Class suspension rules need fine-tuning: associationBy Rachel Lin / Staff reporterThe Taiwan Youth Association for Democracy yesterday called for supplementary measures to the standards guiding the suspension of in-person classes in the event of a COVID-19 infection cluster in a classroom. The association yesterday on Facebook said the Omicron BA.5 subvariant of SARS-CoV-2 is expected to drive a new COVID-19 wave in Taiwan. The association said many students support the second phase of the new class suspension standard, as they would not face frequent class suspensions and disruptions to their education. The “325” system requires that if, within three days, two students in the same class are infected, the class should be closed for five days. The ministry could set a standard according to the severity of each COVID-19 cluster, it said.

Hong Kong Christians are losing autonomyBy Joseph Tse-hei Lee 李榭熙History OFFERS the best reference for crisis management in times of upheaval. This is particularly true for Christian churches in Hong Kong under China’s draconian security rule. In light of the government’s warning, local Christians would have to keep their heads down. Even as Christians in Hong Kong remain a minority, it is a visible living faith. Hong Kong Christians are part of global churches.

2022-08-16Taiwan is the hub of LGBTQ+ rights in Asia and proudly wears that status. Before the COVID-19 pandemic halted travel, people across the region could make the pilgrimage to Taipei for his October annual Pride Parade, proudly waving rainbows and remixed national flags freely. I was swinging on land where I could. Given this achievement, it was an honor to have Kaohsiung selected to host the 9th WorldPride. All host cities, except Jerusalem in 2006,

Taking advantage of a rise in the firm’s share price, JP Asset Management sold its stake, pocketing about NT$539 million in profit, it said. The court also sentenced Chiu to eight years in jail and suspended his civil rights for four years, while PJ Asset Management CEO Daniel Tarng (唐楚烈), who worked with Chiu to manipulate the department store chain’s share price, was sentenced to eight years in prison. Fuh Hwa chief investment officer Chiu Ming-chiang (邱明強), fund manager Liu Chien-hsien (劉建賢) and analyst Chen Chou-lun (陳周倫) were sentenced to four years, three years and eight months, and 10 months in jail respectively. The two other defendants in the case, Capital Investment Trust Corp vice president Hsieh Chih-ying (謝志英) and analyst Tang Ming-chen (湯明真), were found not guilty. The court said it has ordered the seizure of NT$539 million in illegal profits made by PJ Asset Management.

Amazon.com Inc, Apple Inc and Microsoft Corp all fell and were the biggest drags on the S&P 500 and NASDAQ. A woman walks past a street vendor near the New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street on Tuesday. The S&P 500 fell about 1.21 percent and the NASDAQ slid 2.62 percent in their first weekly declines after four weeks of gains. The US central bank needs to keep raising borrowing costs to tame decades-high inflation, a string of US central bank officials said on Thursday, even as they debated how fast and how high to lift them. The S&P 500 posted one new 52-week high and 29 new lows; the NASDAQ Composite recorded 43 new highs and 93 new lows.

Luxury sneakers might be step too far for cash-strapped Gen ZBy Casey Hall and Mimosa Spencer / Reuters, SHANGHAI and PARISFrom US$300 bucket hats to US$900 sneakers and US$700 T-shirts, the high-flying luxury sector is fretting over the appetite among financially stretched Gen Z consumers for such “aspirational” purchases. This shift to focus on core luxury consumers also encompasses a cohort of wealthy Gen Z consumers less likely to be affected by inflation or unemployment. Brands such as Burberry have already reported weakness in sales of sneakers and slides, products Gen Z and millennial consumers have traditionally used as their entree into the world of luxury brands. Luxury branded mobile phone cases, earrings, hair clips and perfumes are all popular among her Gen Z peers in China, Yi said. If they do find the right offering of entry-level products, or if the economic situation of Gen Z consumers improves, the desire for luxury products remains undimmed.

The solar charkhas — which feature 12 spindles, double the number on her old wheel — are equipped with a motor and battery pack, and provided along with a 400 watt solar panel. Many women work at home, while others do so at production hubs in their villages which are run by local nonprofits. It is not just cotton spinners and weavers who are benefiting from solar energy in Uttar Pradesh. The Uttar Pradesh New and Renewable Energy Development Agency (UPNEDA) said it had installed about 700 megawatts (MW) of solar off-grid capacity. Nonetheless, in the case of the solar charkhas initiative, he hailed their effects on local women in a short space of time.

EDITORIAL: Developing a better defense systemChina’s launching of missiles over Taiwan during military drills earlier this month was “irresponsible,” and something that must be contested, a senior US Navy official said on Tuesday. In Taiwan, news of the missiles went public only after a report by the Japanese Ministry of Defense, as five of the missiles landed in Japanese waters. That leaves the question of what can be done to prevent further ICBM launches over Taiwan. Such a system could also benefit South Korea and Japan, which face missile threats from North Korea. It is imperative that Taiwan work with the US and other friendly nations to take concrete actions now to prevent that from happening.

Women’s soccer in India faces an uncertain futureAFP, NEW DELHIIndia’s female soccer players are in despair and uncertain about the future after a FIFA ban saw the country stripped of a major international tournament and left its best team in limbo. The world soccer governing body has suspended the All India Football Federation until it regains full control of its daily affairs. Photo: ReutersThe indefinite suspension had an immediate impact on Indian soccer, men and women, from professional down to grassroots. They only learned about the FIFA suspension when their flight landed in Tashkent and have been barred from competing. The national team are ranked 58th in the women’s global rankings — the men are 104th — and Gokulam last year became the first Indian women’s team to qualify for the an AFC club competition.

PTT urges changes to proposed digital actBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterNoncommercial online platforms should not be regulated by the digital intermediary service act, the Professional Technology Temple (PTT) bulletin board system yesterday said in an information session organized by the National Communications Commission (NCC). Representatives of commercial platforms said that there are practical issues they would encounter should the draft act be enforced. “We believe that only the court has the authority to decide whether a certain message is disinformation or illegal content. Meta Platforms, which owns Facebook, told NCC officials that the draft act should establish an agency that is responsible for handling accountability issues of multiple stakeholders. Enforcement rules related to the draft act must be clear and effective, and conform to the principle of proportionality, while accountability mechanisms should be flexible to strengthen the digital economy, Meta said.

Advocates urge pardon in ‘compassionate killing’ caseBy Wang Chien-hao and Kayleigh Madjar / Staff reporter, with staff writerDisability advocates yesterday called for a presidential pardon for an elderly man convicted in a “compassionate killing” case, while asking for more support for people with cerebral palsy and their caregivers. Chen’s daughter, then 50 years old, was bedridden since childhood due to severe cerebral palsy and mental disability. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Charles Chen, center, and cerebral palsy advocates call for a presidential pardon for an elderly caregiver at a news conference at the legislature in Taipei yesterday. Huang said she fears that Chen’s case would be the “straw that breaks the camel’s back” that makes families of people with cerebral palsy lose hope. This case “was not the first, nor will it be the last,” Kaohsiung City Cerebral Palsy Association founding chairwoman Wang Kang-feng (王岡鳳) said.

NCC informs Meta of Cambodia-linked job opening scamsADS REMAINED ONLINE: A Taipei city councilor misrepresented the NCC’s authoritiy when she accused it of enabling the schemes, the agency saidBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterThe National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said it had communicated with Meta Platforms about a rising number of scam messages on Facebook. Ying said the ads remained online even though police have notified Meta about them. NCC Department of Broadcasting and Content Affairs Director Huang Wen-che (黃文哲) said that the councilor’s statement misrepresented the commission’s authority. The draft act authorizes the creation of a specialized organization to coordinate among different stakeholders, which ensures that such matters can be handled in a timelier manner,” he said. The commission said in a statement that controversies and illegal content on social media should be jointly tackled by government agencies.

Ministry urged to scrutinize Apple Daily data conductBy Chen Yu-fu and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe Ministry of Culture should look into allegations that the new owner of the Apple Daily’s local branch is planning to transfer sensitive data to a new platform, Economic Democracy Union convener Lai Chung-chiang (賴中強) said yesterday. He is expected to offer Apple Daily employees contracts through his newly established local firm Long Cheng Creative Co Ltd (龍丞創意). If the local Apple Daily branch is to close down, it would have to remove all personal information from archived files, Lai said, citing the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法). If Phua seeks to “authorize” other entities to use the data, the Apple Daily would have to ask all people it has interviewed for consent to the transfer of their data, Lai said. Any unauthorized use of archived personal data gathered through research, subscriber data and Web domain names would breach the act, Lai said.

Nantou County commissioner candidate Hsu Shu-hua responds to plagiarism allegations in the county yesterday. Ho’s master’s degree also came under scrutiny, because the official election candidates’ information bulletin in 2014 showed that he only graduated from elementary school. However, he received a master’s degree from Asia University’s Department of Bioinformatics and Medical Engineering in 2016. The content of his master’s thesis was similar to that of his secretary’s at the time and they had the same adviser. He would accept the decision if the university revokes his master’s degree, because he was elected as councilor and speaker for his services and has gained people’s recognition.

Pilot union urges easing of restrictionsBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterThe Taoyuan Union of Pilots (TUP) yesterday called for a further easing of restrictions on aircrew members when they are at outstations, as many countries have adjusted or relaxed disease prevention policies against COVID-19. The union sent a letter with the request to the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) and the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA). The union conducted a survey among members on Monday last week, Lee said. “This shows that a large percentage of aircrew contracted the disease in Taiwan rather than in other countries. “Aircrew have been subject to such strict disease prevention regulations for more than two years.