Finance minister leaving post to return to teachingStaff writer, with CNAMinister of Finance Su Jain-rong (蘇建榮) is to step down from his post on Monday to return to teaching at National Taipei University, Cabinet spokesman Lo Ping-cheng (羅秉成) said yesterday. Su has tendered his resignation and Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) has approved it, Lo said. Su Jain-rong has been on leave from his post at the university, where he is a professor in the Department of Public Finance. Minister of Finance Su Jain-rong, left, and Deputy Minister of Finance Frank Juan attend a news conference in Taipei on March 19, 2020. Photo: CNADeputy Minister of Finance Frank Juan (阮清華) is to take on Su Jain-rong’s duties as acting minister after his departure, Lo added.

Three firms dominate mobile network awards: reportStaff writer, with CNATaiwan’s 5G mobile network market is extremely dynamic with fierce competition, but the Mobile Experience Awards were dominated by three of the five national operators, Opensignal said in its report for this month. Opensignal is a UK-based mobile analytics company that specializes in analyzing the consumer mobile experience. Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信) won all four of the speed categories: Download Speed Experience, Upload Speed Experience, 5G Download Speed and 5G Upload Speed. Of the four, it retained three from the last report, and replaced Far EasTone Telecommunications Co (遠傳電信) as the winner of the Upload Speed Experience category due to its a 1.8 megabits per second (Mbps), or 14.7 percent, increase in overall upload speed, Opensignal’s Taiwan Mobile Network Experience Report said. Taiwan Mobile Co (台灣大哥大) was the outright winner of the Games Experience award, and tied first with Chunghwa Telecom for the Video Experience award, Voice App Experience, 5G Video Experience, 5G Games Experience and 5G Voice App Experience awards.

Afghan women defy Taliban gym ban with secret fitness clubsBy Bahaar Joya and Emma Batha / Thomson Reuters FoundationHidden in the basement of a private home in the Afghan capital Kabul, gym instructor Laila Ahmad takes a group of women through a clandestine exercise class — the windows are blacked out, there is no pumping music and visitors arrive by a back door. The Taliban banned women from gyms and parks last month, the latest clampdown in a progressive erosion of their freedoms that drew swift international condemnation. The ruling Taliban has banned women from attending university in Afghanistan, according to an order issued on Tuesday. When the Taliban shut her school, Yosef gathered together some sports equipment and moved it into her home. Her biggest fear is that the Taliban will shut the gym.

Hon Hai to sell its stake in TsinghuaUNWINDING CHINA DEAL: The company said the investment had not yet been finalized, amid an ongoing government probe that could lead to a NT$25 million fine A subsidiary of Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) is planning to dispose of its indirect minority stake in China’s Tsinghua Unigroup Co (清華紫光), the latest sign that Beijing’s chip industry is becoming increasingly isolated from the rest of the world. Hon Hai’s China-listed Foxconn Industrial Internet Co (FII, 富士康工業互聯網) is planning to sell the shares to Yantai Haixiu IC Investment Center (煙臺海秀積體電路產業投資中心) for no less than 5.38 billion yuan (US$771.5 million), a Taiwan Stock Exchange filing showed on Friday. Hon Hai said in a separate statement on Saturday that it decided to sell the stake to avoid uncertainty because the investment

Learning from US’ Ukraine policyBy Joseph BoscoIf Washington’s support for Ukraine against Russia’s aggression is a model for the US’ role after a Chinese attack on Taiwan, Taiwanese are in for a rough ride. Encouraged by US and NATO acquiescence, Putin planned his next move toward “national reunification” and “territorial integrity.”That move consisted of the 2014 invasion of eastern Ukraine and Crimea. No administration since 1979 has issued a definitive declaration that the US would actively defend Taiwan, aside from sending it limited arms with which it could try to defend itself. Biden attempted to shed new light on the situation by stating four times, in increasingly specific terms, that the US would send its own fighting forces to defend Taiwan. That is all the more reason for Biden to state formally a US commitment to defend Taiwan while ensuring that Ukraine gets all it needs to defend itself.

EDITORIAL: Exchange programs build better tiesThe US Senate on Thursday passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023, which would not only provide military aid to Taiwan, but implement the Taiwan Fellowship Act to send US federal employees to Taiwan to learn Mandarin and work in government agencies. On the other hand, allowing US or any foreign federal employees to work in government agencies might raise concerns about national security. The government must assign dedicated officials to negotiate and arrange the US fellows’ internships for security reasons, while maximizing potential advances in Taiwan-US relations. Due to China’s increasing threat to the international community, Taiwan has become a crucial element in maintaining stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region and globally. Taipei should consider establishing more fellowship exchange programs with like-minded countries to deepen cultural, political and economic ties.

It’s a first step toward a hoped-for system that would track carbon dioxide and pH in all five Great Lakes over multiple years, said project co-leader Reagan Errera of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Photo: APOceans are becoming more acidic as they absorb carbon dioxide that human activity pumps into the atmosphere — the primary cause of climate change. Researchers say Great Lakes also could approach acidity around the same rate as in oceans by 2100. One measures carbon dioxide pressure in the water column and the other pH. Increasing water acidity in lab tanks to projected 2100 levels more than tripled their mortality rates, according to a report last year.

Defense firm L3Harris to buy Aerojet for US$4.7bn with eye on missile demandReutersUS defense contractor L3Harris Technologies Inc on Sunday said it would purchase Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc in a US$4.7 billion all-cash transaction, as it looks to tap into rising demand for missiles amid the Ukraine conflict. The deal, which is expected to be completed next year, would add to L3Harris’ Space & Airborne Systems unit, which makes electronic warfare equipment and avionics sensors. A United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket lifts off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, on July 1. Aerojet develops and manufactures liquid and solid rocket propulsion and hypersonic engines for space, defense, civil and commercial applications. Aerojet makes the RS-25 engines for NASA’s launch vehicle, as well as the RL10 engines that power launch vehicles made by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Boeing Co and Lockheed Martin.

Promoting track two diplomacyBy Neval MulaomerovicTaiwan’s international status remains in a state of flux, still plagued by isolation from multilateral institutions such as the UN, the WHO and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Track two diplomacy has transformed into a vital and dynamic form of international engagement. Whereas track one diplomacy involves government representation, track two diplomacy empowers civil society and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to take the lead on promoting bilateral and multilateral communication. President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is actively promoting track two diplomatic engagements through her administration’s flagship foreign policy, the New Southbound Policy. Track two diplomatic engagements have shown promising results, although further contributions from think tanks, civil society and governments are necessary to secure Taiwan’s future.

MND urged to implement one-year conscriptionBy Chen Yu-fu / Staff reporterThe Taiwan Association of University Professors yesterday urged the government to quickly announce and implement a policy of extending the conscription period from four months to one year. The world is watching whether Taiwan would extend the conscription period in the face of military threats from China, former minister of national defense Michael Tsai (蔡明憲) told a news conference in Taipei. The Taiwan Association of University Professors and former minister of national defense Michael Tsai, front row second left, host a news conference at the legislature in Taipei yesterday. “Young people in Taiwan are not against extending the conscription period; they want the ministry to change the training methods so they can learn something new during the conscription period. Separately, Veterans Affairs Council Minister Feng Shih-kuan (馮世寬), who served as defense minister from 2016 to 2018, said that extending the conscription period is a reasonable policy.

Rebuilt Nanfangao Bridge opens after collapse in 2019Staff writer, with CNAThe rebuilt Nanfangao Bridge in Yilan County’s Suao Township (蘇澳) opened to traffic yesterday, with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) telling a ceremony that she hopes the new bridge creates opportunities to revive the fishing town. The original bridge collapsed on Oct. 1, 2019, killing six workers from the Philippines and Indonesia who were on fishing vessels that were crushed by the falling structure. The rebuilt Nanfangao Bridge in Yilan County is pictured yesterday. Construction of the 796.53m Nanfangao Bridge began on July 16, 2020. Tsai said the bridge is expected to boost the local economy and tourism while improving traffic flow at the Nanfangao Fishing Port (南方澳漁港).

KMT’s Huang Min-hui re-elected as Chiayi mayorBy Lee I-chia / Staff Reporter, with CNAChiayi Mayor Huang Min-hui (黃敏惠) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) was yesterday re-elected, defeating the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) candidate, Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋), and three independent candidates running in an election that had been postponed following the death of a candidate. Chiayi Mayor Huang Min-hui, front, second left, thanks supporters for their votes after winning the mayoral election yesterday. The Chiayi City Election Committee yesterday said it had set up 193 polling stations for the city’s 214,130 eligible voters. After one hour of counting, Huang Min-hui had already garnered 50,000 votes, surpassing the threshold of about 46,000 votes for winning the election. Lee said he has called Huang Min-hui to congratulate her, adding that she would hopefully implement some of the policies he had proposed during his campaign.

Air force to finish overhaul of ejection seats in all F-5s by the end of the yearStaff writer, with CNAThe air force is to finish installing new ejection seats on all of its F-5 jets by the end of this year, a military source said on Saturday. The Ministry of National Defense last year budgeted NT$746.5 million (US$24.31 million) to install 70 Mk16 ejection seats manufactured by Martin-Baker Aircraft Co on the nation’s fleet of 70 F-5s. On Oct. 30, 2020, air force Captain Chu Kuan-meng (朱冠甍), 29, ejected from an F-5E during a drill after the jet’s engine malfunctioned. The ministry later confirmed that mechanical defects were found in Chu’s and Luo’s ejection seats. The decades-old F-5s are mostly used for training purposes, although they could be called into action during wartime, another unnamed air force source said.

Africa struggling to reduce dependency on Indian riceAFP, DAK, SenegalOutside Dak village in central Senegal women sing and dance as they chop through rice stalks with sickle or knife. Photo: AFPIn several African countries that rely on imported rice, self-sufficiency has become a buzzword. Africa accounts for 13 percent of the world population, but 32 percent of global rice imports, said Africa Rice, a research center set up by 28 nations and based in Abidjan. “Local rice production covers only about 60 percent of current demand in sub-Saharan Africa, which means 14 to 15 million tonnes are imported annually,” the center said. Meanwhile, Nigeria has followed a different strategy and slapped heavy taxes on imported rice to try to boost local production.

A 2018 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development survey found that Japanese middle-school teachers work 56 hours a week, versus an average 38 hours in most developed countries. Japanese middle-school physical education teacher Masako Shimonomura, center right, interacts with a student during class in Tokyo on Nov. 22. One investigation by a union-affiliated think tank found that school teachers work an average 123 hours of overtime each month, pushing their weekly workload well beyond the so-called “karoshi line” of 80 hours. Photo: AFPThat came too late for Kudo, a middle-school teacher, who in 2007 died of a brain haemorrhage at the age of 40. However, it took Kudo’s widow five years to get her husband’s death recognized as karoshi, a task complicated by the lack of records for his work hours.