By Dennis Xie / Staff writer, with CNACivic groups on Monday urged TV stations not to inflate vote counts when reporting the results of the Jan. 11 elections. “Some TV stations reported unrealistic vote counts in past elections,” she added. Chiu said that several incidents have created public commotion, without specifying them, adding that fabricated vote counts could further agitate members of the public and risk sparking clashes. Stations are prohibited from inflating vote counts in any way, it added. Third, the CEC and the NCC should treat fabricated vote counts by stations seriously and record the ballot-counting process in detail, it said, adding that strict punishment should be doled out to stations that broadcast fabricated vote counts.

By Ann Maxon / Staff reporterKaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu’s (韓國瑜) campaign office yesterday said that it would boycott all talk shows by SETN (三立新聞) and press charges against the news network for alleging that Han on Sunday held an infant without her parents’ consent. Han’s campaign office spokeswoman Anne Wang (王淺秋) said that the mother handed the baby over to Han, and that both parents were not against the mayor carrying their child on stage. Given the news network’s “apparent bias,” starting today, the campaign office’s spokespeople would no longer attend any talk shows produced by SETN, she said. He is not a fan of the mayor, but “it is not like Han was a homeless man or a bad guy,” he said. Certain media and netizens have overinterpreted the incident, he said, adding that he did not like seeing a simple baby race turned into a campaign against the mayor.

By Natasha Li / Staff reporterRevenue in the retail sector grew 5.4 percent year-on-year last month to NT$343.4 billion (US$11.4 billion), data published by the Ministry of Economic Affairs showed yesterday. The retail sector was also bolstered by strong automobile sales, which surged 12.7 percent year-on-year to NT$57.5 billion, the ministry said. Retail sector sales are predicted to grow by 2 to 5 percent year-on-year this month, the report said. Revenue in the food and beverage sector increased 5.7 percent annually last month to NT$63.7, driven by restaurant sales of NT$52.3 billion, a 6.3 percent year-on-year increase, it said. Wholesale sector revenue decreased 2.5 percent year-on-year to NT$860.7 billion last month, the report showed.

Staff writer, with CNAThe government and an overseas Taiwanese group based in Okinawa have donated ￥5.5 million (US$50,281) to the Okinawa government to help rebuild Shuri Castle, which was severely damaged in a fire on Oct. 31. Fan Chen-kuo (范振國), representative to Naha, the capital of Okinawa Prefecture, on Thursday last week presented ￥3.5 million to Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki on behalf of the government to assist with the rebuilding of the UNESCO World Heritage site, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said yesterday. Ryukyu Overseas Chinese Association president Mitsuteru Harimoto accompanied Fan to the meeting and donated ￥2 million on behalf of Taiwanese living in Japan, Ou said. The government hopes the donations will help with the rebuilding of the historical site and ensure it is returned to its former glory as soon as possible, she said. At least seven buildings, including the main structure of the castle, burned down, with an electrical fault being the likely cause of the fire, according to Japanese media reports.

Semiconductor sales, which account for the largest share of South Korean exports, declined 17 percent, improving from more-than-20 percent declines in previous months. A South Korean Ministry of Finance official last week said that the government is cautiously optimistic that an improving global economy will help fuel a recovery next year. South Korean imports fell 0.5 percent in the first 20 days of this month from a year earlier. Exports to the US edged down 3.4 percent, while imports rose 7.9 percent. South Korea’s exports from Dec. 1 to 20 expanded 8.1 percent from the same period a month earlier, while imports gained 9.1 percent.

BloombergChina cut import tariffs on a wide range of goods, including food, consumer items and parts for manufacturing smartphones, continuing Beijing’s drive to lower trade barriers and spur domestic demand. The Chinese Ministry of Finance yesterday published a list of 859 types of products that will enjoy tariffs lower than the standard rates for this year. China is to cut pork import tariffs to 8 percent from 12 percent Wednesday next week, the ministry said. Since 2017, China has been cutting import tariffs on consumer goods including wine, baby products, whiskey and seafood, items that remain on the expanded list for next year. The list allows lower tariffs on goods coming from WTO members.

Reuters, BEIJINGAn unmarried Chinese woman yesterday filed a suit against a hospital for rejecting her request to undergo a medical procedure to freeze her eggs due to her marital status, in China’s first legal challenge of a woman fighting for her reproductive rights. Through a medical procedure, a woman’s eggs can be removed from her ovaries and frozen for use at a later time. Xu, from Heilongjiang Province, said on her first visit to the hospital for a checkup, the doctor asked about her marital status and urged her to have a child now instead of freezing her eggs. “This is a systemic issue, because the system has brought this difficult position for single women,” Xu said. The women’s bathroom door at the hospital was filled with these ads, but ultimately she decided against it, Xu said.

BloombergThailand’s economic growth outlook of 2.8 percent next year is “disappointing” and policymakers are doing what they can to curb excessive gains in the currency, Bank of Thailand (BoT) Governor Veerathai Santiprabhob said yesterday. The bank is “actively managing the exchange rate” and monitoring short-term foreign inflows closely to avoid speculation in the baht, he said. The Bank of Thailand last week lowered its growth forecasts for this year and next year, given the weaker global backdrop, trade disruptions and a stronger currency. MAZDASeparately, Mazda Motor Corp is shifting some production of vehicles destined for the Australian market from Thailand to Japan, citing the adverse impact of a stronger baht, the Nikkei reported. Mazda has the capacity to make about 135,000 vehicles in Thailand annually.

Reuters, SEOULA South Korean heiress known for delaying a Korean Air Lines Co flight in 2014 because she was angry at the way she was served nuts has accused her younger brother of disobeying their late father’s will to manage the airline’s parent company together. Heather Cho, a former Korean Air Lines executive whose “nut rage” incident made international headlines, said that her younger brother, Cho Won-tae, was ignoring the wishes of their father, former Korean Air Lines chairman Cho Yang-ho, for “harmony” in the family’s management of Korean Air parent Hanjin Group. Korean Air and budget affiliate Jin Air Co Ltd rose more than 4 percent. Cho Won-tae, Heather Cho and younger sister Emily Cho hold 6.46 percent, 6.43 percent and 6.42 percent of Hanjin Kal shares respectively. Heather Cho and Emily Cho stepped down from their positions at Korean Air in April last year, amid public outrage at their behavior.

Staff writer, with CNAA petition to recall Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) has passed the first signature threshold and would soon proceed to the second stage, Wecare Kaohsiung founder Aaron Yin (尹立) said. In the case of Han, that amounts to at least 22,800 of the city’s 2.28 million eligible voters for the first stage. The threshold rises to 10 percent of the electorate in the second stage. The final stage is a recall vote, in which at least 25 percent of the electorate — about 570,000 people in this case — must participate for the results to be valid. If the petition passes all the thresholds, a recall vote might be held in late May, Chang said.

By Wang Jung-hsiang / Staff reporterDemocratic Progressive Party (DPP) and New Power Party (NPP) Kaohsiung city councilors yesterday urged the Kaohsiung City Government to list Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam (林鄭月娥) as an unwelcome figure in the city. In doing so, the Hong Kong government and police have encroached upon human rights, they said. As a city that values human rights, Kaohsiung should list Lam as an unwelcome figure in the city, they said. The councilors said they would also send a Christmas card attached with the motion to Lam, and reach out to the Hong Kong Legislative Council to inform them of the motion. The Kaohsiung City Government said that it respects councilors’ right to submit motions, but added that all motions should have a sound legal basis and be grounded in reality.

However, in Woodbridge, New Jersey, the state has bought and torn down 145 homes since 2013 and returned the land to nature, with eight homes demolished this month alone. Earlier this month, Patricia Kambach, 80, went inside rather than watch a crew demolish her longtime neighbor’s home. Kambach has lived in her house on Lewis Street since former US president John F. Kennedy was in office. “We need the same success and program along the shore to get people and their properties out of harm’s way,” he said. In places like Woodbridge, the Blue Acres program has thrown a lifeline to people who might have trouble selling their homes otherwise.

AFP, FRANKFURT AM MAIN, GermanyA German cabin crew union on Sunday threatened Lufthansa with fresh walkouts after Christmas as discussions to resolve a bitter dispute over pay and conditions failed to make progress. Speaking after the latest round of arbitration talks, UFO, the union representing Lufthansa flight attendants, said efforts to come up with a “credible and legally secure” resolution with the help of independent mediators had failed. Lufthansa flight attendants staged a massive 48-hour strike last month that led to 1,500 flight cancelations at German airports, affecting about 200,000 passengers. Lufthansa for a long time refused to discuss the demands, claiming the union no longer rightfully represented staff after an internal leadership struggle. A one-day warning strike in October led to several dozen flight cancelations at Eurowings, Germanwings, SunExpress and Lufthansa CityLine.

Among the many gaffes Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) has made during this presidential campaign, some of the most shocking have targeted women. Even the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) politicians around him seem to be “catching the Han Kuo-yu virus” and letting slip misogynistic remarks, according to Democratic Progressive Party Taipei City Councilor Chien Hsu-pei (簡舒培). In 2017, women accounted for 38.1 percent of the Legislative Yuan and 37.5 percent of mayors and county commissioners. It is dangerous to keep viewing these comments as “gaffes” or “quips,” as it softens the intention behind them. The KMT’s current brand of sexism is not just a fluke — it is a sign of the underlying authoritarian attitude that informs Han’s campaign, which should be worrisome to all who value Taiwan’s democracy.

By Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterThe unemployment rate in Taiwan dropped to 3.73 percent last month, down 0.04 percentage points from a month earlier, as fewer people quit and more first-time jobseekers found work, the Directorate-General of Accounting, Budget and Statistics (DGBAS) said yesterday. That explained why the unemployment rate averaged 3.74 percent for the year as of November, up 0.03 percentage points from a year earlier, the survey said. The unemployment rate was 9.46 percent for those aged 15 to 19, and eased to 6.64 percent for those aged 25 to 29 and 3.35 percent for people aged 30 to 34, it said. The average unemployment period was 23.3 weeks, shorter by 0.7 weeks from a month earlier, it said. The nation’s unemployment rate is higher than Singapore’s 2.3 percent, Japan’s 2.4 percent, Hong Kong’s 3.2 percent and South Korea’s 3.5 percent, although Taiwan has outpaced them in GDP growth so far this year, the report said.