TPP announces reshuffle, Ko to head governance institute
TPP announces reshuffle, Ko to head governance instituteBy Chen Chih-cheng and Hollie Younger / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Central Committee today announced a new round of senior leadership appointments ahead of November’s local elections, with party founder and former chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) to serve as dean of the party’s Institute of National Governance. Current TPP Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) is to concurrently serve as head of the party’s Policy Committee, with incoming legislator Hsu Chung-hsin (許忠信) to serve as his deputy head. The Policy Committee acts as a bridge between the Legislative Yuan and party headquarters, playing a critical role in legislative review and major policy formulation, Huang said. Photo: Taipei TimesHe said he would rely on Hsu’s legal expertise to strengthen the party’s policy formulation and core messaging. Looking toward this year’s local elections, the TPP would maintain a rapid and precise campaign that avoids smear tactics, Huang said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 12:49 UTC
Absentee voting for upcoming election would be ‘disastrous’: nominee
Absentee voting for upcoming election would be ‘disastrous’: nomineeBy Sam Garcia / Staff writer, with CNAWhile absentee voting is a global trend, implementing it for the local elections in November would be a disaster at this stage, as it would involve complex logistics, Central Election Commission (CEC) chair nominee Michael You (游盈隆) said today. However, practical realities cannot be ignored, and looking at the current election system, implementing absentee voting would involve extremely complex logistics, You said. The CEC previously said that implementing absentee voting for the upcoming elections would result in nearly 9,000 different ballots and risk tarnishing Taiwan’s globally respected elections. Taiwan has never implemented absentee voting, so it is necessary to first conduct comprehensive research and consider all factors before proceeding, You said. The CEC’s current step-by-step approach is feasible, but implementing comprehensive absentee voting for the upcoming local elections is “too bold, risky and foolhardy,” he said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 07:40 UTC
Air force shows off F-16 rapid response
Air force shows off F-16 rapid responseBy Yi-Chin Lee and Ann Wang / Reuters, CHIAYIThe air force today showcased its ability to rapidly replenish and get back in the air its most advanced F-16 jets in a readiness drill designed to demonstrate combat-oriented training. Air force pilot Chen Yi-tzu prepares to pilot an F-16V jet at Chiayi Air Base today. Pilot Shih Shun-de (施順德) said it was important to let people know just how fast the air force can react. Military personnel prepare to load an AIM-120 AMRAAM anti-aircraft missile onto an F-16V jet at Chiayi Air Base today. Repeated scrambling to see off China's air force also gives real-life experience for Taiwan's fighter pilots in terms of seeing China's air force and tactics up close.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 07:20 UTC
Taichung confirms bird flu outbreak at egg farm
Taichung confirms bird flu outbreak at egg farmBy Hollie Younger / Staff writer, with CNAAn outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or bird flu, has been confirmed at an egg farm in Taichung, Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) said today. A farmer inspects chickens at a farm in Kaohsiung on Feb. 26, 2023. Photo: Su Fu-nan, Taipei TimesThe virus has already killed 1,700 of the 7,000 hens at the farm in Fengyuan District (豐原), it said. It then 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 05:13 UTC
Taiwan, US hold sixth Economic Prosperity Partnership Dialogue
Taiwan, US hold sixth Economic Prosperity Partnership DialogueStaff writer, with CNAOfficials from Taiwan and the US held a sixth round of talks under the Economic Prosperity Partnership Dialogue (EPPD) in Washington yesterday and signed a pact agreeing to the principles of "Pax Silica." The meeting was led on the US side by US Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg, while Taiwan was represented by Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫), the US Department of State said in a statement. A person holds the flags of the Republic of China and the US in an undated photograph. Taiwan and US representatives also signed a joint statement endorsing the principles of the Pax Silica Declaration, the statement said. Yesterday marked the sixth set of meetings under the EPPD framework, and the first since Trump returned to office in January last year.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 05:06 UTC
Minister calls for consensus before imposing animal feeding ban
Minister calls for consensus before imposing animal feeding banBy Yang Yuan-ting and Sam Garcia / Staff reporters, with staff writer and CNARegulations on feeding stray animals should not be written into law yet, as animal welfare groups have not reached a consensus on the matter, Minister of Agriculture Minister Chen Junne-jih (陳駿季) said today, after the Executive Yuan’s proposed amendment was criticized for omitting such regulations. The minister made the comments to reporters before the Legislative Yuan’s Economics Committee met to review proposed amendments to the Animal Protection Act (動物保護法). Animal protection groups and other relevant parties have different views on feeding animals, Chen said, adding that the amendment first addresses articles on which there is a high degree of consensus. While the Ministry of Agriculture has requested staff working on ecological programs to raise awareness about not feeding animals, it would be premature to write a feeding ban into law before a broader consensus is reached, he added. Managing stray animals relies heavily on volunteers, and if the law treats feeders as owners, the volunteers could be liable if a stray animal causes conflict, which could drive them away, the coalition said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 04:58 UTC
Five sentenced in marijuana smuggling case
Five sentenced in marijuana smuggling caseStaff writer, with CNAThe Tainan District Court yesterday sentenced five people to prison terms ranging from 11 months to eight years for their roles in smuggling 330kg of marijuana into Taiwan last year. In its ruling, the court sentenced the captain of a Taiwan-registered vessel, surnamed Chen (陳), to eight years in prison, while a man surnamed Lee (李) received five years. The entrance of the Tainan District Court is pictured in an undated photograph. Photo: Tung Chen-kuo, Taipei TimesThree Indonesian crew members were each sentenced to 11 months, suspended for two years. The boat was brought back to Anping Port (安平港), where authorities seized the marijuana and took the crew into custody.
Source:Taipei Times
January 28, 2026 03:31 UTC
TPP treats defense spending as wasteful
TPP treats defense spending as wastefulBy John ChengAfter blocking the government’s eight-year, NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.72 billion) special defense budget, and following a hurried and unscheduled visit to the US, Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) unveiled his own defense procurement bill. Its headline feature is simple: a spending ceiling of NT$400 billion. Either way, Huang’s proposal is not aimed at building the kind of defense Taiwan needs. A dangerous political narrative also underlies the debate — that defense spending is waste and cutting it is virtue. The Ministry of National Defense should hold a news conference to show the public what the NT$1.25 trillion plan constructs, and what the NT$400 billion plan dismantles.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:31 UTC
The 10 best and worst US foreign policy decisions
So, he drew up two lists, one for the 10 best decisions in US foreign policy over the past 250 years, and one for the 10 worst. Or that the Indian Removal Act of 1830 and the forced expulsion of the Cherokee in 1838 rank three and six among the worst decisions respectively. The US made its worst decisions whenever it turned its back on that philosophy, sabotaged multilateral organizations or went rogue inside the very international system it built. Their vision was to correct the legacy of the League of Nations, which was created after World War I but could not prevent World War II. The list of the worst decisions tells the story of US power used wrong.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:31 UTC
Matthews confident US can capture Olympic gold
Matthews confident US can capture Olympic goldAFP, TORONTOToronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews is confident in the US men’s ice hockey team and its chances of capturing a gold medal at next month’s Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. “We feel like we’re up there and we should be competing for gold,” Matthews said after practice on Monday in comments on the NHL Web site. “I think all of us feel the same way.”The US won Olympic gold on home ice in 1960 and 1980 before NHL players were allowed to compete. However, Matthews said the politics of the Olympic ice hockey tournament will not be on his mind. “There’s a lot of guys that are coming back from Four Nations,” Matthews said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:31 UTC
Accidental ‘crying horse’ toy wins hearts in China
Accidental ‘crying horse’ toy wins hearts in ChinaReuters, YIWU, ChinaAt Yiwu International Trade City, China’s largest wholesale market, customers crowd into a small shop searching for an unlikely bestseller ahead of the Lunar New Year. They are looking for a red plush horse with a downturned mouth, a gold bell around its neck and eyes that appear to shy away from a viewer’s gaze. Photo: ReutersCalled the “crying horse” by online users, the toy was designed as a happy-faced Lunar New Year decoration, but a manufacturing mistake turned its smile into a frown. “People joked that the crying horse is how you look at work, while the smiling one is how you look after work,” Zhang said. “This crying horse really fits the reality of modern working people.”
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:31 UTC
Why AI is unlike previous tech booms
Unlike previous tech cycles, these investment requirements would not fade as the industry matures and might even intensify. The third area where AI departs from previous tech revolutions is in the weakness and fragility of network effects. Earlier tech platforms grew within largely siloed markets: Google dominated search; Amazon focused on retail. Historically, equity incentives enabled tech companies to hire and retain talent, acquire intellectual property, and expand through mergers and acquisitions. In this sense, AI more closely resembles the capital-intensive industries of the mid-20th century than the asset-light tech models of the past few years.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:31 UTC
Japan, US plan to build synthetic diamond plant
Japan, US plan to build synthetic diamond plantReuters, TOKYOA plan to build a synthetic diamond plant in the US is a prime prospect in Japan’s US$550-billion investment package, as the allies push to expand production of a material vital to chip and high-precision manufacturing, sources said. Photo: Reuters“The United States wants to accelerate domestic production of synthetic diamonds,” one of the sources said. The synthetic diamond project involves Element Six, a part of De Beers Group, the world’s leading diamond company, the source added. Also likely to figure in the first batch of projects is a large-scale power-generation project, involving Japanese industrial conglomerate Hitachi Ltd, the sources said. A major infrastructure project involving construction of a data centre linked to Softbank Group also remains a finalist, Reuters reported this month.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:31 UTC
TrendForce expects slide in global notebook shipments
TrendForce expects slide in global notebook shipmentsBy Lisa Wang / Staff reporterGlobal notebook computer shipments are expected to slide 9.4 percent annually this year, as PC vendors face price hikes for CPUs and memory chips, which elevate manufacturing costs, market researcher TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said in a report on Monday. As PC vendors make slim margins, rising costs of components are a substantial financial burden, TrendForce said. Photo: Reuters“Memorychip prices continue to be high, and unstable CPU supplies are adding uncertainty to the notebook computer market in the short term,” the report said. PC vendors would have to adjust their product lineups and reschedule shipments to cope with higher CPU costs, it added. PC vendors stepped up notebook computer shipments in the fourth quarter last year, as they have been grappling with memorychip price surges since the second half of last year, it said.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:14 UTC
Consumer confidence reaches nine-month high
Consumer confidence reaches nine-month highStaff writer, with CNATaiwan’s consumer confidence improved this month to a nine-month high as uncertainties were eased after Taipei and Washington agreed verbally to a deal on tariffs on Jan. 15, a survey released yesterday by National Central University (NCU) showed. The CCI measures sentiment over the following six months across six factors: consumer prices, the domestic economic climate, the stock market, durable goods purchases, employment prospects and family finances. NCU Research Center for Taiwan Economic Development director Dachrahn Wu (吳大任) said the lower tariff gave a big boost to sentiment in non-tech industries, because it placed Taiwan on an equal footing with the nation’s major competitors. However, Wu said that, as part of the deal, Taiwan pledged to move some of its semiconductor supply chain to the US through large investments, and the impact of that would have to be watched. Also this month, the home-buying index jointly compiled by NCU and Taiwan Realty rose 2.32 points from a month earlier to 94.95, the university added.
Source:Taipei Times
January 27, 2026 17:14 UTC