Demonstrators call for enforcement of death penaltyBy Esme Yeh / Staff reporterDemonstrators in a march on Justice Day yesterday called for the enforcement of the death penalty to protect children’s right to life, ahead of the sentencing in a child abuse trial. The march was held by children’s rights advocates, along with the National Association of Equality for Life, Taiwan. People hold up signs during a march in Taipei yesterday calling for the enforcement of the death penalty. Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei TimesThey chanted “anti-death penalty alliance, get out of Taiwan” when they passed by the operating site of the Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty on Zhenjiang Street. Wang Hung-wei said the death penalty has been de facto abolished since Constitutional Judgement No.

Budget too important to break up, Cabinet saysBy Chen Yu-fu / Staff reporter, with CNAThe overall central government budget is too closely interconnected to only pass parts of it piecemeal, Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said yesterday, urging opposition lawmakers to swiftly review the budget. Opposition legislators have said they are dissatisfied that the Executive Yuan did not “properly” adjust military and police pay. Commuters pass a TPass billboard at an MRT station in an undated photograph. Photo: Taipei TimesThe Executive Yuan’s proposed general budget was formulated in accordance with its policy planning, taking into account all facets of the budget, Lee said. The Cabinet hopes the legislature considers these issues carefully and begins the budget review so that all policies that benefit the nation and Taiwanese can be implemented as scheduled, she said.

Trio sentenced for torturing Taichung man to deathBy Hsu Kuo-chen, Chen Chien-chih and Jason Pan / Staff reportersTaichung gaming business owner Liu Shih-hui (劉世惠) was on Friday sentenced by citizen judges to life in prison for kidnapping and torturing a man to death. In the case, which was heard in the Taichung District Court, the citizen judges reviewed evidence, including videos taken by perpetrators. A Taichung prosecutor said that the victim, surnamed Hsu (許), 28, was assaulted repeatedly, and his body was covered with wounds and bruises. The citizen judges handed down the maximum punishment for the perpetrators. While Liu was sentenced to life in prison, Shih Ting-chang (石庭彰), 19, was sentenced to 12 years, and Liu Chi-yun (劉季昀), 37, was sentenced to 13 years and six months.

Economist warns of ‘K’-shaped growth amid AI boomIMBALANCE: ’K’-shaped growth refers to a divergence of performance in different sectors, with some moving higher and some lower, with the graph resembling a ‘K’Staff writer, with CNADespite Taiwan’s per capita GDP forecast to top US$40,000 this year amid the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, an economist warned of “K”-shaped industrial growth, which would result in low wages in certain domestic demand-oriented industries. Dachrahn Wu (吳大任), director of National Central University’s Research Center for Taiwan Economic Development, said that Taiwan’s economy is largely driven by exports in the AI era, but the performance has diverged in a “K” shape. As the service sector serves as the largest employer in Taiwan, with the “K”-shaped development continuing, the impact on the sector would run deeper, Wu said. The first priority is to turn the service sector around, he said. Such efforts are needed to support domestic demand-oriented industries to have the entire industrial development tilt toward a balance, Kao said.

Lack of land curbs social housing: MOILEASE FOCUS: The ministry is struggling to find land in prime areas, the minister of the interior said, adding housing in distant areas would struggle to attract residentsBy Lee Wen-hsin and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerFewer social housing units are being built due to land scarcity, the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) said yesterday, adding that it is shifting focus to accelerating lease and management services. The government’s lease and management program aims to facilitate the rental of otherwise unused and empty properties to disadvantaged families, students and workers. The adoption of the lease and management program is 30 to 40 percent more effective in reducing carbon emissions than building social housing, it said. Due to slow construction of social housing, scarce land and slow acquisition, fewer social housing units would be built, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said yesterday. If social welfare housing is built outside prime areas, it would struggle to attract residents, she added.

Taiwan ranks 23rd in AI useBy Chiu Chiao-chun / Staff writerA recent Microsoft survey ranked Taiwan 23rd in the world in artificial intelligence (AI) use, with 28.4 percent of Taiwanese reporting that they use the technology. In Taiwan, AI use last year increased to 28.4 percent, from 26.4 percent, overtaking the US (28.3 percent) by a small margin. Logos of artificial intelligence apps including ChatGPT, center, are displayed on a phone screen in Vaasa, Finland, on June 6, 2023. The poll identified a divide between developed and developing economies, with AI usage rates of 24.7 percent and 14.1 percent respectively. The United Arab Emirates had an AI usage rate of 54 percent, the highest in the world, the institute said.

Opposition still dragging heels on passing total budgetBy Su Yung-yao, Liu Wan-lin and Esme Yeh / Staff reportersThe Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) plan to review and pass part of the central government’s general budget would be “a good job half done” if the rest of the budget remains shelved, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday. In response to media queries for comment, Lai yesterday said it is good for the KMT to realize the significance of the central government’s budget to people’s livelihoods. Democratic Progressive Party lawmakers hold up placards urging review of the central government’s general budget at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei on Friday. The KMT should allow all the central government’s budget bills to be reviewed by relevant legislative committees and facilitate their passage at the legislature as soon as possible, he said. Or that you just have been obsessed with political manipulation and blaming opposition parties every day?” she said.

Taiwan sees Maduro arrest as deterrentNOT AN OPENING: Trump’s violation of international law does not affect China’s consideration in attacking Taiwan; Beijing lacks capability, not precedent, an official said Taiwanese officials see the US’ capture of the president of Venezuela as a powerful deterrent to Beijing’s aggression and a timely reminder of the US’ ability to defeat militaries equipped with Chinese-made weapons. The strikes that toppled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro signaled to authoritarian leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), US President Donald Trump’s willingness to use military might for international affairs core to US interests, one senior official in Taipei’s security circle said. That reassured Taiwan, the person said. Taipei has also dismissed the idea that Trump’s apparent violation of international law could embolden Beijing, said the official, who was not

Taiwan sees Maduro arrest as deterrentNOT AN OPENING: Trump’s violation of international law does not affect China’s consideration in attacking Taiwan; Beijing lacks capability, not precedent, an official said Taiwanese officials see the US’ capture of the president of Venezuela as a powerful deterrent to Beijing’s aggression and a timely reminder of the US’ ability to defeat militaries equipped with Chinese-made weapons. The strikes that toppled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro signaled to authoritarian leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), US President Donald Trump’s willingness to use military might for international affairs core to US interests, one senior official in Taipei’s security circle said. That reassured Taiwan, the person said. Taipei has also dismissed the idea that Trump’s apparent violation of international law could embolden Beijing, said the official, who was not

Pesticide screening capacity to grow: ministryBy Esme Yeh / Staff reporterMore than 80,000 potential pesticide residue cases were tested via rapid screening with mass spectrometry over the past three years, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Agriculture and Food Agency said, adding that its annual screening capacity would be boosted to 50,000 cases this year. Photo: Tsai Cheng-min, Taipei TimesThe agency aims to increase its annual screening capacity to 50,000 cases this year, after it passed its 40,000-case goal last year with the screening of 40,470 cases, Chen said. These pretreatment stations not only make it convenient for agricultural workers to use the screening service, but also facilitate the screening process by conducting pretreatments, including homogenization, shaking and extraction, he said. Rapid screening test results can inform agricultural workers about the pesticide residue amounts before produce enters the market, the ministry said. Submitters whose samples are found to have pesticide residues would be required to delay the harvest and undergo screening again, it said.

Wang said the proven rocket artillery system would significantly bolster the army’s long-range precision strike capabilities and that the acquisition could alter the army’s role. The army would no longer have to rely entirely on the navy or air force, Wang said; instead, the army could support operations in an anti-aircraft role. A missile is fired from a High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) during a live-fire drill in Pingtung in May last year. Lockheed Martin completed proof-of-concept tests using the HIMARS to launch modified AMRAAM missiles at the White Sands Missile Range in 2009. After the completion of deliveries, Taiwan will have 111 launchers, the largest concentration of HIMARS outside of the US Army, which fields 400, Wang said.

A Taiwan flag flutters in Keelung as China conducts “Justice Mission 2025” military drills on December 30, 2025. China’s defense ministry did not immediately respond to faxed questions from Reuters. Taiwan is determined to defend its sovereignty and boost its defense, President William Lai (賴清德) said last month, after Beijing fired rockets toward Taiwan as part of its military drills. The drills surrounding Taiwan — the most extensive to date — were accompanied by strong messaging from Chinese officials and the military. In July, Taiwan’s military staged a drill to protect Taipei’s main airport from a hostile landing.

Man sets himself on fire at Banciao filling stationStaff writer, with CNAA man who allegedly set himself on fire at a fuel station in New Taipei City on Friday afternoon is in an intensive care unit, police said yesterday. The New Taipei City Fire Department said that it at 5:44pm on Friday received a report that a man had self-immolated at a CPC Corp, Taiwan gas station on Minzu Road in Banciao District (板橋). Police cordon off an area of a filling station in New Taipei City’s Banciao District after a man allegedly set himself on fire on Friday afternoon. Photo courtesy of the New Taipei City Police DepartmentThe man was restrained at the scene and sustained second-degree burns, it said. However, it did not comment on whether the man set himself on fire.

Minister applauds tightening ties with Israel in tech fieldsStaff writer, with CNATaiwan and Israel share many common interests and the two sides are likely to cooperate more closely in the tech, medical and defense realms, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an interview published on Friday. Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu speaks in an interview with the Liberty Times in Taipei on Wednesday. Another area in which Taiwan and Israel share an interest is Somaliland, Wu said. Taiwan has developed ties with Somaliland, opening a representative office in Hargeisa, Somaliland’s capital, in 2020, and it welcomed Israel’s decision. Taiwan would continue to deepen cooperation with Somaliland, Wu said.

Ebnoutalib savors ‘dream’ debut winAFP, BERLINNew Eintracht Frankfurt striker Younes Ebnoutalib crowned a dream Bundesliga debut with a second-half goal in a rollercoaster 3-3 draw with Borussia Dortmund on Friday. Thrown into the starting eleven on his debut, Ebnoutalib smashed home an ice-cool finish midway through the second half before the drama continued with two goals in stoppage time. “It’s like a dream, I’m still a bit speechless,” Ebnoutalib said. Photo: AFPFrankfurt coach Dino Toppmoeller said that he had decided a day before the game to put Ebnoutalib in the starting line-up. Ebnoutalib headed a good chance wide just after the break as Frankfurt took control of the game in the second half.