and that he took two sleeping pills the night before he drove the train and another one the next morning. 'The driver was found to be unfit for the job after an investigation and was dismissed May 3,' THSRC said. The Bureau of High Speed Rail under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said passengers had reported that the train did not stop at its proper spot at TaIchung station, and it demanded that THSRC to give an explanation. THSRC provided a written report on May 7, but Bureau Director Chu Hsu was not satisfied with it being submitted so late. But it was still satisfied that safety devices (such as the warning system) functioned properly, enabling the train to run on automatic controls. Upon hearing of the incident, Control Yuan members Cheng Jen-hung and Chao Jung- yao took the initiative to launch an investigation. Cheng said the bullet train was running in a 'driverless' state for 13 minutes, and the Control Yuan, the nation's top watchdog of government behavior, wanted to know if the THSRC has a mechanism to deal with the situation and whether the company's management is sound. THSRC has 135 employees who have obtained driver's licences, but only 113 are on active duty, with the rest responsible for monitoring trains on a rotating basis.

To bring more Taiwanese delicacies to the global market, the government plans to spend NT$1.1 billion (US$35 million) over four years to assist local restaurants in building 20 international brands, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said Monday. The plan aims at helping domestic restaurant operators open 3,500 stores in Taiwan and around the world, create 10,000 job opportunities, and boost private investment by NT$2 billion, according to the Department of Commerce under the MOEA. Yeh Yun-lung, chief of the MOEA's Department of Commerce, said that 30 international brands have been established by Taiwanese restaurant operators to date, and the MOEA will help increase the number of brands to 50 by 2013. A team has been set up within the MOEA to internationalize Taiwan's delicacies, and it will also draw on the resources of other government agencies, such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Overseas Compatriot Affairs Commission, to achieve the goal, Yeh said. To help restaurant operators become more globalized, Yeh said the ministry will not only help establish an association enabling restaurant operators to exchange their experiences, but will also help arrange overseas training or contests for local cooks. It will also coordinate with the Ministry of the Transportation and Communications (MOTC) to open a special zone at Taiwan's airports for Taiwanese delicacies.

Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) said Monday that it is stepping up random checks after one of its drivers was found to have dozed off while on duty. The random checks will be increased from 25 percent to 40 percent of all drivers, the company said. Under current practices, drivers undergo a regular physical checkup every year. They also have to undergo irregular random urine checks and alcohol and blood pressure tests before going on duty. The train in question departed from Zuoying at 4:30 p.m. on April 24. But both the company's traffic control center and train conductor detected warning signals at 5 p.m. and 5: 01 p.m., respectively, to indicate that the train was running without being operated by the driver. The traffic control center then authorized the train's conductor to check the driver's cabin and he was found in a semi-conscious state and was slow to respond. The conductor suggested that a new driver be brought on board. The sleepy driver, who was found to have taken too many sleeping pills when examined at a hospital later in the day, was replaced when the train reached Taichung Station. THSRC explained Monday that the driver has a sleeping disorder, and that he took two sleeping pills the night before he drove the train and another one the next morning. 'The driver was found to be unfit for the job after an investigation and was dismissed May 3,' THSRC said. The Bureau of High Speed Rail under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said passengers had reported that the train did not stop at its proper spot at TaIchung station, and it demanded that THSRC to give an explanation. THSRC provided a written report on May 7, but Bureau Director Chu Hsu was not satisfied with it being submitted so late. But it was still satisfied that safety devices (such as the warning system) functioned properly, enabling the train to run on automatic controls. Upon hearing of the incident, Control Yuan members Cheng Jen-hung and Chao Jung- yao took the initiative to launch an investigation. Cheng said the bullet train was running in a 'driverless' state for 13 minutes, and the Control Yuan, the nation's top watchdog of government behavior, wanted to know if the THSRC has a mechanism to deal with the situation and whether the company's management is sound. THSRC has 135 employees who have obtained driver's licences, but only 113 are on active duty, with the rest responsible for monitoring trains on a rotating basis.

Ecological concerns have arisen because part of the military's 202 Arsenal was designated as the site of a national biotechnology park project. The dispute reached a climax when writer Chang Hsiao-feng recently contributed an article to a local newspaper calling on President Ma Ying-jeou to drop the project so as to conserve the wetlands at the arsenal, which she called Taipei's 'second lung.' She even went down on her knees to beg Ma to spare the land on Monday, after Ma had inspected the site and determined that the project will not endanger the wetlands. Our question is: Is there no way to strike a balance between ecological conservation and economic development? The project will only occupy 9.6 hectares of the 185-hectare military property. In other words, the development area has been minimized to maximize the property's ecological integrity. The environmentalists' next move should be to monitor the government, which has promised to ensure the sustainability of the area. If the ecological system is the lungs, economic development is the stomach. The two should not be seen as having a zero sum relationship. (May 11, 2010)

A senior U.S. official Monday played down the significance of any speculation about how Washington will respond in a case of a conflict between China and Taiwan. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg said at the Brookings Institution that Washington's policy is to urge both sides of the Taiwan Strait to engage in dialogue and sort out their differences peacefully to avoid conflict. Noting that military conflict is not in the interest of either sides, Steinberg said the U.S. goal is to avoid conflict. The issue was raised when President Ma Ying-jeou, in an interview with CNN broadcast in Taiwan on April 30, said Taiwan will never ask Americans to fight for it, sparking controversy at home and concern over how Washington would react. Steinberg said it is not particularly useful to speculate what would happen in the event of a conflict and stressed that Washington is pleased with current developments across the strait. Citing the ongoing negotiations between Taiwan and China on a trade pact, Steinberg said the Taiwan leader has worked to improve ties with China, and China has responded to it, which will help build mutual trust between them. Critics of Ma's statement said the president had put Taiwan's security at unnecessary risk by eliminating the strategic ambiguity Washington has taken pains to maintain about how it will respond if China invades Taiwan. Ma's spokesman defended the comment, saying the president meant to stress Taiwan's determination to defend itself.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Tuesday reiterated that Taiwan-Holy See ties remain strong, amid media reports that Taiwan's relations with its only diplomatic ally in Europe are at risk because relations between China and the Holy See are warming up again. Taiwan enjoys solid and stable relations with the Holy See and expects continued cooperation with the city state, said MOFA spokesman James Chang in response to a reporter's question regarding improving China-Vatican City ties. Three bishops have been installed in China in the last three weeks with the approval of both China's government-sanctioned Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and Vatican City, the Financial Times of London reported Sunday. It also stated that as many as 20 bishops could be ordained over the coming months with the agreement of both sides. As Pope Benedict XVI has listed establishing diplomatic relations with China as one of his priorities, the recent assignments signalled significant progress in bilateral relations and could mean that Taiwan's ties with the Holy See are in jeopardy, according to the local Want Daily. 'Religious freedom in China has always been one of Vatican's biggest concerns and we understand Holy See's concerns about the 10 million Catholics in China, ' said Chang. 'However, Vatican City and Taiwan share the same values and enjoy a longstanding friendship. We expect continued exchanges and development cooperation in the future on the basis of solid relations.' He said that there have been extensive exchanges between Taiwan and the Holy See over the years, including visits by five Cardinal Bishops and more than 60 archbishops to Taiwan and a visit by Legislative Yuan President Wang Jin-pyng to the Holy See in 2009. Senior diplomatic officials from China and Vatican City have been meeting two or three times a year in their ongoing effort to re-establish diplomatic relations. The last summit was held in Rome in February, and the next one is expected in Beijing this summer, the Financial Times reported. It will be a complicated matter for the Holy See to establish diplomatic relations with China because Beijing still would not recognize the large number of so-called 'underground Catholic churches' in China, said James Lee, deputy director-general of the MOFA's Department of European Affairs. Diplomatic ties between China and the Holy See were severed in 1951 and bilateral relations deteriorated further in 2006 when China unilaterally consecrated two bishops who belonged to the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association.

Business leaders from a 21-member economic network in the Asia Pacific region will urge government leaders to set a timetable for the creation of a regional free trade area later this year, Taiwanese delegates said Tuesday. Some 200 business leaders who will meet in Taipei May 17-21 for a regional economic conference will make promoting a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP) one of their missions, said Matthew Miau, chairman of Taiwan's MiTAC- SYNNEX Group. The conference will be the second meeting this year of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Business Advisory Council (ABAC), which is made up of executives who advise leaders of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. APEC has 21 member economies, which account for approximately 40.5 percent of the world's population, approximately 54 percent of world GDP and about 43.7 percent of world trade. There are three ABAC business leaders representing each APEC member economy. They meet four times a year. 'In 2006, the ABAC already set a goal over how to encourage APEC leaders to set a timetable for (the FTAAP),' he told a press briefing in Taipei. 'It is hoped that there will be a specific timetable (later this year),' he added. Asked by selfnews if Taiwan's delegates will propose a specific timetable to the APEC leaders, Miau said that 'we (all the delegates) will discuss this together.' Miau added that 'political factors, not economic ones, ' are the biggest obstacle to forming the FTAAP as members have different stances. This year also happens to be the target year for developed economies in APEC to achieve the Bogor Goals, which were adopted by APEC leaders in 1994 to push for free and open trade and investment in the Asia Pacific region. There are already 42 FTAs signed among APEC members, according to Miau. His remarks came as Taiwan is working to sign a trade pact, which will lay the groundwork for a free trade agreement (FTA), with China in June. Taiwan has vowed to sign FTAs with other trade partners after the Taiwan-China pact is signed. Also, at the press conference Tuesday, Cathay Financial Holdings Chairman Tsai Hong-tu, who is the leader of Taiwan's ABAC delegation, said that delegates from other member economies were particularly interested in how Taiwan's government has helped small and medium-sized enterprises with financing, technology transfer and crisis management. Tsai said he will deliver a report on the efforts by Taiwan's government at the third ABAC meeting in Bangkok in late August. In addition, Cher Wang, the chairwoman of Taipei-based HTC Corp., who was also at the press conference, said that she will promote knowledge-based economic growth driven by information and communications technology (ICT), an area in which Taiwan is strong. HTC is the world's fourth largest smartphone maker. The APEC leaders' summit this year will take place in Japan's Yokohama in mid- November.

Kuo Tien-Tsai, vice president of Diwan University and a former legislator, will represent the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) in Nov. 27 mayoral elections in the Tainan City municipality, KMT Secretary-General King Pu-tsung announced Tuesday. Kuo's nomination was announced at a news conference in which King announced the list of the KMT nominees who will run in the year-end mayoral elections in the five special municipalities -- Taipei City, Xinbei City, Taichung City (a merger of Taichung City and Taichung County) , Kaohsiung City (a merger of Kaohsiung City and Kaohsiung County) and Tainan City (a merger of Tainan City and Tainan County). The list was to be referred to the KMT's Central Standing Committee (CSC) the following day for approval, King said, noting that the nomination process will be completed only when the CSC has given its green light. The KMT's selection of Kuo, the final name disclosed by the KMT, meant that Lee Chuan-chiao, a former legislator and a major KMT rival who had made clear his intention of vying for the Tainan City mayor post since early this year, had agreed to quit the competition with Kuo. It was already widely known that Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin and Vice Premier Eric Liluan Chu will be fielded by the KMT in Taipei City and Xinbei City, respectively, in the coming elections, while Taichung Mayor Jason Hu and Legislator Huang Chao-shun are the party's hopefuls for the Taichung City and Kaohsiung City races. Kuo said, meanwhile, that he will quit all his teaching jobs in order to prepare fully for the Tainan race, predicted to be an extremely tough battle for the KMT in an area where the opposition Democratic Progressive Party enjoys firm support and where it has governed for at least two decades. Kuo expressed optimism about the KMT's grassroots consolidation of his candidacy following party mediation that settled the issue of who should be chosen to run.

The opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has nailed down candidates for the year-end municipality mayoral elections in Taipei, Xinbei, Tainan and Kaohsiung, while its nomination for Taichung remains undecided, party officials said. The party will recruit former Premier Su Tseng-chang to join the battle for Taipei and Yu Shyi-kun -- also a former premier -- to run in Xinbei City, according to top-ranking DPP members. The party is scheduled to complete its nominations by May 19. The elections will be the first of their kind in Taiwan after the government upgrades Taipei County to a special municipality and merges Taichung City and county, Kaohsiung City and county, and Tainan City and county. After the changes, the new municipalities will have the same status as Taipei City and Kaohsiung City. Taipei County will be renamed Xinbei City after its upgrading is formalized late this year. Last week, the DPP used public surveys to select incumbent Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu as its candidate for mayorship of the southern Taiwan municipality. Meanwhile, Legislator Lai Ching-te was set to represent the party in Tainan after he beat out his rivals in a public opinion survey. The DPP members revealed that the party is trying to persuade Secretary-General Su Jia-chyuan to join the election in Taichung, but said he didn't appear to be interested in joining the race. According to people close to Su, he is 'cautiously weighing' whether or not to take part in the Taichung election.

Financial Supervisory Commission Chairman Sean Chen recently criticized the central bank for suppressing the country's key interest rates and keeping them too low, which he argued has indirectly pushed housing prices higher. Central Bank governor Perng Fai-nan later responded by stressing the importance of keeping interest rates low to control the flow of hot money. Neither argument is right or wrong. The different views only reflect the impossible trinity -- the impossibility of maintaining a fixed exchange rate, free capital movement, and an independent monetary policy at the same time. While there is no easy solution to the dilemma, a compromise is possible between the two Cabinet members. On this point, we cannot but criticize the Executive Yuan, which did nothing to mediate the conflict. Although both the FSC and central bank are independent agencies and although exchange rates and interest rates are both very technical issues, they are nevertheless both subordinate to the Executive Yuan and subject to the supervision of the premier and vice premier. There is no reason to allow the two officials to trade barbs outside the Cabinet rather than communicating internally. This undermines the Cabinet team's credibility and will be unfavorable to the building of consensus on other financial and economic policies. Kids only fight when adults are not home. But the premier obviously is sitting high up on his bench, and there is a racket below it. The people cannot but question: Are there any adults in the Cabinet? (May 12, 2010)

The opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) urged a legislative committee Wednesday to make a careful assessment of the situation before allowing Chinese students to enroll in local colleges. At the same time, however, several university presidents called for quick passage of relevant law amendments to allow them to study in Taiwan. During a review session held by the Education and Culture Committee to review amendments to the University Act and the Junior College Act, which would pave the way for local universities and colleges to recruit students from China, the DPP urged the committee to hold public hearings and make evaluations before making a decision. The DPP has proposed including in the law what it calls 'three limits and six noes' restrictions on Chinese nationals wanting to study in Taiwanese further education institutions. The 'three limits' refers to restrictions on the number of Chinese universities that the government plans to recognize, the total number of Chinese college students who can study in Taiwan and a limit on the types of diplomas issued by Chinese schools that will be accredited in Taiwan. Under its 'six noes' formula, the DPP demands that Chinese students must not be given preferential scores, their enrollment must not affect the number of places available for local students, they must not be eligible for scholarships, and must not be allowed to moonlight, obtain professional licenses or sit civil service entrance exams, and they must not be allowed to work or remain in Taiwan after graduation. Much attention was focused on whether the day's review session would end in legislative brawling again between the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) and the DPP after violent clashes erupted between the two camps during two previous review meetings. DPP legislative caucus whip Trong Chai said the party would not boycott the session and expressed hope that the Ministry of Education and the KMT would take the matter seriously, saying that opening local universities to Chinese students is equal to recognition of Chinese academic credentials held by Chinese students. Other DPP lawmakers also cautioned that recognition of Chinese credentials would pave the way to allowing Chinese degree-holders to use their credentials to meet qualification requirements for national examinations for architects, certified public accountants and other professional and technical licenses, which could hurt the employment rights of local citizens. During the session, Minister of Education Wu Ching-ji reported that between 1985 and 2007, the number of Taiwanese students who enrolled in Chinese universities totalled 14,907. In 2009, Chinese universities recruited 1,900 Taiwanese students for doctoral and master's degrees. At present, China hosts about 6,775 students from Taiwan. The number of Chinese students in Japan reached 71,277 as of 2008, accounting for 60.2 percent of the total foreign students in that country, while a total of 44,746, or more than 70 percent, of foreign students in South Korea were from China, according to Wu, who said that admitting Chinese students to Taiwanese universities is aimed at enhancing the international competitiveness of local higher education institutions. He said that to protect Taiwan's overall benefits and interests, the ministry will uphold the 'three restrictions and six noes, ' as well as other complementary measures, and will negotiate with China on recruitment methods and the number of Chinese students who can be enrolled. National Taiwan University Vice President Chen Tai-jen said Taiwan should open its doors to Chinese students as soon as possible because it would make Taiwan's universities more diversified and international and would help local students to broaden their horizons and increase their competitiveness. As globalization of tertiary education is an irreversible trend and all higher education institutions around the world are seeking to attract top students and teachers, it would be strange if Taiwan were to prohibit Chinese students from studying here, he said. Ling Tung University President Michael J.K. Chen also criticized that while universities around the world all recognize China's major universities, Taiwan refuses to do so.

Four more Chinese banks in Shanghai will open two-way New Taiwan dollar-Chinese yuan exchange services after the Bank of Communication spearheaded the exchanges April 26, China's Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Yang Yi said Wednesday. The banks are the Bank of China, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, and the Bank of Shanghai. With all branch offices of the four banks set to begin the currency exchange services in the near future, the number of places in China's largest city where New Taiwan dollar-holders can buy Chinese yuan has increased by a significant degree, Yang said. He added that the expanding network of banks providing currency exchanges will provide more convenience for Taiwanese visitors to the city.

The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) said Wednesday that it will follow the regulations set by the Ministry of Finance (MOF) to cap the monthly salaries paid to the heads of its subsidiaries. According to data provided by the FSC to the legislature the previous day, among the 35 heads of the FSC subsidiaries, 14 people -- so called 'double-pay fat cats' -- receive not only high monthly salaries, but also enjoy monthly pension payments or a preferential 18 percent savings interest rate available to retired military personnel, civil servants and teachers. Several chairmen of financial regulatory bodies, such as Taiwan Stock Exchange Chairman Chi Schive, Taiwan Futures Exchange Chairman Joseph Tsai, Taiwan Depository & Clearing Corporation Chairman Tony C.C. Fan, and GreTai Securities Market Chairman Gordon Shuh Chen, reportedly make more than NT$400,000 a month, which has sparked criticism in the legislature. Wang Yung-hsin, deputy director of the FSC's Securities and Futures Bureau, said the FSC will soon send an official letter to its subsidiaries instructing them to follow the regulations formulated by the MOF. According to the regulations, those who are appointed or recommended by the MOF to serve as chairmen or presidents of government-owned or partially state-funded financial institutes, cannot receive a monthly salary that is more than double that of their counterparts in other state-run companies of about the same size, the same level and in the same field. Based on this formula, which took effect in April, the salary ceiling for those heads would be NT$320,000 -- which was calculated by doubling the monthly salary of NT$160,000 received by Susan Chang, chairwoman of the government-owned Taiwan Financial Holding Co.. Meanwhile that same day, the Legislative Yuan's Finance Committee also decided that several heads of institutions who refused to reveal their salary information to the legislature, must provide the data within one week or be replaced.

The Legislative Yuan completed a preliminary review Wednesday of draft amendments that would allow Chinese students to enroll in Taiwan's colleges, but it was unable to decide on whether restrictions on Chinese enrollment will be part of the final bill. The Education and Culture Committee conducted the review of the amendments to the University Act and the Junior College Law, hearing one proposal each from the Executive Yuan, ruling Kuomintang Legislator Cheng Chin-ling and the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus. During the review, ruling and opposition lawmakers clashed when the DPP caucus insisted that a clause be included holding the Ministry of Education (MOE) to a promise it has made not to give preference to students from China. After failing to reach a consensus, Legislator Chiang Yi-hsiung, who chaired the review meeting, opted to pass the amendments to the Procedure Committee without making a decision on the issue. The draft amendments are expected to be put on the Procedure Committee's agenda for May 18. The committee will decide whether the amendments proceed to a second reading. The MOE promise, made to address DPP lawmakers' concerns about the possible displacement of local students and workers, included not lowering admission requirements for Chinese students, not offering them scholarships and not allowing them to take places that could be filled by local students. The ministry also promised that Chinese students would be banned from working while studying, staying in Taiwan after graduating and taking local tests for professional licenses or civil service positions. The MOE also said it would limit the number of Chinese students studying in Taiwan, their subjects of study, and the number of Chinese universities that Taiwan plans to recognize. In addition to those restrictions, the DPP version of the draft amendments also stipulates the number of Chinese students be halved to 0.5 percent from the 1 percent of total enrollments proposed by the MOE. The DPP also wants to restrict Chinese students who graduate from Taiwanese schools from taking regular jobs in Taiwan within five years after graduation.

The Legislative Yuan completed a preliminary review Wednesday of draft amendments that would allow Chinese students to enroll in Taiwan's colleges, but it was unable to decide on whether restrictions on Chinese enrollment will be part of the final bill. The Education and Culture Committee conducted the review of the amendments to the University Act and the Junior College Law, hearing one proposal each from the Executive Yuan, ruling Kuomintang Legislator Cheng Chin-ling and the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus. During the review, ruling and opposition lawmakers clashed when the DPP caucus insisted that a clause be included holding the Ministry of Education (MOE) to a promise it has made not to give preference to students from China. After failing to reach a consensus, Legislator Chiang Yi-hsiung, who chaired the review meeting, opted to pass the amendments to the Procedure Committee without making a decision on the issue. The draft amendments are expected to be put on the Procedure Committee's agenda for May 18. The committee will decide whether the amendments proceed to a second reading. The MOE promise, made to address DPP lawmakers' concerns about the possible displacement of local students and workers, included not lowering admission requirements for Chinese students, not offering them scholarships and not allowing them to take places that could be filled by local students. The ministry also promised that Chinese students would be banned from working while studying, staying in Taiwan after graduating and taking local tests for professional licenses or civil service positions. The MOE also said it would limit the number of Chinese students studying in Taiwan, their subjects of study, and the number of Chinese universities that Taiwan plans to recognize. In addition to those restrictions, the DPP version of the draft amendments also stipulates the number of Chinese students be halved to 0.5 percent from the 1 percent of total enrollments proposed by the MOE. The DPP also wants to restrict Chinese students who graduate from Taiwanese schools from taking regular jobs in Taiwan within five years after graduation.

Vice Premier Eric Liluan Chu formally announced his resignation Thursday, saying he will devote his full energy to his bid to become mayor of Xinbei City, which will be created later this year when Taipei County is upgraded to a municipality.

The Legislative Yuan has passed a resolution for the Department of Health (DOH) to impose a cap of NT$150 (US$4.75) on registration fees at clinics and hospitals in order to give more disadvantaged people access to medical care. The legislature took action Wednesday on the issue after the findings of anational survey on registration fees, posted recently on the Bureau of National Health Insurance (BNHI) Web site, showed that the fees range from NT$20 to NT$400 at 500 hospitals and clinics around the country. The BNHI had previously said that there are no regulations governing registration fees because they are not included in overall medical expenses. The change is expected to take effect July 1 after the DOH has been formally notified by the Legislature and makes a formal announcement of the fee cap, DOH Deputy Minister Chen Tzay-jinn said Wednesday. However, the new regulation does not include a penalty for violations, he said. DOH Minister Yaung Chih-liang expressed support for the legislature's decision to cap the registration fees.

The government is encouraging the establishment of offshore wind farms, which are seen as a future trend in wind power development, the Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) said Friday. Compared to dry land, where there is limited space that can be used for wind farms, Taiwan's surrounding waters are an ideal environment for wind power generation because of the steady wind flow and the rare occurrence of turbulence there, according to a statement issued by the CEPD. Under a project launched by the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) in September 2007, applications are being accepted until Aug. 30 for the establishment of offshore wind farms, with total installed capacity of up to 300 megawatts (MW) allowed, the council said. A one-stop counter has been set up under the MOEA to speed up the screening of the applications, because they could involve a wide range of issues such as fishing rights, national defense and environmental impact assessments. Statistics from the MOEA's Bureau of Energy show that there are 196 operational wind turbines with total installed capacity of 372 MW around Taiwan. Another 132 wind turbines with total installed capacity of 284 MW are under construction. According to the World Wind Energy Report 2009 released by the World Wind Energy Association (WWEA) , worldwide installed wind power capacity reached 159.213 gigawatts (GW) in 2009, up 31.7 percent from the previous year. All wind turbines installed as of the end of 2009 are generating 340 terawatt- hours of electricity per annum, equaling 2 percent of global electricity consumption, the report said. The WWEA has predicted that global capacity will increase to 1,900 GW by 2020.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported Friday the country's first indigenous measles case for this year, a 31-year-old Taipei County resident who has never been vaccinated against the virus. There have been five imported measles cases since the start of this year. The most recent patient first came down with a fever and rash April 27. He made four visits to two clinics before finally being diagnosed at a medical center April 30, according to CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ting. The man had not been overseas recently, and it was still unclear where he contracted the virus, Lin said. Sixty-seven people, including the patient's family and healthcare workers, have had contact with him, none of whom have displayed signs of infection, he added. He recalled that six cases of cluster infection were recorded in Taiwan in 2009, five of which occurred in a hospital. In these cases, non-vaccinated infants got infected when they were in China or Vietnam with their families, and the virus was later transmitted to healthcare workers and other patients when they were hospitalized in Taiwan. Lin noted that the measles virus is highly contagious and is prevalent in neighboring countries including Japan, China, Vietnam and the Philippines, where the measles immunization rates are lower than Taiwan's. In Taiwan, children are normally given a first dose of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine at 1 year and a booster shot during their first year of elementary school. If parents are planning to bring infants aged 6-12 months to measles prevalent areas, they should have the children vaccinated prior to departure, CDC officials said.

An elementary school in Chiayi County is going into the green energy business after an alumnus in the high-tech field donated a solar power plant to help the school generate a sustainable income stream in the future. The solar power system, which is expected to produce some 100,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity per year and earn the school an estimated NT$500,000 annually, was unveiled in a ceremony at Yiren Elementary School in the southern county Friday. Paul Cheng, chief executive of Sun Edge Technology Co., said he initiated the NT$18 million project at his former school about six months ago to promote the concept of energy conservation and carbon emissions reduction. The solar energy generating system installed at the school consists of 337 high efficiency solar modules and 15 inverters and has a total power capacity of 74.4 KWp, according to Cheng. The system is expected to generate 300-400 kWh per day, enough to power 10-20 households, and will help reduce carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 70 metric tons per year, Cheng said. After receiving the system, the school was to hold its first night sports meet Friday to celebrate its 59th anniversary. The school also has plans to use energy efficient lighting equipment and adopt other energy conservation measures.

Taiwan will intensify efforts to attract foreign investment by capitalizing on its recently lowered corporate income tax rate and a planned trade pact with China, an economics official said Friday. 'After the economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) is signed in June, we will organize a series of overseas events to attract foreign businesses to Taiwan, ' Woody Duh, the head of the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Industrial Development Bureau, told an audience of 400 in Taipei. Duh was referring to a proposed pact that is aimed at further liberalizing trade between Taiwan and its biggest trading partner, China. 'It is hoped that the comprehensive (corporate) tax cut and the signing of the ECFA will build a good environment for foreign businesses to work with their Taiwanese counterparts in exploring the Asian market,' he said. An international forum will be held in August or September this year as part of the government's efforts to increase foreign investment, Duh told selfnews after giving a presentation on an industrial innovation act that allowed the implementation of the tax cut. He added that he will make individual visits to foreign companies to drum up investment. Taiwan's corporate income tax rate dropped from 20 percent to 17 percent when the act took effect on Wednesday following a months-long battle in the legislature. Taiwan's rate is now on par with that of Singapore and second in Asia to Hong Kong's 16.5 percent, Duh said. China's rate generally stands at 25 percent, South Korea's is 22 percent and Japan's is 30 percent, according to the official. Globally, Taiwan's rate is higher than Ireland's 12.5 percent, but much lower than the U.S.'s 35 percent and that of other countries, Duh said. Although the tax cut will likely reduce the government's revenue by NT$48 billion (US$1.5 billion), Duh said that based on the U.S.'s experience, the measure is expected to contribute NT$65 billion to Taiwan's gross domestic product.

There is no plan to include Chinese hospitals in Taiwan's national health insurance program, Health Minister Yaung Chih-liang said Friday. 'It is an old issue, but there is no question of enrolling Chinese hospitals in our national health insurance program for the time being, given the fact that it has not even been put on the agenda of the sixth cross-strait negotiations,' the minister said. He said the department was 'not certain whether this issue will be broached' during the cross-strait talks slated for June. Dismissing a Liberty Times report published Friday with the headline 'Chinese hospitals may be included in insurance program: Yaung, ' the minister said the headline didn't match the story, which was based on the minister's interview with a local cable TV station the previous night. 'The story didn't say that I ever told that to my interviewer, ' Yaung said. 'The paper sees a shadow and becomes pregnant, ' he said, referring to a Hoklo idiom used to describe a gross exaggeration. Yaung said in the interview that the issue had been raised by Chinese Vice Health Minister Huang Jiefu during a meeting. Huang suggested putting the issue on the agenda of the negotiations, saying that it would serve the interests of Taiwan businessmen living in China. Yaung said that Taiwanese who seek emergency medical care in China on their own expense may claim compensation in Taiwan under the national health insurance program by presenting medical bills certified by a notary. The notary process is time-consuming, however, and its fees are sometimes more than the medical bills, Yaung said. If Chinese hospitals were listed in the program, the Taiwanese patients would only pay a share of medical care in China, with the remainder covered by the program. The minister refuted the Liberty Times report after he came under fire from lawmakers across the political spectrum. Legislator Wong Chin-chu of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party said the minister will ruin a program that has already run up a huge debt by paying for medical fees in China with Taiwan's funds. Another DPP lawmaker, Twu Shiing-jer, said Yaung should cut the red tape for claiming compensation rather than enrolling Chinese hospitals in the program. Kuomintang Legislator Wu Ching-chih said the minister often brings trouble on himself with reckless statements and should be careful not to talk about plans in their early stages.

A delegation from China's Shandong Province, led by Deputy Governor Cai Limin, arrived in the southern port city of Kaohsiung Friday for a weeklong visit. 'I sense warmth and passion here, ' Cai said as he arrived at Kaohsiung International Airport. Cai and his 20-member delegation entered Taiwan via Kaohsiung and traveled northward, different from other prominent Chinese officials who have all landed at Taoyuan International Airport in the north and traveled southward or visited only the northern, central and eastern parts of the island. Cai and his group met Jason C.S. Lin, chairman of the Tainan-based Uni- President Enterprises Corp., for dinner Friday. Uni-President is one of the leading international companies that have invested heavily in the northern Chinese province of Shandong. The Shandong group is scheduled to visit the Southern Taiwan Science Park Saturday. They will also visit Taichung City in central Taiwan before proceeding to Taipei City in the north to attend an economic forum slated for May 18.

Taiwan appreciates the assistance European countries have offered on many fronts and is ready to develop a stronger partnership with the European Union (EU) in the future, President Ma Ying-jeou said at the annual Europe Day dinner Friday evening. Ma lauded the integration of the EU as an inspiration for Taiwan and China and expressed gratitude for the EU's support, including 11 statements in 2009 alone that supported Taiwan's participation in international organizations. That support contributed to Taiwan's first appearance at the World Health Assembly (WHA) as an observer last year. He also thanked the EU for its assistance with the Typhoon Morakot relief effort last year. In an appeal for further cooperation, Ma said that Taiwan is ready to enter talks with the EU on trade enhancement measures (TEMs) after the signing of the economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China to establish a stronger economic partnership. He also expressed the hope that Taiwan would be granted visa-free privileges in the Schengen Area -- consisting of 25 European countries -- within this year to make it more convenient for Taiwanese travelers to visit Europe. Citing the example of the United Kingdom, Ma said the number of Taiwanese tourists traveling to the U.K. increased by 40 percent after the implementation of a visa-waver program. Over 600 guests attended the dinner, including Guy Ledoux, head of the European Economic and Trade Office (EETO) and Nicholas Winsor, chairman of the European Chambers of Commerce (ECCT) and many government officials, In his review of Taiwan-EU relations, Ledoux brought up the sensitive issue of the abolition of the death penalty, saying that the EU encouraged Taiwan to resume the de facto moratorium on the death penalty after it executed four inmates April 30, the first executions in Taiwan since 2005. Winsor praised Taiwan's government for steps taken to make the investment environment more attractive to foreign investors, in particular, for accepting the recommendation made in the ECCT's position papers for a number of years to lower the corporate income tax rate. The Europe Day dinner is held every year to celebrate the founding of the EU. The year's dinner also celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Schuman Declaration, which called upon European countries to pool their coal and steel production for mutual benefit. The declaration led to the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) and eventually to the establishment of the modern EU.

The average occupancy rate of hotels in Taiwan reached 64.53 percent in the first quarter of the year, representing year-on-year growth of 6.25 percentage points, according to Tourism Bureau statistics. The growth proved the government's creative tourism incentive programs were successful, the bureau said. The global economic recovery and lower hotel room prices also led to more people to take vacations, the statement said. The statistics show that the largest year-on-year growth rates for Q1 hotel occupancy were in the Taoyuan, Hsinchu and Miaoli areas in northern Taiwan, recording an average 22.41 percentage point gain. The Q1 hotel occupancy in Taipei County, Chiayi City and County, Tainan City and County, Yilan County and Penghu County recorded a significant growth of 8.62 percentage points compared with the same period in 2009, the tallies said. In Q1, the average price for a hotel room in Taiwan averaged NT$3,103 (US$98), unchanged from the same period last year. However, room prices dropped by NT$135 or 5.79 percent in the Taoyuan, Hsinchu and Miaoli areas, the bureau said, attributing the drop to local hotel operators' marketing strategies. The statistics also show the Grand Formosa Regent Hotel in Taipei City generated the largest Q1 revenue among all tourism hotels in the country, with NT$682.8 million. It was followed by the Sheraton Taipei with NT$588.3 million and the Grand Hyatt Taipei with NT$582.3 million, according to the tallies.

Although it has yet to be confirmed, reports have said that Christina Liu, a former legislator with a strong background in economics, will take over as head of the Council of Economic Planning and Development (CEPD), the nation's top economic planning agency, as part of a minor Cabinet reshuffle. The reshuffle came after the resignation of Vice Premier Eric Liluan Chu to run in the year-end municipality election in Xinbei City, the provisional name of Taipei County after it is upgraded later this year. If Liu becomes the CEPD head, she will follow in the footsteps of her mother, Shirley Kuo. Kuo also served as finance minister and vice governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of China. The following are excerpts from local media coverage of the issue: United Evening News: Liu said that it may be too early to talk about what the CEPD would do under her leadership, but the goal will be to implement the Ma administration's vision of achieving a 'Golden Decade' of sustained development. Reports have said that prior to the debate between President Ma Ying-jeou and opposition Democratic Progressive Party Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen in late April, Liu, as a member of Ma's financial and economic advisory team, provided valuable information to the president. The vision of the nation's 'Golden Decade' in the wake of a warmer cross-strait relations and closer cross-strait economic cooperation broached by Ma in the debate was also reportedly suggested by Liu. This advice apparently helped her secure the post of CEPD head. Liu dismissed such reports, saying that the ideas came from President Ma's 14-member financial and economic advisory team and not just her. The team has long discussed matters related to Taiwan's long-term economic development, hurdles it should overcome, and the country's niches, according to Liu. She said the Ma administration has advocated greater opening and liberalization, concepts she identified with. Liu stressed that the liberalization she favors will be an 'orderly' and 'gradual' opening out of consideration for Taiwan's economic fundamentals and cannot repeat the same mistakes of countries in the 1997 and 1998 Asian financial crisis. On whether Taiwan should also follow a 'gradual opening' while negotiating a trade pact with China, Liu said that Taiwan 'definitely should have complementary measures for such an opening.' China Times: The second wave of the Cabinet reshuffle will soon be unveiled. Liu will become CEPD chairwoman, but the process of selecting a finance minister has not been smooth. Although Finance Minister Lee Sush-der is highly trusted by the president, he has been panned for several gaffes while rushing to defend Ma's policies, so consideration is being given to replacing him. It is known that former Finance Minister Ho Chih-chin has been approached, but the possibility of Lee's staying on cannot be ruled out. Ho reportedly said he has returned to academia and that 'there are many ways to contribute to the nation, ' in an indirect rejection of the offer. Premier Wu Den-yih on Friday branded all media reports on the Cabinet reshuffle as speculation and said all personnel changes have to be carefully considered and cannot be rashly announced.