New sports body head to focus on Tokyo Olympics
Chang took up the post yesterday after his predecessor, Kao Chin-hsung (高俊雄), in July returned to a teaching position at National Sports University. He would contribute to the sports industry by helping more Taiwanese athletes reach their potential, Chang said. The Tokyo Games, scheduled for July next year, would be the agency’s most important task, Chang said, adding that the event would bring a powerful change to Taiwanese sports. Sports Administration officials said that they would ask coaches and athletes to look at every scheduled international tournament and gauge whether the nation’s athletes could skip some of them to focus on the most important ones. NTNU agreed to giving Chang two years to head the Sports Administration.
Source:Taipei Times
September 01, 2020 15:56 UTC
Powerchip to build new fab in Miaoli next year
Powerchip to build new fab in Miaoli next yearBy Lisa Wang / Staff reporterPowerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (力積電) yesterday said that it plans to build a 12-inch fab in Miaoli County next year as strong demand for display drivers used in laptops and image sensors has boosted factory utilization to 100 percent. Powerchip makes CMOS image sensors, DRAM chips and driver ICs used in flat panels for mobile phones, and operates three 12-inch fabs and two 8-inch fabs in Taiwan, as well as a 12-inch fab in China. “The company hopes to start building the new Tongluo fab in the second quarter next year,” spokesman Eric Tang (譚仲民) told the Taipei Times by telephone. “Customers are showing strong demand for driver ICs, CMOS sensors and power management chips. Some customers already want to book capacity at the yet-to-be-built fab, which would have an initial capacity of 15,000 wafers per month, Huang said.
Source:Taipei Times
August 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
US Meat Imports: Minister discusses US pork ‘exchange’
The Executive Yuan said that the policy would take effect on Jan. 1 and is aimed at expanding international trade. Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung speaks during an interview at Hit FM radio station in Taipei yesterday. Regarding concerns over the health effects of eating pork containing ractopamine, he said that, unlike the COVID-19 pandemic, which has many uncertainties, the health risk from consuming US pork or beef can be controlled using scientific calculations. US pork containing ractopamine would be labeled, and those who label pork incorrectly would face a fine of between NT$40,000 and NT$4 million (US$1,355 and US$135,474), he said. The amounts used for risk assessments usually exceed normal daily pork or beef consumption levels, so most people would not consume enough pork for ractopamine to affect their health, Chen said.
Source:Taipei Times
August 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
Czech Senate head calls for increased cooperation
Czech Senate head calls for increased cooperationECONOMIC FOUNDATION: Milos Vystrcil touted freedom and democracy as the basis for prosperity, as Taiwanese and Czech business entities signed MOUs to boost tiesBy Angelica Oung / Staff reporterCalling for “action over arguments,” Czech Senate President Milos Vystrcil said it was time to take bilateral business cooperation between the Czech Republic and Taiwan to the next level, despite threats of retaliation from China. Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua delivers a speech at the 2020 Taiwan-Czech Republic Economic, Trade and Investment Forum in Taipei yesterday. Photo: Huang Pei-chun, Taipei Times“Without the freedom for our businesses to work together, the Czech Republic and Taiwan cannot be free. The Czech Republic is Taiwan’s fourth-largest investment destination in Europe, the ministry said. In addition to the business advantages, Krcmar said he finds that Taiwanese and Czech people tend to get along.
Source:Taipei Times
August 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
US Meat Imports: DPP accuses KMT of ‘playing politics’ over US meat issue
US Meat Imports: DPP accuses KMT of ‘playing politics’ over US meat issueBy Jason Pan / Staff reporterDemocratic Progressive Party (DPP) mayors and lawmakers yesterday accused the Chinese Nationalist Paty (KMT) of “playing politics” by launching protests against imports of US pork containing the controversial leanness-enhancing drug ractopamine. President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Friday announced that Taiwan would ease restrictions on US beef and pork imports, while setting standards for pork containing ractopamine. Most Taiwanese buy fresh meat at traditional markets, and frozen imported pork products are rare at such markets, Pan said. The KMT should discipline those responsible for circulating “malicious rumors to vilify one of the US president’s Cabinet members,” DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said. “Before Azar took the health secretary job, Eli Lilly had already sold off the division that made pharmaceutical products for animals...
Source:Taipei Times
August 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
Bats returning to Taoyuan’s Sanmin cave after decades
Bats returning to Taoyuan’s Sanmin cave after decadesBy Lee Jung-ping and Dennis Xie / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe bat population at Taoyuan’s Sanmin Bat Cave (三民蝙蝠洞) has shown signs of recovery after dropping to nearly zero over the past two decades, the Taoyuan Department of Tourism said on Sunday. The department urged visitors to the cave to follow the rules when observing the bats to preserve their habitat. Bats hang from the ceiling of Sanmin Bat Cave in Taoyuan’s Fusing District on Sunday. Visitors explore Sanmin Bat Cave in Taoyuan’s Fusing District on Sunday. Following the restoration, some bats have returned, with about 70 to 80 animals beings spotted on the cave ceiling, Kung said.
Source:Taipei Times
August 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
US Meat Imports: KMT to attempt to block ractopamine at local level
US Meat Imports: KMT to attempt to block ractopamine at local levelBy Huang Ming-tang, Lin Liang-sheng and Chou Min-hung / Staff reportersThe Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday said it is planning to push for cities and counties nationwide to implement ordinances that would effectively ban pork containing ractopamine. Members of the Hsinchu City Council’s Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus hold a news conference on US meat imports in the city yesterday. Photo: Hung Mei-hsiu, Taipei TimesThe KMT said that it would supervise the central government’s decision through its caucuses in county and city councils or set local ordinances to block it. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Culture and Communications Committee chairwoman Alicia Wang points to a poster titled: “Risk assessment black box!” during a news conference on US meat imports in Taipei yesterday. Some cities and counties have already formulated ordinances banning ractopamine, he said, adding that KMT city and county caucuses would demand that local governments enforce those ordinances.
Source:Taipei Times
August 31, 2020 15:56 UTC
No need to worry about US pork, former VP says
No need to worry about US pork, former VP saysBy Lee I-chia and Wang Chun-chung / Staff reportersThe level of ractopamine residue in meat products is regulated by international food safety standards, so people should not worry about imports of US pork containing the additive, former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) said yesterday. Self-government ordinances in Changhua and Hsinchu counties, as well as a few other cities and counties, ban pork containing ractopamine residue. Chen Shui-bian said he only allowed imports of US beef that was deboned and came from cattle under 30 months old. However, Ma was unwilling, Chen Shui-bian said, adding that after Ma assumed office, he was still “forced” to make the decision to allow imports. The easing of restrictions on US beef and pork imports might, as Tsai said on Friday, be an “important starting point” for comprehensive Taiwan-US economic cooperation and promote Taiwan-US relations, Chen Shui-bian said.
Source:Taipei Times
August 30, 2020 15:56 UTC
Vanguard meets earnings expectations
Hsinchu-based Vanguard is a specialty IC foundry service provider, specializing in LCD driver ICs and logic ICs, as well as power management ICs and complementary metal-oxide semiconductor image sensors. In the first eight months, Vanguard’s accumulated revenue rose 15.09 percent year-on-year to NT$18.78 billion (US$636.16 million), company data showed. The Vanguard International Semiconductor Corp logo is pictured in an undated photograph at the company’s headquarters in Hsinchu County. In the short term, the 8-inch wafers for power management ICs and driver ICs will remain in short supply,” Fang said. Vanguard operates three 8-inch fabs in Taiwan and acquired an 8-inch fab in Singapore from US-based GlobalFoundries Inc early this year to resolve capacity constraints.
Source:Taipei Times
August 30, 2020 15:56 UTC
Tsai welcomes Czech delegation in Facebook post
Tsai welcomes Czech delegation in Facebook postLANDMARK VISIT: The president expressed the hope that the two nations would deepen cooperation on epidemic control, trade, tourism and investmentStaff writer, with CNAPresident Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday welcomed a delegation from the Czech Republic headed by Czech Senate Speaker Milos Vystrcil with an online message, saying that she looked forward to deepening cooperation with the European country. Tsai’s welcome to the 89-member delegation followed its arrival earlier in the day on a direct charter flight from Prague. The delegation, which includes eight Czech senators and Prague Mayor Zdenek Hrib, is to visit Taipei until Friday. Vystrcil, the second-highest-ranking official of the Czech Republic after the country’s president, is his nation’s highest-level official ever to visit Taiwan. However, Vystrcil said the Czech Republic would not bow to China’s objections, Reuters reported on Saturday.
Source:Taipei Times
August 30, 2020 15:56 UTC
NPP elects a new leader amid crisis
NPP elects a new leader amid crisisREINVENTION NEEDED: After the departures of high-ranking members in the wake of a bribery scandal, a new party chairwoman promised to lead reform effortsBy Wu Su-wei and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe New Power Party’s (NPP) decisionmaking committee yesterday elected former NPP secretary-general Kao Yu-ting (高鈺婷) as chairwoman. Former committee members earlier this month jointly stepped down after former NPP chairman Hsu Yung-ming’s (徐永明) alleged involvement in a bribery scandal related to an ownership dispute over the Pacific Sogo Department Store chain was made public. New Power Party (NPP) Legislator Chiu Hsieh-chih, left, and new NPP Chairwoman Kao Yu-ting talk to reporters in Taipei yesterday. The new 15-member committee yesterday elected Kao chairwoman, the NPP said, adding that the next party chairperson and committee elections are to be held on Feb. 28 next year. An NPP member, commenting on condition of anonymity, said that the recent departures underscored the party’s problems, adding that the NPP lacks direction.
Source:Taipei Times
August 29, 2020 15:56 UTC
EDITORIAL: Stopping China investment influence
EDITORIAL: Stopping China investment influenceThe Investment Commission on Monday ruled that Taobao Taiwan is Chinese-controlled, despite it listing UK-based Claddagh Venture Investment as its parent company. China’s Alibaba Group Holding is a major shareholder in the British company and must be represented at shareholder meetings, the commission said. Foreign investment should be more carefully scrutinized rather than dealing with such issues only after concerns are raised. The commission should seek to understand how companies such Taobao and content providers like iQiyi acquired registration in Taiwan without raising red flags. Perhaps it is time for an independent body to be tasked with aggressive investigations of foreign investment.
Source:Taipei Times
August 29, 2020 15:56 UTC
Taiwan in Time: From ‘railway wharf’ to national transport hub
Completed in 1891, Taipei ‘Railway Wharf’ is considered the first-generation Taipei Train Station. The building is considered the fourth-generation Taipei Railway Station (there was a temporary one that most historians don’t count), and is still in use today. The modernist third-generation Taipei Train Station was adorned with portraits, flags, slogans and billboards during Chinese Nationalist Party rule. On Oct. 20, the first-generation Taipei “railway wharf” was inaugurated. The fourth-generation Taipei Train Station was inaugurated on Sept. 2, 1989, and remains in use today.
Source:Taipei Times
August 29, 2020 15:56 UTC
Virus Outbreak: Tough measures taken for Czech visit
Virus Outbreak: Tough measures taken for Czech visitSPECIALISTS: Members of the 90-strong delegation would use separate elevators and restrooms, and would have Taiwanese officials escorting them at all timesBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterHigh-standard disease prevention measures have been prepared for a Czech delegation that is to arrive in Taiwan today, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday. The 90-member delegation, headed by Czech Senate President Milos Vystrcil, is to visit Taiwan until Friday to bolster bilateral economic, scientific and cultural ties. The Czech delegation would arrive and leave on a chartered plane, and delegation members would use designated vehicles for transportation during their stay in Taiwan, he said. An entourage from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would accompany delegation members during their visit, he added. He reported his condition to airport quarantine officers upon his arrival in Taiwan, Chuang added.
Source:Taipei Times
August 29, 2020 15:56 UTC
Taipei selling monthly scooter parking pass
Taipei selling monthly scooter parking passBy Dennis Xie / Staff writer, with CNAScooter riders in Taipei can now pay NT$400 per month for unlimited parking in all of the city’s parking spaces, the Taipei Parking Management and Development Office said. Transportation Management Division section chief Lo Chih-hao (羅至浩) on Tuesday said the office has launched two new scooter parking measures to lower expenses for riders. The city charges NT$20 for scooter parking near 16 designated shopping districts, according to the office’s Web site. The goal is to charge for scooter parking everywhere in the city, he added. Parking spaces in downtown areas along the Tamsui-Xinyi Line (Red Line) would be included by the end of the year, he added.
Source:Taipei Times
August 29, 2020 15:56 UTC