Doctor warns about signs of dementia
Doctor warns about signs of dementiaBy Wu Chun-feng and Esme Yeh / Staff reporter, with staff writerElderly people who experience hallucinations of deceased friends or family members could be showing signs of dementia with acute delirium, a psychiatrist said, urging relatives to help them seek prompt medical evaluations. National Cheng Kung Hospital Dementia Center director Pai Ming-chyi, left, poses for a photograph in Kaohsiung on Jan. 12. Lin was diagnosed with mild dementia with acute delirium, he said. Early-stage dementia is not readily apparent, as signs such as mild forgetfulness, slowed responses or decreased concentration are usually confused by family as signs of normal aging, Shen said. People with dementia are prone to acute delirium particularly when physical illnesses occur, such as infection, dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, medication effects or other acute conditions, Shen said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
South Korea court jails former first lady for bribery
South Korea court jails former first lady for briberyReuters, SEOULA South Korean court yesterday sentenced former first lady Kim Keon-hee to 20 months in jail for accepting Chanel bags and a diamond pendant from Unification Church officials in return for providing political favors. The wife of former South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol, who was ousted from office last year, was cleared on other charges of stock manipulation and violating the political funds act. People watch a news report of the sentencing of former South Korean first lady Kim Keon-hee on a TV in Seoul yesterday. The court fined her 12.8 million won (US$8,959) and ordered the confiscation of the necklace. Prosecutors had demanded 15 years in jail and fines of 2.9 billion won if she was found guilty on all charges.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Ministry plans to merge state-backed finance firms
Ministry plans to merge state-backed finance firmsBloombergTaiwan plans to merge its four state-backed asset managers into a local fund giant with about US$12 billion of assets, as the government seeks consolidation in the country’s financial industry to boost its competitiveness. “We will move toward the goal of merging the four asset managers into one,” Minister of Finance Chuang Tsui-yun (莊翠雲) said in response to lawmakers’ questions at a meeting of the legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday. The firms involved include First Securities Investment Trust Co (第一金投信), Mega International Investment Trust Co (兆豐投信), Taiwan Cooperative Securities Investment Trust Co (合作金庫投信) and Hua Nan Investment Trust Co (華南永昌投信), Chuang said, adding that the deal would be led by First Securities, the largest of the four. Minister of Finance Chuang Tsui-yun speaks at a meeting of the legislature’s Finance Committee in Taipei yesterday. Officials have also pledged to turn the country into a wealth hub by expanding the local asset management sector, establishing a trial asset management zone in Kaohsiung and launching the Asian asset management center promotion office.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Foreign students drawn to ICT courses: report
Foreign students drawn to ICT courses: reportSTRATEGY: Amid the AI wave, universities can take advantage of Taiwan’s position in the industry by linking school names with related keywords, an educator saidStaff writer, with CNAForeign nationals looking to study abroad are increasingly drawn to courses related to information and communications technology (ICT), the Association of International Cultural and Educational Exchange Taiwan said in a report released yesterday. Results of an online survey conducted by the Association of International Cultural and Educational Exchange Taiwan last year. Photo: Screengrab from the Web site of the Association of International Cultural and Educational Exchange TaiwanThe report on international recruitment trends examines how the global wave of AI is shaping international students’ preferences. Many students said they were confused by a lack of detailed information, including scholarship amounts, the report said. Past surveys found that more than 80 percent of international students did not understand Taiwan’s higher-education strengths, Hung said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Transport minister defends high-speed rail plan
Transport minister defends high-speed rail planBy Jonathan Chin / Staff writerMinister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) yesterday doubled down on the Yilan and Pingtung counties high-speed rail extension plan amid increasing public criticism of the program’s practicality. Chen told ETToday on the sidelines of an unrelated event in Kaohsiung that ministry officials had not “massaged the data” as his predecessor alleged. Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai, left, installs a bolt in a beam in a ceremony marking the beginning of the construction of a new high-speed rail depot in Kaohsiung yesterday. Spurring growth of the transportation grid should be an objective of Taiwan’s high-speed rail system, which has been in operation for close to 20 years, he said. A ministry principle is to establish high-speed rail lines where it is affordable and technologically feasible to bring economic development across the nation, he said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Air force holds F-16V jets drill
Air force holds F-16V jets drillREADINESS EXERCISE: The scrambling of aircraft to see off China’s air force gives real-life experience to fighter pilots in terms of observing Chinese tactics up closeBy Yi-Chin Lee and Ann Wang / Reuters, CHIAYI COUNTYThe air force showcased its ability to rapidly replenish and get back into the air its most advanced F-16 jets in a readiness drill yesterday, designed to demonstrate combat-oriented training. The air force scrambles on an almost daily basis to monitor and warn off Chinese aircraft that routinely fly around the nation. Pilot Shih Shun-de (施順德) said it was important to let people know just how fast the air force can react. “The scramble drill lets the public see the results of the air force’s realistic, combat-oriented training,” Shih said. The repeated scrambling of aircraft to see off China’s air force also gives real-life experience to fighter pilots in terms of observing China’s air force and tactics up close.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Venezuelan opposition figure seen in public for first time in 17 months
Venezuelan opposition figure seen in public for first time in 17 monthsAFP, CARACASVenezuelan opposition figure Delsa Solorzano on Tuesday appeared in public for the first time in 17 months, hailing a new phase in the country’s history after the ouster of deposed president Nicolas Maduro. Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, left, gestures next to opposition Encuentro Ciudadano party leader Delsa Solorzano, center, during a protest in Caracas on Aug. 17, 2024. Under pressure from the US, Rodriguez’s government claims to have released about 800 prisoners — a figure activists question. Solorzano expressed concern about the cooperation between Rodriguez and Trump, who have announced agreements on US access to Venezuelan oil and the unblocking of Venezuelan funds frozen under sanctions. “They declare every day that they talk to each other,” the opposition figure said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Avian influenza reported at egg farm in Taichung
Avian influenza reported at egg farm in TaichungHEALTH HAZARD: The virus has killed 1,700 of the 7,000 hens at the farm, local authorities said, adding that a mass culling is scheduled for todayBy Hollie Younger / Staff writer, with CNAAn outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or bird flu, has been reported at an egg farm in Taichung, Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) said yesterday. Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen speaks to reporters in Taichung yesterday. Photo: CNAThe virus has killed 1,700 of the 7,000 hens at the farm in Fongyuan District (豐原), it said. It said it sent personnel to the facility yesterday to collect samples to test for bird flu and disinfect a 3km radius around the farm. Taichung also reported an outbreak of African swine fever at a hog farm in Wuci District (梧棲) in October last year.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Legislators quiz CEC chair nominee
Legislators quiz CEC chair nomineeBy Lee Wen-hsin and Jason Pan / Staff reportersCentral Election Commission (CEC) chair nominee Michael You (游盈隆) yesterday told lawmakers that he would support holding referendums at the same time as national elections. If confirmed by legislators to serve as CEC chair, You said that he would resign from his job as head of the public polling firm the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation (台灣民意基金會) so as to maintain a neutral stance and to uphold high standards for himself. “To head the CEC, I know some sacrifices have to be made, such as losing the freedom to openly discuss politics. Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation chairman Michael You speaks at the legislature in Taipei yesterday. He lost to KMT candidates on both occasions and later cofounded the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation, leaving the DPP in 2019.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Control Yuan President Chen Chu resigns
Control Yuan President Chen Chu resignsStaff Writer, with CNAThe Presidential Office said yesterday that Chen Chu (陳菊) will be relieved of her posts as Control Yuan president, Control Yuan member and chairperson of Taiwan’s National Human Rights Commission after submitting her resignation. Presidential Office spokesperson Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) has appointed Control Yuan Vice President Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞) as acting president. Former Control Yuan President Chen Chu speaks in an unidentified event in this undated photograph. Photo: Chung Li-hua, Taipei TimesChen sought medical treatment for a cold late 2024 at Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital, during which doctors discovered a tumor on her right kidney. In September, the Control Yuan said Chen’s leave of absence was taken in accordance with relevant regulations.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Taipower posts profit in 2025, accumulated loss hits NT$350 billion
Taipower posts profit in 2025, accumulated loss hits NT$350 billionStaff writer, with CNATaiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) posted a record profit last year, with a net profit of NT$72.9 billion (US$2.32 billion), the state-owned utility said on Tuesday. Last year’s profit surpassed the previous record of NT$61.7 billion set in 2015 and marked a reversal from a net loss of NT$41.1 billion in 2024, ending a three-year losing streak. Despite the turnaround, Taipower said its accumulated losses still stood at around NT$350 billion. Household electricity rates increased by an average of 3.12 percent per kilowatt-hour from October last year, while industrial rates remained unchanged, in a move aimed at easing the company’s financial pressure, Taipower said. Taipower said it would continue streamlining fuel procurement and optimizing asset use while maintaining stable domestic power supplies.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Long-term Thai immigrant shares her experiences
She shared her experiences adjusting to Taiwan’s food and culture, and overcoming language barriers, encouraging immigrants to open their hearts and put down roots in Taiwan. Beka Chidapha speaks at an event at the National Immigration Agency’s Taipei City Service Center yesterday. Photo courtesy of the National Immigration AgencyThe hardest part about moving to Taiwan was getting used to the food, as Thai food is spicy and heavily seasoned, while Taiwanese food is lighter, Chidapha said. However, she adjusted to Taiwanese tastes in time and now feels that Thai food is too strong when she goes back, she said. Her sense of gratitude motivated her to work with immigrant service centers, women’s associations and family centers, giving back to society through Thai cooking classes and cultural exchange activities, she said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
Trump calls for de-escalation
The comments came the same day a man sprayed US Representative Ilhan Omar with a syringe of unknown liquid at a Minneapolis town hall meeting, where she called for curbing the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. Photo: AFP“We are evaluating why the CBP team may not have been following that protocol,” Miller said in a statement, although the White House later said Miller was referring to “general guidance” to immigration agents in Minnesota. Omar continued the town hall for about 25 more minutes after the man was ushered out by security, saying she would not be intimidated. Photos of the device, which fell to the ground when he was tackled, showed what appeared to be a light-brown liquid inside. Omar later wrote on X: “I’m ok. I’m a survivor so this small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
German investment in Taiwan surges 264 percent year-on-year
German investment in Taiwan surges 264 percent year-on-yearStaff writer, with CNAApproved German direct investment in Taiwan last year marked a 264 percent year-on-year increase to US$209 million, indicating German businesses see Taiwan as the most important strategic hub for technology development in the Asia Pacific, German Trade Office Taipei said yesterday. The total amount of German investment in Taiwan approved by the Department of Investment Review last year partly reflected the ever-expanding economic ties between the two countries, the office said in a statement. German industry leaders that have set foot in Taiwan in recent years include Infineon Technologies AG, a global semiconductor solutions provider, and Merck Group, a science and technology company, it said. Photo courtesy of German Trade Office Taipei via CNAThe growth in German investment in Taiwan shows that German businesses see the country as the most important strategic hub for technology and research and development in the Asia Pacific region, despite disruptions in international supply chains and challenges facing German companies at home, the office said. Beyond investment, bilateral trade between the two countries continued to grow last year, rising 6 percent from a year earlier to US$21.7 billion, it said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC
The WHO needs a systemic overhaul
The WHO needs a systemic overhaulBy Hsiao Hsi-huei 蕭錫惠An international organization that refuses to examine its own mistakes while demanding that the world continue to trust it is itself a global security risk. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Taiwan alerted the international community to potential epidemic risks. Yet, the WHO continued to exclude Taiwan from its system, even denying it the most basic observer status. Many public health advocates worry that the US’ withdrawal would weaken global pandemic coordination. Such concerns are not unfounded, but the real question is not whether the world needs the WHO — it is whether the WHO is worth preserving in its current form.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 17:23 UTC