With three weeks to go before the presidential and legislative elections, the major parties and their candidates continue to engage in mudslinging rather than policy debate, thereby threatening the nation’s democracy. The issue is of such seriousness that five advocacy groups on Tuesday jointly petitioned candidates to change their focus. While motivating a candidate’s support base, negative campaigning resulted in greater image discrimination against the candidate and greater attitude polarization, she said. On Tuesday, Han lambasted the DPP for mudslinging, but then turned around and made allegations about DPP members and the central government. “There has never been so much mudslinging and negative campaigning for a presidential election,” he said.

AFP, OTTAWAThe Canadian Supreme Court on Thursday confirmed the right to Canadian citizenship for the son of Russian spies, whose case inspired the TV series The Americans. Alexander Vavilov was born Alexander Foley in Canada in 1994, four years after his brother Timothy. Their parents, Donald Heathfield and Tracey Ann Foley, were among 10 Russian spies expelled from the US in 2011. Canada’s highest court upheld a June 2017 ruling of the Federal Court of Appeal that Alexander Foley had the right to Canadian citizenship. In 2017, the Federal Court of Appeal said his parents did not have diplomatic privileges or immunities in Canada, leaving him eligible for citizenship.

AP, WASHINGTONUS President Donald Trump on Thursday railed behind closed doors about US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s decision to delay sending articles of impeachment to the Republican-controlled Senate, putting an expected trial in limbo. US Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Trump ally, emerged from a White House meeting with the president with a message. “I just left President Trump. Trump has seen a Senate trial as his means for vindication, viewing acquittal as a partial antidote to impeachment’s stain on his legacy. House Democrats had argued for weeks that Trump’s impeachment was needed “urgently” to protect the nation.

AFP, SYDNEYAustralian Prime Minister Scott Morrison yesterday cut short a Hawaii vacation following a barrage of criticism for taking time off while his country battles an unprecedented bushfire crisis. Morrison expressed regret for the family trip as two volunteer firefighters were killed and a record heat wave exacerbated dozens of out-of-control blazes. Pressure had been piling on Morrison over his vacation this week, as thousands of exhausted volunteer firefighters battled blazes across the country and millions of people in Sydney choked on toxic smoke. Geoffrey Keating, 32, and Andrew O’Dwyer, 36, died when a tree damaged their truck on Thursday as they battled out-of-control blazes south of Sydney. Fires are burning almost the entire length of Australia’s east coast, with more than 100 blazes in New South Wales alone.

AP, ISLAMABADA group of Pakistani doctors is blaming an outbreak of HIV among children in a southern city on poor healthcare practices, such as using dirty needles and contaminated blood, a statement released yesterday said. They also warned that there is not enough medication in Ratodero, where 591 children need medical treatment. They studied the medical data of 31,239 people in Ratodero, where the HIV outbreak took place and who agreed to the study. “The results, which are the first scientific report on the outbreak, appear to confirm observations ... that HIV was mostly transmitted to children as a result of healthcare providers using contaminated needles and blood products,” the statement said. In the immediate aftermath of the HIV outbreak in Ratodero, the government did act quickly — closing three blood banks, as well as 300 clinics run by untrained medical staff — the statement said.

One day after Trump’s ignominious impeachment, seven candidates united on Thursday to declare the president must be defeated at next year’s election. “Your net worth is 100 times mine,” said Buttigieg, whose star has risen substantially in the past two months of campaigning. While Warren hit Buttigieg on money in politics, US Senator Amy Klobuchar also sought to kneecap the mayor. The showdown marks a significant drop from the 10 candidates in last month’s debate, and the dozen who crowded the stage in October. “Because make no mistake, he’ll be there at the ballot box.”In a statement calling the Democratic debate “drab” and “pessimistic,” Trump’s reelection campaign said it was “even more clear why they felt they had to impeach President Trump.

By Chuang Sheng-rong 莊勝榮A group from the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) has protested against the anti-infiltration bill, saying that it overlaps with the National Security Act (國家安全法) and citing electoral concerns. The anti-infiltration bill is an anti-annexation bill aimed at preventing the CCP from subverting Taiwan’s government. As it safeguards national security and people’s livelihoods, most support the bill. If these disciples of Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙) and Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) had a conscience and a concept of what a nation is, they would also support the bill. The anti-infiltration bill is an anti-annexation bill, and along with the national defense forces, it will provide the strongest psychological defense of our democracy — this is something that every intelligent person will understand and support wholeheartedly.

By Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporterA team of Academia Sinica researchers yesterday said that they have found the neural mechanism that coordinates fruit flies’ states of thirst and hunger, which they said might help with studies on eating disorders and depression in humans. When the flies are dehydrated, leucokinin is released, driving them to search for learned water cues by inhibiting two groups of dopamine-releasing neurons (thirst-DANs), which restrict the flies’ water-seeking behaviors, he said. The neurotransmitter is also released in starving flies and activates another group of dopamine-releasing neurons linked to hunger cues, he said. The team observed fly brains under microscopes, using fluorescent proteins to highlight their neurons, Lin said, adding that existing genetic tools for fruit flies have enabled scientists to control each of the flies’ neurons. Their research showed that the flies’ thirst and hunger drives are coordinated by multiple neurotransmitters, instead of entirely separate ones, a phenomenon that might also occur in other creatures, he said.

ReutersBrazil’s Italo Ferreira on Thursday upset compatriot Gabriel Medina to win his first world surfing title in powerful, but less-than-perfect waves at Hawaii’s famed Pipeline. Ferreira used perfect timing and positioning to negotiate the biggest, most critical tubing waves, often punctuating them with technical aerial maneuvers to finish. I dedicated all my life to this,” Ferreira said after being carried up the beach and doused in champagne. Five surfers went into the final event of the 11-stop World Championship Tour (WCT) in contention for the title, but it all came down to Medina and Ferreira. Medina then stormed through the quarter-finals and semi-finals, and looked destined for a third world title before Ferreira toppled him in a gripping finale.

By Chiu Chun-fu and Huang Chien-hua / Staff reportersAhead of marches today for and against Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), National Police Agency (NPA) Director-General Chen Ja-chin (陳家欽) yesterday said that he would personally direct 3,200 police officers to maintain peace and order in Kaohsiung, vowing to arrest instigators of violence. There are to be more services for the day, with train intervals reduced from eight to five minutes, while two police officers are to guard each carriage, they said. Highway and railway police units have been bolstered and put on alert to deal with an expected influx of people from elsewhere in the nation traveling to Kaohsiung for the marches, he said. Police would take strong action and arrest instigators of violence, while public prosecutors would be on standby at the police command center to handle cases immediately, he added. “I strongly disagree with the Kaohsiung City Government approving two large rallies with very different political agendas at the same time,” Cho said.

The results represented a slight retreat from last month amid uncertainty over the US-China trade dispute, Cathay Financial said. Nearly 80 percent of respondents said that GDP growth next year might be between 2 and 2.8 percent, it showed. The survey showed that 60.9 percent of respondents expect their wages to stagnate in the next six months, while 21.7 percent expect a raise and 17 percent anticipate a decline. It is common for Taiwanese employers to distribute year-end bonuses in line with corporate profitability. Year-end bonuses, which are typically handed out ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, averaged NT$70,164 (US$2,323) per employee this year, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics said.

Staff writer, with CNAThe Central Weather Bureau has announced a modified intensity scale to better reflect the effect earthquakes have on people, structures and the environment, thereby facilitating disaster response efforts by government agencies. The new earthquake intensity scale, to be introduced on Jan. 1, has 10 levels compared with the current eight-level scale, which has been in effect since 2000, Seismological Center Director Chen Kuo-chang (陳國昌) said. The bureau’s intensity scale is computed based solely on peak ground acceleration and is graded 0 to 7, with 7 being the strongest intensity. In intensity 6-strong earthquakes, stronger buildings are likely to be damaged. In intensity 7 earthquakes, people are unable to move at will due to violent shaking, stronger buildings could collapse and railroad tracks become twisted.

Political candidates should demonstrate consistency in their speech and actions, instead of switching sides when it favors them, Su said. The alliance hopes people do not vote for candidates who do not even support basic human rights, Su added. After the last presidential and legislative elections in 2016, lawmakers who opposed LGBT rights have decreased from 24 to 12, and hopefully will drop further after next year’s elections, she said. The younger generation would hold candidates to more rigorous standards, especially in relation to issues such as gender and marriage equality, Chang added. Candidates should explicitly express their opinions on such issues rather than sidestep them, and ballots should be cast carefully as they will shape the nation’s future, Chang said.

AFP, MONTREALCanadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday called on the US not to sign a trade deal with China unless Beijing agrees to release two Canadians detained since last year. Former diplomat Michael Kovrig and businessman Michael Spavor have been held in China’s opaque legal system since they were apprehended on Dec. 10 last year, accused of espionage. Obtaining the two men’s release has been a top priority of Trudeau’s government. She is living in her Vancouver mansion while waiting for an extradition hearing scheduled to begin on Jan. 20. “Whatever pressure they put on us, arresting two Canadians ... won’t change the Court of British Columbia’s decision on extradition,” Trudeau said, adding that the Canadian judicial system is “independent.”

By Natasha Li / Staff reporterLocal electronic component maker Lite-On Technology Corp (光寶科技) yesterday said it was optimistic about its smart life and application strategic business unit, predicting 30 percent year-on-year growth in sales next year. “We expanded the production capacity at our Kaohisung plant a while back,” Chang said, adding that the company has clear order visibility for smart video surveillance systems that reaches to the second half of next year. With telecommunications companies rolling out 5G base stations and applications, the unit is focusing on antenna calibration solutions, which reduce maintenance costs for base stations, Lite-On said. The Lite-On unit also has an LED streetlight segment, with sales under the brand Leotek contributing about 10 percent of the unit’s revenue, Chang said. The unit’s networking segment and Internet communications module segment contribute another 30 percent apiece, while industrial automation makes up the remaining 5 percent, Chang said.