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Private universities reducing salaries

LOW BIRTHRATE:Tatung Institute of Technology’s enrollment rate for the 2019 school year was about 46 percent, affecting its finances, acting president Wu Po-hsuan said
Some private universities have reduced faculty salaries citing the nation’s declining birthrate, the Chinese-language United Daily News reported on Sunday.

Professors at public universities used to earn about NT$100,000 per month, associate professors about NT$80,000 and assistant professors about NT$70,000, the report said.

However, at some private universities, professors are being paid an average of about NT$50,000 per month, while assistant professors make less than NT$40,000, it said.

Professors at Ta Hwa University of Science and Technology (TUST) in Hsinchu County earn the least, about NT$52,000 per month, the report said, adding that associate professors earn about NT$43,000 and assistant professors make about NT$38,000.

Starting in August last year, six other private universities reduced instructors’ salaries, it said, giving as an example Tatung Institute of Technology (TTC) in Chiayi City, which reduced professors’ salaries from NT$95,000 to NT$57,000 per month.

TUST chief secretary Wang Hui-chun (王慧君) said that the university’s enrollment rate was about 64 percent for the 2019 school year.

Since February last year the university has sacked about 30 professors or let them retire on better terms, she said, adding that about 50 full-time professors have agreed to receive pay cuts.

TTC acting president Wu Po-hsuan (吳柏萱) said the university’s enrollment rate for the 2019 school year was about 46 percent.

To maintain sustainability, the university was forced to reduce faculty salaries, she said, adding that 60 full-time professors have agreed to the reduced research fees.

Lin Po-yi (林柏儀), head of organization at the Taiwan Higher Education Union, said that an inherent problem with private universities is that they rely heavily on tuition fees for their income.

They receive relatively lower government subsidies, have not “modernized” their management and do not have enough public supervision mechanisms, Lin said, adding that the issue is complex.

In the past, there were enough pupils and private universities did not have to work hard to recruit students, but the declining birthrate has had a structural effect, he said.

Although the nation’s birthrate has been declining, the student-to-teacher ratio in higher education is still worse than in developed countries, Lin said.

The government should allow poor-quality private universities to “exit” the market and take back their property, boost overall resources in higher education and save private universities with public investments, he said.

National Chung Hsing University professor Wu Tung-hsing (武東星) said that a lack of transparency in private universities’ finances has long been a problem.

Private universities used to have enough students, and they overlooked fundraising efforts and donations, he said, adding that the crisis posed by the declining birthrate could be turned into an opportunity.

Private schools that have unique characteristics and financial transparency could more easily draw attention, Wu said, adding that they should continue to encourage alumni and corporate donations.

The government could also encourage businesspeople to take over and save private universities, Wu said, adding that otherwise even if the Ministry of Education takes over, the schools would still have to “exit” the market if they lack funds.

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title: Private universities reducing salaries


title: Economic confidence grows

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Public confidence in the nation’s economy and equity investments improved this month from last month in light of reduced economic uncertainty after the US and China’s trade tensions eased, a Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控) survey found.

The poll, released yesterday, found that 35.8 percent of the 16,878 Cathay Financial customers polled expect Taiwan’s economy to pick up in the next six months, compared with the 28.7 percent who felt so last month.

About 25.8 percent said they thought the economy would deteriorate, down from 33.5 percent in last month’s survey.

The online poll was conducted in the first week of this month.

A total of 83 percent of respondents predicted economic growth would remain above 2 percent this year, up from 79 percent last month, with 35.7 percent saying they expect growth to be 2.6 percent to 2.8 percent, compared with the 25.5 percent who said so last month.

The average annual GDP growth forecast rose slightly, from 2.3 percent last month to 2.4 percent, the survey found.

“Consumers’ predictions do not always come true, but the new poll indicates that the public has become more upbeat about the economy this year, similar to the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics,” Cathay Financial economic research division manager Nelson Chen (陳志祿) said by telephone.

Chen attributed the positive sentiment to the phase one trade deal that the US and China signed on Wednesday last week, in which the US agreed to cut the 15 percent tariff rate it imposed on Sept. 1 last year on US$120 billion of Chinese goods to 7.5 percent and suspended the tariffs due to take effect on Dec. 15.

“Although the phase one deal only solved part of the disputes between the two nations and left unchanged the tariffs of 25 percent imposed by the US on US$250 billion of Chinese goods, it eased people’s anxiety, as the US is not likely to add new tariffs later this year unless China does not honor the deal,” Chen said.

The two nations are expected to continue negotiations over their trade dispute, but may not sign a deal before the US presidential election in November, which would leave investors a stabilized situation till then, Chen said.

The hopeful sentiment also led to investors’ preferring higher risk in investment, with 25.6 percent of respondents saying that they would increase their equity investments instead of holding onto cash, up from 22.5 percent a month earlier, the survey showed.

While many analysts forecast the TAIEX will break records this year, 40.2 percent of respondents believe it would slowly advance and stay below 12,500 points in the first half of this year, the survey found.

The TAIEX record of 12,682 points, set in 1990, still stands.

“It seems that the public is optimistic, but also cautious,” Chen said.

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The TAIEX yesterday rose 0.24 percent to 12,118.71 points to close out the Year of the Pig with a 22 percent gain.

On the last trading day of the old lunar year, global investors sought to take advantage of Taiwanese tech firms involved in the 5G as well as a recovery in the technology product cycle.

The showing reversed a decline of 4.69 percent in the Year of the Dog, and the local bourse could see further momentum after it reopens on Jan. 30, analysts said.

“In the absence of major external shocks, the local bourse might climb higher after the Lunar New Year holidays, led by the improving outlook for heavyweight tech firms,” Mega International Investment Services Corp (兆豐國際投顧) analyst Alex Huang (黃國偉) said.

Turnover on the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday tapered off to NT$113.32 billion (US$3.78 billion), as a significant number of investors stayed on the sidelines for fear of downside surprises from abroad, Huang said.

Huang said he did not see any threats on the horizon.

Foreign institutional investors and proprietary dealers increased holdings by net NT$5.14 billion and NT$884.03 million respectively, while mutual funds slashed positions by net NT$224.87 million, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.

Electronics stocks moved higher early on before some investors started moving to the sell side, but buying rotated to financial stocks to keep the TAIEX above 12,100 points.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) closed unchanged at NT$333 after hitting a high of NT$335.5.

Other tech heavyweights that saw their gains capped included iPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), which ended unchanged at NT$92.3, off a high of NT$93.4; and Largan Precision Co (大立光), a supplier of smartphone camera lenses to Apple Inc, which fell 0.2 percent to end at NT$4,975 after hitting a high of NT$5,015.

DRAM chipmaker Nanya Technology Co (南亞科技) rose 1.19 percent to end at NT$85.2.

Taiwan is home to contract electronics makers for Apple, Tesla Inc, Advanced Micro Devices Inc and Intel Corp, which are due to release their earnings results for last year while the local market is closed for the long holiday, analysts said.

CTBC Investments Co (中信投信) said it is looking at encouraging figures and guidance now that the US and China have sealed a partial trade deal and plan more talks to iron out remaining differences.

CTBC Investments said it expects corporate profits among local firms to grow 7.4 percent this year, but electronics firms might outperform with a 13.4 percent pickup.

The launch of 5G devices would be a catalyst for companies in the supply chain, while others would continue to reap the windfall from trade rerouting, CTBC Investments said.

Trade tensions have prompted Chinese technology firms to cut dependence on US suppliers and shift orders to local vendors instead, it said.

Companies providing components for iPhones series should perform well this year, as Apple is to roll out more affordable versions in the first half of the year and high-end models, including 5G gadgets, in the second half, CTBC Investments added.

Additional reporting by CNA

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title: TAIEX ends Year of the Pig up 22%


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Family donates thousands of pieces by Hung Jui-lin to Ministry of Culture

Hung Chun-hsiung (洪鈞雄), the eldest son of Taiwanese artist Hung Jui-lin (洪瑞麟), said he was taking an evening stroll with his father in California 24 years ago, when the senior Hung looked at the sunset and said: “If I keep walking in that direction, I could walk to Taiwan.”

Hung Jui-lin passed away only months after that conversation.

“My dad was an ordinary man, who led an ordinary life,” Hung Chun-hsiung said.

THOUSANDS OF WORKS

Now, more than 2,500 of his works dating from 1930 to 1996 are to return home from the US, after Hung Chun-hsiung and his family decided to donate them to the Ministry of Culture.

These include paintings of miners, as well as nudes and landscapes, painted in watercolors, oils and ink, art historian Hsiao Chong-ray (蕭瓊瑞) and the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts said.

There are also some sketches, handwritten notes taken by Hung Jui-lin in mines and his last painting, which is of a group of miners sitting in a circle, they said.

Hung Chun-hsiung said the family would keep some of the paintings as mementos, adding that although he is sad to let most of the paintings go, he is grateful to have found a home for them.

One of the few paintings that the family is keeping depicts a sunset by the sea, the sky painted in shades of purple, pink, orange and green, with sailboats on the water.

Hung Chun-hsiung said that his father created the painting when he was feeling homesick.

“As we walked, he said that he could hear music playing, although I could only hear the sound of waves,” Hung Chun-hsiung said.

“He said that the sunset was performing a symphony. ‘All of the colors are coming out to speak to me,’ he told me. ‘Like at the end of a concert where all of the instruments join in one by one, before going out with a bang. It is as if the colors are saying goodbye,’” Hung Chun-hsiung said.

“Whenever I look at this painting, I feel as though my father is speaking to me,” he added.

BORN IN TAIPEI

Hung Jui-lin was born in Taipei in 1912, when Taiwan was under Japanese colonial rule. When he was 18, he traveled to Tokyo to pursue a degree at Teikoku Art School and returned to Taiwan eight years later.

He married a mine foreman’s daughter, and started working as a supervisor in a mine in Rueifang (瑞芳), now a district in New Taipei City.

He worked there for the next 35 years, during which he cultivated a simple, rugged and expressive style of painting.

Hung Jui-lin became renowned for his paintings of miners, the central motif of most of his works. He had a profound respect for miners and referred to them as “mighty, nameless warriors” in a poem.

In his later years, he moved to the US to live with Hung Chun-hsiung, who operated a restaurant in California.

He continued to paint in the family’s home on Redondo Beach, California, until he passed away from heart complications at age 84.

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Foundation finds safety problems at retail stores

HAZARD:Five of the 77 stores visited had only one exit, despite being below ground, meaning that if there were a fire near it, people would not be able to escape
From left, Consumers’ Foundation secretary-general Wu Jung-ta, chairwoman Lei Li-fen and honorary chairman Cheng Jen-hung show photographs from a safety inspection at a retail store during a news conference in Taipei yesterday.Photo: Lo Chi, Taipei Times
A recent study found four major public safety concerns at large retail stores, the Consumers’ Foundation said yesterday.

As the Lunar New Year holiday approaches, major retailers are filling up with crowds of people shopping for New Year’s goods, the foundation said.

From Jan. 8 to Wednesday last week, foundation volunteers visited 77 stores belonging to 34 businesses across Taiwan, including department stores and supermarkets, it said.

Retail stores in a building’s basement should have two or more entrances and exits, but the study found that five stores located underground only had one, foundation honorary chairman Cheng Jen-hung (程仁宏) said.

If there is a fire near the entrance, people would be in danger, he said.

The study also found that 47 percent of the stores that were visited did not have emergency evacuation maps, or ones that were clearly visible, and 37 percent did not have escape equipment that could easily be seen, foundation chairwoman Lei Li-fen (雷立芬) said.

These findings suggest that if such items are not required by law, then businesses do not install them, she said.

Articles 146 to 156 of the Standard for Installation of Fire Safety Equipments Based on Use and Occupancy (各類場所消防安全設備設置標準) do not require the installation of emergency evacuation maps, she said.

Even if there is escape equipment, it is there because of government inspections, and is often placed in areas that are not easily visible, she said.

Meanwhile, more than 20 stores had emergency exits that were left open, the study found.

Emergency exits must be kept shut to prevent the spread of smoke, Cheng said.

At the same time, the exits must not be blocked and must be left unlocked for emergency evacuations, he added.

At the end of last year, the Taipei and New Taipei City fire departments conducted a public safety investigation targeting department stores and supermarkets, and issued fines on the spot, Lei said.

However, the study, conducted less than a month later, still found many flaws, she added.

According to Article 4 of the Consumer Protection Act (消費者保護法), businesses must emphasize consumers’ health and safety, foundation secretary-general Wu Jung-ta (吳榮達) said.

Under Article 60 of the same act, if the products or services provided could endanger a consumer’s life, body or health, the government may order the business to suspend operations in serious cases and ask consumer protection groups to file a lawsuit on its behalf, he said.

Urging businesses to value public safety, the foundation said that government agencies should also perform consistent and thorough safety checks in public places to protect people’s safety.

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title: Firefighters contain blaze in forested Taichung area

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Firefighters put out fires yesterday in the Lishan forest area in Taichung.Photo courtesy of Dongshih Forest District Office
A forest fire on Sunday broke out in the mountainous area of Lishan (梨山) in Taichung, destroying three hectares of forest, the Dongshih Forest District Office said.

While the fire was contained at 4pm yesterday, it was still being put out as of press time last night, the office said.

The office said that after its Lishan work station received a report of the fire at 8am, 12 firefighters were sent to the affected Chiayang (佳陽) forest area and a request was made for aerial support.

The firefighters on the ground battled because the steep cliffs in the area limited access to water supplies, the office said.

Two Black Hawk firefighting helicopters from the National Airborne Service Corps made 25 trips, bringing a total of 50 tonnes of water from the Techi Reservoir to the fire, the office said.

Taichung firefighter Tsai Shih-fang (蔡石芳), who was on the scene, said his team was trying to draw water from a river and from fruit farmers’ irrigation systems.

The fire was raging 1,600m above sea level, in an area that is home to Aborigines and several animal species, including the Formosan Reeve’s muntjac.

No injuries had been reported.

From October to April, the area is vulnerable to wildfires, due strong winds and dry weather, the office said.

In 2018 and last year, 25 fires broke out in areas under its jurisdiction, the office said, adding that it usually takes about two to three days to put them out.

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title: CCP tactics likely to continue: report

people: 習近平 蔡英文

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The Institute for National Defense and Security Research logo is pictured in an undated photograph.Photo: Tu Chu-min, Taipei Times
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is likely to continue its carrot-and-stick approach toward Taiwan, but would become more polarizing, the Institute for National Defense and Security Research think tank said in a report last week.

The CCP would likely adopt the same approach in its Taiwan policies in the near future, only with even more polarizing policies, such as introducing more “soft approaches” to appeal to Taiwanese, while simultaneously rolling out “hard approaches” by stepping up efforts to squeeze Taiwan’s international space and conducting more military drills near China’s southeastern coast, the report said.

National security agencies in October last year found that China had attempted to interfere with the Jan. 11 presidential and legislative elections by poaching diplomatic allies, limiting Chinese tourism and heightening military threats, the report said.

Other moves included the China-based Association of Taiwan Investment Enterprises on the Mainland placing newspaper adverts opposing the Anti-infiltration Act (反滲透法) and subsidizing Taiwanese businesspeople in China about NT$6,500 per person for airplane tickets to Taiwan so they could vote for candidates favored by China, the report said.

However, President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) landslide re-election and the Democratic Progressive Party’s continued legislative majority show that China’s aggressive attitude sparked a backlash in Taiwan and its political interference failed, the report said.

That Beijing is sticking to its script suggests that it is ignorant of the strong sentiment in Taiwan against Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) “one county, two systems” formula, it said.

After the pro-democracy camp won a large share of the Hong Kong district council elections in November last year and former Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in Hong Kong director Wang Zhimin (王志民) was replaced on Jan. 4, Beijing would examine its agencies in charge of “Taiwan affairs,” which would be held accountable for failing to stay abreast of and influence public opinion here, the report said.

In related news, photographs of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army simulating a military operation on a command center on Sunday circulated on Chinese social media.

The photos showed operations at sites apparently modeled after places in Penghu County and southern Taiwan.

The Ministry of National Defense yesterday said that it shoulders responsibility for national security and it would respond promptly to any threat to regional security.

As the Chinese government has neither confirmed nor denied the authenticity of the images, ministry officials said that it would treat the situation seriously.

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First rise in export orders in 13 months

HEADWINDS:Orders are likely to decrease this month, as seasonal factors and a weak global economy might depress demand, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said
Export orders last month posted the first annual growth in 13 months to US$43.8 billion, driven by increasing orders for smartphones, 5G chips and machine tools amid easing US-China trade tensions, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.

Different from customs-cleared exports, export orders are a critical gauge of how actual exports are likely to perform in one to three months.

The outlook for this quarter is positive as easing US-China trade tension might stimulate trade and investment worldwide, the ministry said.

“Hopefully, export orders in the first quarter would exceed the amount achieved in the first quarter of last year,” Department of Statistics Director Huang Yu-ling (黃于玲) said by telephone.

Export orders totaled US$107.98 billion in the first quarter of last year.

This month, export orders are likely to decrease 8.6 to 11 percent annually to US$36 billion to US$37 billion, as seasonal factors and a weak global economy might depress demand, the ministry said, citing a survey last month of local manufacturers.

Last month, export orders inched up 0.9 percent from US$43.38 billion a year earlier, with the electronics segment showing the fastest pace of growth, ministry data showed.

Last year as a whole, export orders contracted 5.3 percent annually to US$484.56 billion from US$511.82 billion, according to the statistics compiled by the ministry.

Electronics orders expanded 4.7 percent annually to US$12.18 billion last month for the third consecutive month of annual growth.

“Easing trade tensions between the US and China played an important part in rebooting Taiwan’s export orders in December,” Huang said.

“Increasing adoption of emerging technologies also helped drive demand for 5G-related products such as advanced chips, networking and Internet of Things devices,” Huang added.

Export orders for information and communications technology products last month rose 0.4 percent to US$13.89 billion, as growth in smartphones and graphic cards were offset by a decline in notebook computers.

A rebound in demand for base metals, steel, machine tools and petrochemical products also helped prop up export orders, the ministry said, adding that machine tool and semiconductor equipment orders grew 5.1 percent to US$1.77 billion, snapping 13 months of annual decline.

The rebound indicated that equipment investments overseas are reviving, primarily in China, Huang said.

Orders from China including Hong Kong, the second-biggest export destination for Taiwanese goods, rose 5.6 percent annually to US$10.39 billion, with the strongest growth coming from machine tools.

The ministry attributed the growth to China’s fast 5G infrastructure deployment, which stimulated demand for 5G chips from foundry and chip designers such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) and MediaTek Inc (聯發科).

Demand from the US, the biggest export market for Taiwan, fell 8.8 percent to US$12.71 billion as lingering uncertainty over the US-China trade dispute dampened electronics demand.

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NHRI researchers make key lung cancer finding

A STEP FORWARD:The team found that inhibiting the succinate levels in mice increased their survival rate and that succinate levels could be used as a biomarker
From left, Tri-Service General Hospital physicians Hsu Yu-Juei and Huang Tsai-wang, National Health Research Institutes (NHRI) Secretary-General Wu Shiow-ing, NHRI Institute of Cellular and System Medicine director Lin Hsiu-fang and associate researcher Kuo Cheng-chin, and research team member Wu Jing-yiing give the thumbs up at a news conference at the Ministry of Health and Welfare in Taipei yesterday.Photo: Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
The National Health Research Institutes (NHRI) yesterday said it had discovered that succinate levels in blood serum could serve as a potential biomarker for lung cancer progression, and that inhibiting succinate levels might reduce the risk of lung cancer metastasis.

NHRI Institute of Cellular and System Medicine associate researcher Kuo Cheng-chin (郭呈欽) said that cancer has been the most common cause of death in Taiwan for many years.

Among them, non-small cell lung cancer has a relatively poor prognosis, he said.

As there is no effective screening method for non-small cell lung cancer, patients are usually diagnosed in the later stages, he added.

His research team began looking into metabolites to find ways to inhibit cancer growth and metastasis, and they discovered that the serum succinate levels in stage 1 or stage 2 non-small cell lung cancer patients were higher than in people without lung cancer, Kuo said.

Cancer cells have the ability to damage surrounding tissue and change their microenvironment, he said.

From animal experiments, the team found that cancer cells secrete succinate to activate and polarize macrophages — large white blood cells that are an important part of our immune system — turning them into tumor-associated macrophages, which promote tumor progression and metastasis, he said.

The cancer cells that secrete succinate are not limited to lung cancer, but are also found in breast cancer, colon cancer and prostate cancer, Kuo said.

Elevated serum succinate levels in patients with lung cancer could also serve as a biomarker for tumor progression and metastasis, he added.

Research team member Wu Jing-yiing (吳京穎) said they also experimented injecting a succinate monoclonal antibody into mice with non-small cell lung cancer, and found their eight-week survival rate significantly increased — all of the mice injected with the succinate monoclonal antibody survived, but about half of the mice that were not given the injection died over the next eight weeks.

Kuo said that the team would try to develop cancer test kits, as well as targeted cancer therapy.

The team’s findings were published in academic journal Molecular Cell on Thursday last week.

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Teen delegation to visit schools, NGOs in Indonesia and NZ

A delegation is to visit Indonesia and New Zealand on an 11-day trip as part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Teen Diplomatic Envoys Program.

The 12-member delegation, made up of students from the three senior-high schools that placed best in English proficiency competitions over the past three months, attended a ceremony at the ministry yesterday ahead of its departure on Thursday next week.

The delegation is headed by ministry counselor Wu Wen-ling (吳文齡) and is to visit Jakarta, Wellington and Auckland, where the students are to engage in academic and cultural exchanges with non-governmental organizations (NGO) and high schools.

They are scheduled to return on Feb. 10.

More then 400 students from 109 schools participated in the nationwide search for the Teen Diplomatic Envoys, ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said.

Ou encouraged delegation members to show their new friends in the two countries the best of Taiwan and share the nation’s values of democracy and freedom.

Indonesia and New Zealand are two important partners of Taiwan under its New Southbound Policy, which seeks to enhance people-to-people exchanges with ASEAN, South Asia, and Australia and New Zealand.

New Zealand Commerce and Industry Office Taipei Deputy Director Aimee Jephson and Indonesian Economic and Trade Office in Taipei official Fajar Nuradi attended the ceremony.

Lai Jing-ting, (賴靖婷), one of the teen envoys, said she would proudly promote Taiwan’s values of freedom and democracy by telling students she meets about the Jan. 11 presidential and legislative elections.

Lai said she is very excited to visit Hobbiton, where some scenes from the Lord of the Rings movies were filmed.

The teen envoy program was launched in 2002 to encourage young people to focus more on international affairs.

The program aims to improve English communication skills among high-school students, so that they can better promote international cultural exchanges, the ministry said.

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title: Taiwan only definable by Taiwanese, Mayor Ko says

people: 習近平 柯文哲 蔡英文

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Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je operates a ticketing machine in Finland on Sunday.Photo courtesy of the Taipei City Government
Taiwan cannot be defined by anyone but Taiwanese, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) told reporters in Finland on Sunday.

Reporters asked Ko, who is on a European trip, about a joint statement by China and Myanmar on Saturday that the two nations adhere to the “one China” principle and recognize Taiwan, Tibet and Xinjiang as inalienable parts of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

The statement, which was posted on the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Web site as Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) concluded a two-day visit to Naypyidaw, said that the two nations support Beijing’s efforts to resolve issues relating to Taiwan, Tibet and Xinjiang.

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) on Sunday separately rebutted the statement, saying that Taiwan is not part of the PRC.

“I think it is very strange, because why would we need Myanmar to define who Taiwan is,” said Ko, who is chairman of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP).

Myanmar probably made the statement because it has borrowed money or received financial support from China recently, “or else why would it make such a statement?” he asked.

“We do not need other people to define what Taiwan is, because only we can define who we are,” Ko said.

Ko was also asked about a Facebook post on Saturday by his wife, Peggy Chen (陳佩琪), in which she accused the DPP of manipulating people by talking about a “sense of the nation’s impending doom” to help gain votes in the Jan. 11 elections.

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of the DPP was re-elected, while the party won a majority in the 113-seat legislature.

Chen also wrote that Ko, who has expressed an intention to run for president in 2024, had told her “not to fight with those people,” adding, however, that he is always positive and wants to give the presidency a shot, even though the odds of success are low.

Her remarks had nothing to do with a 2024 bid, Ko said, adding that he believes performing his duties properly every day is the best preparation.

“However, Taiwan has always faced a difficult international situation,” he said. “Enhancing a nation’s overall strength is a basic requirement for survival in the global society.”

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Democratic Progressive Party legislators pose for a photograph in the main chamber of the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday, the final day of an extraordinary legislative session.Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
The Legislative Yuan yesterday passed this year’s central government budget, which projects a surplus of about NT$30 billion (US$1 billion), or about 1.4 percent of total spending.

In final budget negotiations, lawmakers cut the Executive Yuan’s proposed expenditure by 1.17 percent to NT$2.077 trillion and added NT$4.76 billion to the revenue projected by the government, bringing total budgeted revenue to NT$2.107 trillion.

During the initial review over the final four months of last year, lawmakers cut NT$1.5 billion from the proposed NT$2.102 trillion in government expenditure and proposed 2,473 changes to the budget.

They failed to finish reviewing the proposals before the end of the regular legislative session last month, and an extraordinary session began on Tuesday last week to complete the work, which passed 39 of the proposals.

A proposal by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to cut or freeze funds for the Ill-gotten Party Assets Settlement Committee and the Transitional Justice Commission because of what it said was a lack of neutrality in the two bodies was not passed.

Lawmakers from the KMT, People First Party and New Power Party sought to cut or freeze NT$427.6 million for a national electronic identification card system, citing security and privacy concerns, but those proposals also failed, although the Democratic Progressive Party, which has a majority in the legislature, pushed through a temporary 10 percent freeze on funds for the ID system.

The proposal requires the Ministry of the Interior to gather opinions on the proposed system, alleviate concerns over security, report its findings to the Legislature’s Internal Administration Committee and gain the committee’s approval before the money can be used.

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title: Legislative Yuan passes 2020 government budget


content_text:
Official defends policies for food imports

THE US AND JAPAN:The presidential office official said that allowing US pork and beef requires professional evaluation, and a clear answer would not come quickly
The government’s food policy is based on protecting people’s health, international standards and scientific evidence, a Presidential Office official said on Sunday.

The official, who declined to be named, made the remarks in response to media queries about requests by Washington and Tokyo that Taiwan lift bans on some foods.

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has expressed hope that Taiwan and the US could sign a bilateral trade agreement, while American Institute in Taiwan Chairman James Moriarty told a conference in Washington on Jan. 11 that, with Tsai’s re-election, the government should consider allowing imports of US pork and beef, a call echoed by the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei.

Allowing imports of US pork and beef is a significant issue that requires professional evaluation and a clear answer would not be available in the short term, the Presidential Office official said.

The issue should not be unduly amplified, the official said, adding that the government needs to consider the overall situation when deciding on policy.

Taiwan and the US can still promote economic cooperation without deciding on the beef and pork issue, the official said.

Japan is pushing Taiwan to lift a ban on food from Fukushima, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Chiba and Gunma prefectures that was imposed following the 2011 Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant disaster.

Japan-Republic of China Diet Members’ Consultative Council Chairman Keiji Furuya broached the issue at a meeting with Tsai at the Presidential Office in Taipei on Friday last week.

The Japanese government has repeatedly urged Taiwan to lift the ban, saying it affects whether Taiwan could join the 11-member Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Asked whether Taipei should maintain the Japan ban, more than 7 million people in a referendum in November 2018 said it should, compared with more than 2 million who said the ban should end.

A change cannot be made until November, as the referendum result is effective for two years, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said.

Former premier Lin Chuan (林全) had reportedly planned to lift the ban, but the issue became thorny after men dressed in black disrupted public hearings organized by the ministry on the issue.

The Food and Drug Administration in 2018 commissioned experts to collect 300 samples of eight food categories from the five Japanese prefectures to test their radiation levels, with the results showing that they were all within safety standards.

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title: A-bian’s TAPA starts dissolution

content_text:
A Taiwan Action Party Alliance banner hangs in Nantou County on Nov. 23 last year.Photo: Hsieh Chieh-yu,Taipei Times
The Taiwan Action Party Alliance (TAPA) yesterday announced that it has begun the dissolution process.

The decision followed the announcement on Jan. 12 by former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), the party’s spiritual head, that he was withdrawing from politics.

TAPA failed to win any seats in Jan. 11’s legislative elections. It received 143,617 votes, or 1.01 percent of the party vote.

Election regulations state that only parties that garner at least 5 percent of the vote are entitled to government funding and legislator-at-large seats.

TAPA said in a statement on Facebook that its members on Sunday reached a decision to dissolve the party, as outlined by its own rules.

From yesterday, the party ceased accepting membership fees and donations, it said.

To finalize dissolution, a task force has been formed to handle its accounting and registrations, as well as other work, the party said.

“We would like to pay our highest respect to our supporters, as well as express our most sincere gratitude and apologies to them,” it said.

Party members would continue to work for Taiwan with the same spirit, it added.

TAPA was founded in August last year and has advocated Chen’s stance of “one country on each side” of the Taiwan Strait.

The party nominated Chen as one of its legislator-at-large candidates, but the Central Election Commission disqualified his listing, citing the Civil Servants Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法), which prohibits people who have been convicted of corruption from registering as a candidate.

Chen was sentenced to 20 years in prison on a series of corruption charges and is on medical parole.

“As the ‘gardener’ of TAPA, I feel deeply ashamed to have allowed this little tree to wither,” Chen said on Jan. 12.

After spending a night engaged in deep reflection, he decided that he could no longer contribute to the party or Taiwan, he said.

“From this day on, I would withdraw from politics. Thank you and good bye,” he said.

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title: Tsai as DPP chairperson opposed by 45%: survey

content_text:
By Wu Su-wei and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writer
Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation president Michael You is silhouetted against survey results at a news conference in Taipei yesterday.Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Forty-five percent of Taiwanese oppose President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) doubling as Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairperson, a survey released yesterday by the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation showed.

Tsai was re-elected as president on Jan. 11 with a record 8.17 million votes, or 57.13 percent of the total, the foundation said at a news conference.

According to the DPP charter, a member who has been elected president can also serve as party chair. If the president does not want to be chair, an election would be held to choose one.

Asked whether Tsai should double as party chairperson, 8.7 percent of respondents “agreed wholeheartedly” and 22.3 percent were in favor, while 26.1 percent would question such a move and 18.9 percent disagreed outright. Six percent said they did not know.

The results showed that 31 percent were in favor of Tsai doubling as chairperson, while 45 percent were opposed.

The “honeymoon” period for Tsai’s second term has already begun, foundation president Michael You (游盈隆) said, adding that Tsai becoming DPP chairperson could signal the end of that, along with a decline in her popularity.

According to the survey, 56.7 percent of respondents approved of the way that Tsai handles national affairs, while 27 percent disapproved.

It showed that 56.2 percent were satisfied with Premier Su Tseng-chang’s (蘇貞昌) performance, while 29.6 percent were dissatisfied.

The survey found that 61.7 percent of respondents were unable to name any of the 13 ministers, while 38.2 percent being able to name only one.

Of the ministers who were named, Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) was No. 1, with 29.7 percent naming him, with Minister of the Interior Hsu Kuo-yung (徐國勇) second at 13.6 percent.

Ting Ting-yu (丁庭宇), an academic who attended the news conference, said that the lack of memorable Cabinet members and distinctive official capacities should be a warning sign for the Cabinet.

The survey found that 72.4 percent do not expect Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), who was the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential candidate, to make another presidential bid in 2024.

Six point two percent said they highly expect Han to run for president in 2024, 8.9 percent said they could see Han running in 2024, 25.1 percent said they have low expectations, 47.3 percent said they would not like to see Han run, and 12.7 percent declined to answer or said they had no opinion, the survey showed.

A cross-analysis of the survey showed that 35 percent of KMT supporters would support a second presidential attempt by Han, while 87 percent of DPP supporters would not support a Han ticket.

The survey also showed that 77 percent of Kaohsiung residents would not support a second presidential bid by the mayor, while 11 percent said they would.

You said that Han’s victory in the Kaohsiung mayoral election had induced a “catfish effect” that benefited Tsai, leading her to victory this year.

The poll, which the foundation commissioned Focus Survey Research to conduct, interviewed people aged 20 or above on Tuesday and Wednesday last week.

It collected 1,078 valid samples, with a margin of error of 2.98 percentage points.

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people: 林佳龍 蘇貞昌 徐國勇 游盈隆 韓國瑜 蔡英文


content_text:
Chef Heston Blumenthal bemoans trend to take snaps instead of bites

米其林名廚抱怨：菜都涼了，別只顧著拍照！

A person takes a picture of their brunch on their smartphone in Toronto, Canada.
加拿大多倫多一餐廳的食客，為上桌的早午餐拍照。Photo: Wikimedia Commons
照片：維基共享資源

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 3

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Heston Blumenthal has criticized the trend of diners who appear to be more interested in photographing their food than eating it.

The celebrity chef, known for his culinary creations, and owner of the triple Michelin-starred Fat Duck restaurant said the issue had been discussed in his kitchen but that he has had to resist the temptation to intervene because he does not want to upset his customers.

“At the Fat Duck, we’ve debated this for several years now. If we say to people, ‘Your food’s going cold’, you put up a barrier between you and the diner,” Blumenthal told the Radio Times.

Asked whether he gets annoyed and has ever been close to saying anything to a customer, he said: “Yes, and I’ve been very tempted. We did it once in Australia because somebody was taking pictures with a flash, which affected other tables. It’s a really tricky thing.

“Social media is such a big part of our lives, our sight has become almost the more important sense rather than smell or taste. If I see something beautiful like a sunset, I try to be in the moment, then take a picture afterwards,” though if he waits until the sun has set, the picture won’t be much to look at.

“A lot of people now are more interested in capturing a photograph so they can post it, which disconnects them from the moment,” added Blumenthal, on the trend for putting snaps of envy-inducing meals on social media.

As social media has taken hold, there has been a growing inability to enjoy an experience without documenting and broadcasting it. A recent Australian?study?suggested that documenting an experience, and presenting it for an audience, has?turned into the experience itself. People enjoyed their holiday less when they couldn’t take a picture and tell other people about it online. That doesn’t mean that those people were less engaged, simply that the rules of engagement have changed, quickly and emphatically.

1. diner n.

用餐者

(yong4 can1 zhe3)

2. chef n.

廚師；主廚

(chu2 shi1; zhu3 chu2)

3. culinary adj.

烹飪的

(peng1 ren4 de5)

4. triple Michelin-starred adj.

米其林三星的

(mi3 qi2 lin2 san1 xing1 de5)

5. social media phr.

社群媒體

(she4 qun2 mei2 ti3)

6. be in the moment phr.

享受當下

(xiang3 shou4 dang1 xia4)

7. snap n.

快照

(kuai4 zhao4)

8. envy-inducing adj.

引人嫉妒的

(yin3 ren2 ji2 du4 de5)

(The Guardian)

相較於享用桌上的餐點，為這些食物拍照似乎讓客人更感興趣。英國名廚赫斯頓‧布魯門索便對這種風潮加以批評。

這位以烹飪創意聞名的名廚，也是米其林三星餐廳「Fat Duck」（肥鴨餐廳）的老闆，他表示，他們餐廳內部已討論過這個問題，但他不得不壓抑想去干涉的衝動，因為不想得罪客人。

布魯門索告訴《Radio Times》（廣播時報）雜誌說：「在Fat Duck餐廳，我們已對此問題討論了好幾年。如果我們提醒客人說：『您的食物要變涼了』，那就是在我們和用餐客人之間豎起一道隔閡。」

被問及他是否曾被惹惱而對客人表示意見，布魯門索說：「是的，我一直很想這麼做。有一次在澳洲便真的跟客人說了，因為有人拍照用閃光燈，這影響了其他桌。這種事很難處理」。

「社群媒體在我們生活中所佔的比重如此之大，讓我們的視覺凌駕了嗅覺或味覺等其他感官。如果我看到美的東西，比如說夕陽，我會試著享受當下，然後才來拍照」，雖然若他等到太陽下山，所拍的照片就沒什麼好看的了。

現下流行在社群媒體上貼出令人豔羨的美食，他補充道：「現在很多人對拍照更感興趣，因為可以把照片貼上網，拍照使他們與當下的連結斷開了。」

隨著社群媒體的普及，若不把所體驗的記錄下來、傳播出去，人們就越來越無法去享受這體驗。澳洲最近一項研究顯示，記錄體驗並將它呈現給觀眾，已經變成了體驗本身。度假若不能拍照並上網告訴別人，就不會盡興。這並不表示這些人並未樂在其中，只是樂在其中的定義已迅速而明顯地改變了。

(台北時報林俐凱編譯)

FOLLOW UP

讀後練習

Questions

1. What is chef Heston Blumenthal’s attitude toward the growing trend of restaurant diners taking photos of their food?

2. Do you tend to photograph food in restaurants? Please explain your reasoning.

3. Do you often see photographs of food posted on social media? How do you feel when you see these kinds of photos?

4. If you were a Michelin-starred chef, would you ask your staff to intervene to prevent diners from taking photos of their food?

(Lin Lee-kai, Taipei Times)

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countries: 澳洲 英國 加拿大


title: Successful turnout at Taipei Dangdai

taiwan-subdivisions: 高雄市 臺北市

content_text:
Successful turnout at Taipei Dangdai

The art fair, in its second incarnation, featured work by Ai Weiwei, Julian Opie and Marina Abramovic
“We hope to make Taipei Dangdai the most important event in the art scene around the world and in Asia,” was co-director Robin Peckham’s speech opening, speaking in Mandarin as a nod to the local market. Returning for a second year, Dangdai’s (台北當代) goal is to put Taipei on the map for the art world.

Asia is already a leading force in the global art market, and it is only expected to grow in importance in the upcoming years. However, which cities play a key role is constantly changing — especially in light of unstable business in Hong Kong over the last year.

“Taipei city is vibrant and collectors are hungry,” said Mariko Kawashima, director of Axel Vervoordt Gallery Hong Kong, one of the newcomers this year amongst 99 galleries — 23 of which have spaces in Taiwan.

Dangdai’s co-founder Magnus Renfrew said there is interest from galleries around the world in potentially joining next year.

COLLECTORS DO THEIR HOMEWORK

International galleries were impressed by the Taiwanese crowd.

“For a small country, it’s astonishing that there are so many collectors,” said Rachel Lehmann, co-owner of Lehmann Maupin. “They do their homework very well, and they collect in depth.”

It was a sentiment echoed by gallerist Sean Kelly.

“People here are very sophisticated, they understand quality,” Kelly said.

Though Kawashima said they are still learning about Taiwanese collectors, Kelly believes in bringing recognizable names and leading works to Taiwan. Indeed, the number of artworks from world-renowned artists like Marina Abramovic, Anish Kapoor, Ai Weiwei (艾未未) or Julian Opie have gone up considerably.

Galleries reported successful sales. David Zwirner sold multiple artworks within the first two hours of the fair, mostly to Taiwanese collectors. TKG+, the contemporary branch of Taiwanese Tina Keng Gallery (耿畫廊), said they were happy with the results, and, perhaps more importantly, made connections to new collectors.

NOT JUST FOR PROFIT

Backed by the Ministry of Culture, the Bureau of Foreign Trade and Taipei’s Department of Cultural Affairs, Dangdai provided a platform for many artists who were never presented in Taiwan before.

Oscar Murillo, co-winner of last year’s Turner Prize, who hosted a talk at the “Ideas” program of the fair, where he said that collaboration with a local institution is on the horizon for him.

Lehmann Maupin are also working with the Taipei Fine Arts Museum (臺北市立美術館) on a show about Erwin Wurm curated by Jerome Sans, and a solo exhibition with Tony Oursler at Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Art (高雄市立美術館).

THINKING LONG TERM

Shanghai and Hong Kong used to be absolute centers for the market in Asia, but international galleries have started diversifying, setting their foot in multiple cities. This mindset comes as political tension in Hong Kong caused a dip in the business of galleries last year.

“The art world is not isolated,” said Lehmann, “but with long-term strategies it’s easier to adapt to change.”

Arthur de Villepin, founder of Villepin, a gallery opening in Hong Kong in March added: “The energy of Hong Kong is beyond the political situation. The fact that it dilutes itself in the region is not a bad thing.”

Alongside his father, former French prime minister Dominique de Villepin, he hopes to open a salon-like space where long-term relationships with artists and collectors can be built.


title: Morocco site hails Jewish-Muslim closeness

content_text:
Andre Azoulay, an adviser to Moroccan King Mohammed VI, poses for a photograph at the Bayt Dakira museum in Essaouira, Morocco, on Dec. 14 last year.Photo: AFP
In the old Jewish quarter of the coastal city of Essaouira in Morocco, a newly opened “House of Memory” has been dedicated to the historic coexistence of its Jewish and Muslim communities.

Nestled in a narrow alleyway among labyrinthine lanes, Bayt Dakira (House of Memory) is situated in a former family home of wealthy traders, who added a small synagogue decorated with woodwork and carved furnishings.

The restored building “testifies to a period when Islam and Judaism had an exceptional closeness, complicity and intimacy,” said Andre Azoulay, an adviser to Moroccan King Mohammed VI.

Azoulay, himself a member of Essaouira’s Jewish community, launched the project in partnership with the Moroccan Ministry of Culture.

“We said to ourselves: We’re going to let our patrimony speak, and protect what was the art of living together in mutual respect,” he said.

His daughter, Audrey Azoulay, who is director-general of the UN cultural agency UNESCO, was also present on Wednesday last week when the king made an official visit to the center.

Bayt Dakira showcases objects donated by local families alongside stories of members of the Jewish community from the southwestern city on the Atlantic Ocean.

They include former British minister of finance, transport and war Leslie Belisha (1893-1957), and David Yulee Levy (1810-1986), the “first Jew elected in US history.”

A panel lists Jewish royal advisers from Essaouira, including Azoulay who was called to the palace in 1991 by then-Moroccan king Hassan II, the late father of Mohammed.

Bayt Dakira also houses old photographs, archive footage, musical recordings, traditional dress and religious objects.

Upstairs will house a research center.

At the time of Moroccan sultan Mohammed III, who in the 18th century transformed the small port into a diplomatic and commercial hub, Essaouira was “the only city in the Islamic world with a majority Jewish population,” the 78-year-old royal adviser says.

Azoulay’s goal is to turn his city’s history into a symbol of “the art of the possible” and push back against what he calls “amnesia, regression and archaism.”

At one point, Essaouira had 37 synagogues, but most have fallen into ruin.

The Jewish community has been in Morocco since antiquity and grew over the centuries, particularly with the arrival of Jews expelled from Spain by the Catholic kings after 1492.

At the end of the 1940s, Jewish Moroccans numbered about 250,000 — about 10 percent of the population.

Many left after the creation of Israel in 1948 and the community now numbers about 3,000, still the largest in North Africa.

Essaouira was largely forgotten during the French protectorate (1912-1956), but has experienced a gradual rebirth since the early 1990s, turning into a tourist destination and cultural beacon.

It is not the only city to house a memorial to the country’s Judeo-Moroccan heritage, something that the king often highlights. Cemeteries, synagogues and historic Jewish quarters are also being restored.

Since 1997, Casablanca has housed a Moroccan Jewish Museum, the only one of its kind in the Arab world. And in Fez, the country’s spiritual capital, a museum dedicated to the Jewish memory is under construction. While the kingdom does not have official ties with Israel, thousands of Jews of Moroccan descent visit every year — including from the Jewish state.

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title: World News Quick Take

content_text:
BANGLADESH

Ten to die for bomb attack

The Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Court yesterday sentenced 10 members of banned Islamist militant group Harkat-ul Jihad al-Islami to death for a bomb attack on a Communist Party rally in 2001. Judge Mohammed Rabiul Alam made the order in a crowded courtroom while four of the defendants were in the dock. Six of the defendants sentenced to death have absconded. The court acquitted two others who fled. On Jan. 20, 2001, bomb attacks on a party rally in Dhaka killed five people and wounded 50 others. Alam said investigators found Harkat-ul Jihad al-Islami’s former chief Mufti Abdul Hannan responsible for the party attack, but his name was dropped from the case because he was executed in 2017. He was hanged for a separate case involving a grenade attack on a British high commissioner in Bangladesh.

CHINA

Plastic ban by year-end

The nation is to ban non-degradable plastic bags in major cities and single-use straws from restaurants by the end of this year in a bid to cut down on waste. The plan targets a 30 percent reduction in non-degradable, disposable tableware for takeout in major cities within five years. In a document released on Sunday, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment said the production and sale of disposable foam and plastic tableware are to be banned by the end of the year. The plan also outlaws non-degradable, single-use straws in the catering industry this year, while disposable plastic products should not be “actively provided” by hotels by 2022. By 2025, the authorities said they planned to effectively control plastic pollution and cut the amount of waste in landfills of key cities, on top of setting up a management system.

INDONESIA

Footbridge falls, killing nine

A footbridge across a river swollen by heavy rains collapsed on the island of Sumatra, drowning at least nine people who were swept away by a strong current, with one person missing, disaster mitigation officials said. Seventeen people were rescued at the site of Sunday’s collapse in the province of Bengkulu, where the national disaster mitigation agency has launched a rescue effort, spokesman Agus Wibowo said. A crowd of about 30 people, mostly students, gathered on the bridge could have caused a strain leading to the collapse, Wibowo said. “They were watching the floods in the river below and then the bridge snapped, so they fell into the overflowing river,” he added.

CHINA

Quake causes damage

A strong earthquake damaged buildings and injured at least one person seriously in the Xinjiang region, the government said yesterday. Rescue teams were sent to Peyzawat County, an area east of the city of Kashgar, after the Sunday night quake. State broadcaster CCTV showed a cluster of small collapsed brick buildings and partially fallen walls that fronted properties along the street. The Ministry of Emergency Management said a number of people were injured, one seriously. CCTV reported at least two had minor injuries. The magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck at 9:21pm at a depth of 16km, the China Earthquake Networks Center said. The epicenter was 56km from Peyzawat and shaking was felt in the cities of Kashgar and Artux, the center said. The US Geological Survey reported the earthquake’s magnitude as 6.0 and its depth as 11km.

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content_text:
Japan to establish space defense unit

NEW DANGERS:Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that electromagnetic interference against Japanese satellites and threats in cyberspace were of concern
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe gives a policy speech at the start of the regular session of parliament in Tokyo yesterday.Photo: Reuters
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe yesterday said Japan is to form a space defense unit to protect itself from potential threats as rivals develop missiles and other technology, and that the new unit would work closely with its US counterpart recently launched by US President Donald Trump.

The Space Domain Mission Unit is to launch in April as part of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, Abe said in a policy speech marking the start of the year’s parliamentary session.

Japan must also defend itself from threats in cyberspace and from electromagnetic interference against Japanese satellites, he said.

Concerns are growing that China and Russia are seeking ways to interfere, disable or destroy satellites.

“We will drastically bolster capability and system in order to secure superiority” in those areas, Abe said.

The space unit is to be added to an existing air base at Fuchu in the western suburbs of Tokyo, where about 20 people would staff it ahead of a full launch later in the year.

The role of the unit is to conduct satellite-based navigation and communications for other troops in the field, rather than being on the ground.

Abe’s Cabinet in December last year approved a ￥50.6 billion (US$459 million) budget in space-related projects, pending approval from the parliament.

The unit would cooperate with the US Space Command that Trump established in August, as well as the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

Abe has pushed for the Japan Self-Defense Forces to expand its international role and capabilities by bolstering cooperation and weapons compatibility with the US, as it increasingly works alongside US troops and as it grows concerned about the increasing capabilities of China and North Korea.

Abe, in marking the 60th anniversary of the signing of Japan-US security treaty on Sunday, vowed to bolster Japan’s capabilities and cooperation with the US, including in the areas of space and cybersecurity.

He said that he is determined to settle Japan’s “unfortunate past” with North Korea, as he hopes to “sum up” his country’s postwar legacies before his term expires next year.

He reiterated his intention to hold talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un without the conditions he had demanded in the past — denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula and resolving the decades-old issue of abductions of Japanese citizens by North Korea.

Part of Abe’s plan while in office is to achieve his long-cherished goal of revising Japan’s US-drafted constitution that prohibits use of force in settling international disputes.

Despite Abe’s push, chances are fading for the revision due to a lack of public interest and the opposition’s focus on other controversial issues, such as Japan’s recent dispatch of naval troops to the Middle East and questionable public record-keeping at Abe’s annual cherry blossom viewing parties.

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title: Japan to establish space defense unit


content_text:
World powers agree on new Libya deal

‘SMALL STEP’:A Russian official said that while there was some progress, ‘a serious and stable dialogue’ had not been established between Libya’s Haftar and al-Sarraj
World leaders at a Berlin summit on Sunday committed to ending all foreign meddling in Libya’s civil war and to uphold a weapons embargo as part of a broader plan to end the long-running conflict.

The presidents of Russia, Turkey and France were among global leaders signing up to the agreement to stop interfering in the war — be it through weapons, troops or financing.

However, the talks failed to deliver “serious dialogue” between the warring parties — Libyan National Army Commander Khalifa Haftar and the head of Tripoli’s UN-recognized government, Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj — or to get both sides to sign up to a permanent truce.

“Ensuring that a ceasefire is immediately respected is simply not easy to guarantee, but I hope that through today’s conference, we have a chance the truce will hold further,” said German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the summit’s host.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that there are “still some questions on how well and effectively” the commitments can be monitored.

Pompeo said he is “optimistic that there will be less violence and ... an opportunity to begin the conversation that [UN Ambassador to Libya] Ghassan Salame has been trying to get going between the Libyan parties.”

Libya has been torn by fighting between rival armed factions since a 2011 NATO-backed uprising killed former Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi.

Most recently, al-Sarraj’s troops in Tripoli have been under attack since April from Haftar’s forces.

Clashes have killed more than 280 civilians and 2,000 fighters, while displacing tens of thousands, until a fragile ceasefire backed by Ankara and Moscow was put in place on Jan. 12.

Although al-Sarraj’s government is recognized by the UN, powerful players have broken away to stand behind Haftar — turning a domestic conflict into what some have described as a proxy war in which international powers jostle to secure their own interests.

Alarm grew in recent weeks after Turkey ordered in troops to shore up al-Sarraj’s Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA).

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the world powers had made “a strong commitment to stop” the conflict escalating into a regional confrontation.

Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Lavrov pointed to some positive takeaways from the talks, but said the summit failed to launch necessary talks between al-Sarraj and Haftar.

“It is clear that we have not yet succeeded in launching a serious and stable dialogue between them,” Lavrov told reporters after the conference, where Haftar and al-Sarraj did not meet face to face.

Nevertheless, the Libyan parties had taken “a small step” forward, Lavrov said.

Pro-Haftar forces on the eve of the talks blocked oil exports at Libya’s key ports, crippling the country’s main income source in protest at Turkey’s decision to send troops to shore up al-Sarraj.

In afternoon trade on Asian markets yesterday, oil prices rose more than 1 percent on supply concerns following the move.

The flaring oil crisis underlined the devastating impact of foreign influence in the conflict, in which al-Sarraj’s GNA is backed by Turkey and Qatar, while Haftar has the support of Russia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

Ahead of the talks, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Haftar needed to drop his “hostile attitude” if Libya is to have any chance at winning peace.

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title: World powers agree on new Libya deal


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Prolonged drought and other effects of climate change are pushing Australia’s unique platypus population toward extinction, scientists warned in a study published yesterday.

The river-dwelling animal has already disappeared from up to 40 percent of its historical range on Australia’s east coast due to the drought, land clearing, pollution and building of dams, which fragment their habitat, the researchers said.

They predicted that if the threats persist, platypus numbers would fall another 47 to 66 percent in the next 50 years.

If projections about worsening climate change are taken into account, the numbers of the duck-billed, egg-laying mammal could plummet up to 73 percent by 2070, they wrote.

The platypus is listed as “near threatened” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, but the scientists from the University of New South Wales’ Centre for Ecosystem Science said that damage to river systems caused by years of little rainfall and high temperatures had worsened prospects for the animal.

“These dangers further expose the platypus to even worse local extinctions, with no capacity to repopulate areas,” said Gilad Bino, lead author of the study.

The scientists said there is an “urgent need” for a national risk assessment to determine if the platypus should be downgraded to “vulnerable” status and to lay out conservation steps “to minimize any risk of extinction.”

The study is the first across all platypus habitat zones to establish a so-called “metapopulation” model, while also projecting the effects of climate change on the species going forward.

The survey estimated the total platypus population had fallen by 50 percent since European settlement of the continent two centuries ago.

“Under predicted climate change, the losses forecast were far greater because of increases in extreme drought frequencies and duration, such as the current dry spell,” Bino said.

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title: Climate change pushing platypus to extinction


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‘Parasite’ parties, Leo greets young fans inside SAG Awards

Some of the more memorable moments from Sunday’s Screen Actors Guild Awards
From left: Parasite cast Song Kang-ho, Cho Yeo-jeong, director Bong Joon-ho, Lee Jung-eun, Choi Woo-shik and Lee Sun-kyun pose on Sunday with the trophy for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture in the press room during the 26th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.Photo: AFP
Off-camera and during commercials, the stars at the Screen Actors Guild Awards got to rub shoulders, give congratulatory kisses and meet for the first or the 50th time. Here are some of the more memorable moments from inside Sunday night’s ceremony at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

PARTY TIME FOR ‘PARASITE’

The Parasite table was one of the happier places in the Shrine ballroom — and that was before its cast won the night’s biggest award.

Song Kang-ho and the film’s other stars got whoops, whistles and a standing ovation from much of the room of mostly American actors early in the show, when they took the stage to present their nominated film. That was followed by a full-blown ovation at the end, when theirs became the first foreign-language film to win the best ensemble SAG Award.

In the two hours between, the gleeful cast and director Bong Joon-ho, savored their moment in the Hollywood spotlight, taking group selfies during every commercial break. They greeted a steady stream of fellow-actor fans, including Steve Buscemi.

“I’m a little embarrassed,” cast member Lee Sun-kyun said after the show through a translator. “We’re feeling a little like the parasites of Hollywood now.”

SOME SAG STARS LOOM LARGER THAN OTHERS

TV and movie screens tend to obscure actors’ heights, but when they’re all in a room together it’s very clear who looms over whom. The winners of the show’s first two awards for actresses, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Laura Dern, both reportedly 5-foot-10 (178cm), made it seem like the night was going to be dominated by the tallest nominees, but the trend ended there.

The win of a much shorter Joaquin Phoenix — for Joker — over a reportedly 6-foot-3 Adam Driver for best actor in a film was more typical of the night. And the tallest actor and actress in the crowd, Stephen Merchant of Jojo Rabbit, who stands about 6-foot-7, and Gwendoline Christie of Game of Thrones, who stands about 6-foot-3, never got to take the stage with their casts, over whom they towered when they stood up during commercial breaks.

LITHGOW VISITS DRIVER’S SEAT

John Lithgow is even taller than Driver, and is nearly 40 years older, but it was Lithgow doing the looking up when the two met for the first time during a commercial break.

Lithgow, nominated along with the rest of the cast of Bombshell, smiled and gushed to Driver, nominated for best actor for Marriage Story, expressing his admiration for Driver’s run of recent performances.

“Great to meet you Adam,” Lithgow said with enthusiasm as the SAG Awards telecast returned from commercial and Lithgow rejoined Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie and his other cast mates at the neighboring table.

SMALL STARS SCRAMBLE FOR SAG SELFIES

You could be excused for thinking it was Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work day for the professional actors of the SAG Awards. Actually, the wee ones running around the ballroom were acting pros, too, on a night where children abounded among the nominees.

The kid actors from Big Little Lies, including brothers Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti, were all over the ballroom during commercial breaks, taking photos with stars including their cast mates Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon.

Twelve-year-old Roman Griffin Davis sat proudly at his table like he utterly belonged alongside his fellow Jojo Rabbit cast members, who include Scarlett Johansson.


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No other option but to cut royal ties, prince says

SEEKING PEACE:Saying ‘the media is a powerful force,’ Prince Harry said he did not make the decision easily and praised the royal family for their support
Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, holding their son, Archie, meet Archbishop Desmond Tutu, not pictured, at the Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation in Cape Town, South Africa, on Sept. 25.Photo: Reuters
Prince Harry on Sunday said that he felt “great sadness,” but found “no other option” to cutting almost all of his and his wife Meghan’s royal ties in the hopes of achieving a more peaceful life.

The comments were Harry’s first public remarks since his split from the royal family was announced earlier this month.

Video of his speech was posted to the couple’s official Instagram account.

Harry said he did not make the decision lightly and praised his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, and the rest of his family for supporting him and his wife.

He called the decision “a leap of faith” and said he hoped the move would allow him and his family to achieve a “more peaceful life.”

During his speech at a charity event, Harry framed the decision as being at least in part because of press scrutiny, saying “the media is a powerful force.”

He said that he and Meghan intend to continue a life of service, and that his love and support for the UK is unwavering, but added that he needed to shed the royal ties he grew up with.

“We’re not walking away, and we are certainly not walking away from you,” Harry said. “Our hope was to continue serving the queen, the commonwealth and my military associations, but without public funding. Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible.”

Harry and Meghan plan to spend most of their time in Canada. Beginning this spring they are to stop using their “royal highness” titles and are to lose all access to public funds once they stop carrying out official functions.

Harry made the remarks at a dinner to support Sentebale, his Africa-based charity supporting youngsters with HIV.

He opened his speech noting that many in the audience had watched him grow up and said he wanted them “to hear the truth from me, as much as I can share, not as a prince, or a duke, but as Harry.”

Harry framed the decision to leave as his own, made on behalf of Meghan and their young son, Archie.

He said that Meghan shares his values and remains “the same woman I fell in love with.”

Turning to his relationship with the queen and other members of his family, he said: “I will always have the utmost respect for my grandmother — my commander in chief — and I’m incredibly grateful to her and the rest of my family for the support they have shown Meghan and I over the last few months.”

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A dust storm approaches a farm northwest of Dubbo in New South Wales, Australia, on Sunday.Photo: Jason Herbig / Reuters
Thunderstorms and giant hail yesterday battered parts of Australia’s east coast after “apocalyptic” dust storms swept across drought-stricken areas, as extreme weather patterns collided in the bushfire-fatigued country.

Australia has since October last year been overwhelmed by an unprecedented bushfire season made worse by climate change.

Swathes of the country have burned, hundreds of millions of animals have died, more than 2,000 homes have been destroyed and at least 29 lives have been lost.

Violent hail storms yesterday pelted the capital, Canberra, with footage showing the storm ripping branches off trees.

Emergency services were warning people there to “move cars undercover and away from trees and power lines.”

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology told people in the southeast of New South Wales, including Sydney, to brace for the approaching storm.

“Severe thunderstorms are likely to produce damaging, locally destructive winds, large, possibly giant hailstones and heavy rainfall that may lead to flash flooding in the warning area over the next several hours,” the bureau said.

Two people visiting the Blue Mountains were taken to hospital when a 16-year-old boy was hit by lightning and a 24-year-old man suffered injuries while leaning on a nearby metal railing.

“These people are extremely lucky to be alive,” New South Wales Ambulance duty manager Greg Marshall said in a statement. “One centimeter either way and they would have faced a direct hit which could’ve been fatal.”

They both remain in hospital in a stable condition.

Dramatic images captured over the weekend from western New South Wales show a massive wall of dust rolling through outback towns.

Locals reported being cast into darkness in the middle of the day.

“We are used to the ritual and rush of bringing in washing, turning air-cons off, closing windows and doors, before a big dust storm hits,” said Ashleigh Hull from the rural town of Dubbo.

This one was “more spectacular” than the typical dust storm, she added.

“It was honestly like an apocalyptic movie, a huge wave coming toward us, really quite impressive, but I just wish it actually brought a good amount of rain, not dust,” Hull said.

The southern city of Melbourne was also lashed by huge hailstones late on Sunday.

In the state of Victoria, where bushfires continue to smolder, heavy rainfall overnight was welcomed in fire grounds in the north, but authorities said it also brought with it new dangers.

Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews said that the rain meant “much more dangerous conditions” for those operating heavy machinery to get into areas damaged by bushfires, while landslides complicated efforts to open up closed roads.

The wet weather has brought a reprieve for many fire grounds along the east coast, but authorities remain on high alert, warning that the bushfire season still has weeks left to run.

Experts expect Australia to lose billions of dollars in tourism revenue as a result of the fires.

The government over the weekend announced an A$76 million (US$52 million) recovery package to aid in the tourism recovery.

The number of travelers booking visits to Australia has fallen 10 to 20 percent since the fires began in September.

“This is one of the biggest, if not the biggest — I would say the biggest — challenge the tourism industry has had in living memory,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison said yesterday.

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title: Dust storms and giant hail batter Australia


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Migrants in Guatemala plan surge into Mexico

DESIRE FOR US:Some migrants took up an offer from Mexico of employment, although a refugee service worker warned that it might be ‘de facto detention’
A child jumps a puddle in the Suchiate River, which divides Guatemala and Mexico, in Tecun Uman, Guatemala, on Sunday.Photo: EPA
Denis Contreras, a Honduran making a second try at reaching the US, laid out the plan on Sunday night to his fellow migrants marooned in the Guatemalan border town of Tecun Uman: First the men will go, then the families and the women traveling alone with children.

More than 1,000 Central American migrants were preparing to again walk en masse early yesterday across a bridge leading to Mexico in an attempt to convince authorities there to allow them safe passage through the country.

It is a big ask. Over the weekend, Mexican troops slammed the welcome gate shut on the Rodolfo Robles bridge as hundreds of migrants pressed forward in an effort to force their way through. Mexican soldiers in riot gear pushed back against the green metal bars of the fence. Nobody was injured.

Contreras, the pint-sized Honduran leading yesterday’s charge, said he would not give up. He was already denied political asylum and deported from San Diego, California, but if he returns to Honduras, criminal gangs will kill him or his family, he said.

Around him, hundreds of migrants chanted: “Here we are and we’re not going anywhere, and if you throw us out, we’ll return!”

Mexico has stepped up efforts in recent months to prevent migrants from reaching their desired final destination — the US — under threat of trade and other sanctions from US President Donald Trump.

As these most recent caravans approached, Mexico sent soldiers to patrol its southern border and monitored the area with drones. Migrants sometimes travel via caravan for greater safety and, they hope, success in reaching the US.

Prior caravans have persuaded Mexican authorities to let them cross the southern border, either for humanitarian reasons or via brute force.

The Mexican government declared its efforts over the weekend a success, saying on Sunday that the migrants’ attempts to enter the country in a “disorderly fashion” were “fruitless.”

Maureen Meyer, director for Mexico and migrant rights at the Washington Office on Latin America, described the Mexican weekend response as a shift from the way the country handled previous caravans arriving at its doorsteps.

“The Mexican government has made clear they are not offering any visa that could be used to travel north and that anyone traveling without proper documentation will be detained, sending a strong signal to the Trump administration that the Mexican government is doing its part to ensure that the members of the caravan don’t reach the US border,” Meyer said.

Mexican officials extended a different welcome mat, of sorts, over the weekend, promising the migrants work and a chance to stay in the country — although the details were slim and many migrants feared they would instead be deported.

The offer of employment, and not just legal status or asylum, represented a new twist in Mexico’s efforts to find humane solutions to the mostly Central American migrants who are fleeing their home countries.

More than 1,000 migrants opted to give Mexico a try and were transported by van to immigration centers for further processing.

Claudia Leon, coordinator of the Jesuit Refugee Service in the town of Tapachula, described the roundups backed by vague promises of employment as “de facto detention” that could trample the rights of refugees.

It was unclear what sort of work Mexico had in mind for the migrants, considering that half the Mexican population is poor and millions are unemployed.

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DEFENSE TECH

BAE benefits from merger

British defense company BAE Systems PLC has snapped up more than US$2 billion in US defense-technology assets that Raytheon Inc. and United Technologies Corp were forced to sell in order to gain antitrust approval for their merger. BAE said it would pay US$1.925 billion in cash for the military global positioning system (GPS) belonging to United subsidiary Collins Aerospace. It is to acquire Raytheon’s airborne tactical radios business for US$275 million in cash. “These assets have come to market as part of the regulatory process relating to the merger,” BAE’s statement said. “It’s rare that two businesses of this quality, with such strong growth prospects and close fit to our portfolio, become available,” BAE chief executive Charles Woodburn said in the statement, adding that they would be folded into the group’s electronics-systems sector.

FRANCE

Strikes hurt economy

The current wave of strikes will hit the economy by 0.1 percentage points over the course of one quarter, Minister of the Economy and Finance Bruno Le Maire told LCI television yesterday. He also said he hoped to resolve a row with the US over a planned French digital tax by tomorrow night. Le Maire said he would meet his US counterparts at the Davos forum this week. France in July last year decided to apply a 3 percent levy on revenue from digital services earned by firms with revenues of more than 25 million euros (US$27.7 million) nationally and 750 million euros worldwide.

RETAIL

Best Buy CEO under probe

Best Buy Co said it is investigating chief executive officer Corie Barry’s personal conduct, a potential blow to the electronics retailer that comes eight years after a former CEO resigned amid a similar probe. The board received an anonymous letter with the allegations against Barry, the company said in a statement. Best Buy said it hired the law firm Sidley Austin LLP to conduct an independent review and encouraged “the letter’s author to come forward and be part of that confidential process.” Barry said in the statement that the board “has my full cooperation and support as it undertakes this review, and I look forward to its resolution in the near term.”

GREEN ENERGY

Total, Marubeni ink deal

French energy major Total SA and Japan’s Marubeni are to help build a solar park in Qatar, holding stakes of 19.6 percent and 20.4 percent respectively in Siraj 1 SPV, the consortium that won the emirate’s first solar tender. The consortium is to develop and operate the Al Kharsaah Solar PV IPP Project. Siraj Energy, a joint venture between Qatar Petroleum and Qatar Electricity & Water Co own the remaining 60 percent in the project. Marubeni yesterday said that a 25-year power purchase agreement for the photovoltaic farm’s output has been executed with Qatar utility.

TECHNOLOGY

TCL, Tianjin in talks

The Tianjin city government is in early talks to sell stakes in two of its listed technology firms to Chinese consumer electronics giant TCL Corp (集團), people familiar with the matter said. The discussions involved holdings in chip devices maker Tianjin Zhonghuan Semiconductor Co (天津中環半導體) and Tianjin Printronics Circuit Corp (天津普林電路), they said. The city and TCL are still exploring options including direct stake sales or having the TCL acquire control in the major shareholder of the two firms, the people said.

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title: World Business Quick Take


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Damaged trees are pictured on Taal Volcano island in Batangas, Philippines, yesterday.Photo: Reuters
Philippine authorities yesterday ordered a crackdown on evacuees’ daily visits to their homes in the danger zone around Taal volcano as scientists warned it could be “recharging” for a more powerful explosion.

More than 110,000 people have taken refuge in evacuation centers since Taal burst to life a week ago, but many hard-hit towns have let residents back for hours each day to fetch items, feed livestock and clean up their houses.

“We are directing DRRMCs [Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils] ... not to allow anyone to enter the danger zone,” Philippine Undersecretary for the Interior Epimaco Densing said.

“It’s dangerous, that’s why we have imposed a lockdown,” he told reporters.

The volcano shot ash 15km high in the Jan. 12 eruption, which crushed scores of homes and killed livestock as well as crops.

However, seismologists have warned the volcano could imminently unleash a much bigger eruption, posing a deadly risk to anyone in the 14km radius “danger zone” that surrounds it.

Continued earthquakes and an increase in the volcano’s emission of sulfur dioxide gas were possible indications of a “recharge” of magna, which would drive a major blast, a top scientist said.

“We consider these are signs that there’s a resupply of magma which could possibly ... cause an eruption that could be strong,” Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology Officer-in-Charge Renato Solidum told a local radio station.

Until experts deem the threat has passed, evacuees will need the shelters spread across about 400 sites that range from school campuses to covered basketball courts.

Conditions vary between sites, but several evacuees said they were getting food and a place to sleep, but that bathrooms were in high demand.

“It’s really difficult to take a bath or use the toilet because of the sheer numbers [of evacuees], but we can take it,” said Sonia Awitan, 55.

“What is important is we have a place to shelter and sleep in,” she added.

Authorities said they have so far been able to provide fundamental services to the evacuees, but are concerned about the longer term.

“We can handle the [current evacuee numbers]. The issue is how are we going to sustain resources over the longer term,” Alex Masiglat, spokesman for disaster relief in the ground zero Calabarzon region.

“Our concern is how are we going to sustain a long term evacuation period,” he added.

Alhough no people have been reported killed in the eruption, it has wrought havoc on agriculture and tourism.

Taal is set in the middle of a picturesque lake that is a popular draw for tourists, especially since it is just 60km south of the hot and crowded capital, Manila.

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title: Evacuation crackdown ordered as volcano recharges


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Taiwan last week wrapped up the first of its 5G spectrum auctions with bids totaling NT$138.08 billion (US$4.61 billion), making it the third-most expensive 5G spectrum in the world after Italy (US$5 billion) and Germany (US$4.7 billion).

The figure is more than four times the floor price of NT$30 billion set by the National Communications Commission and surpassed the NT$118.65 billion set in the 4G spectrum auctions in 2013.

The money is obviously a boon for the national coffers, but who else will benefit from the auctions?

The answer is: No one. At least not in the short term.

Fierce competition resulted in runaway bidding, as the nation’s five telecoms all wanted to have a piece of the 5G pie, due to its potential use in smart factories and homes, and autonomous vehicles. However, the telecoms’ executives have voiced concern that expensive 5G bandwidth outlays might have an adverse effect on 5G adoption.

“The government is being too clever this time,” Far EasTone Telecommunications chairman Douglas Hsu (徐旭東) told reporters.

Telecoms are facing the same question they did about six years ago when the government auctioned 4G bandwidth: How to recover their high spectrum and network deployment costs.

They face a heftier financial burden, as they are still struggling to eke out profits from 4G services, while dealing with hefty 4G license fees and equipment amortization costs.

Consequently, the biggest three telecoms are reeling from constant declines in revenue and net profit. Chunghwa Telecom, the nation’s biggest telecom, last year missed its financial forecast for the second year in a row due to price competition and constant declines in voice revenue.

It saw net profit shrink 13 percent year-on-year to NT$32.81 billion, missing its target of NT$34.11 billion to NT$35.68 billion.

Taiwanese would not benefit from 5G services if subscription rates begin at NT$2,000 per month.

In May 2018, people formed long lines outside telecom stores for NT$499 monthly data plans and have become accustomed to paying less for high data usage amid cutthroat competition.

Chunghwa Telecom has been mum about its pricing strategy.

“We will offer diverse rates to satisfy subscribers’ needs,” company president Harrison Kuo (郭水義) told a media briefing last week. “The pricing mechanism will be different from 4G.”

However, people might be reluctant to subscribe to the 5G service due to its limited “must-have” applications — for most, 4G service is satisfactory.

Most telecoms have said they are looking for a suitable and profitable business model for 5G services and that 5G technology might turn out to be more useful for corporations than the average consumer.

These factors are likely to stall the adoption of 5G technology and prolong the recovery period for telecoms.

Taiwan can learn from the US Federal Communications Commission, which set up a multibillion-dollar fund to assist in the introduction of 5G technology in rural areas. This reduced 5G network deployment costs for telecoms and accelerated the uptake of 5G technology in the US. Taiwan would do well to follow this example.

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title: EDITORIAL: 5G could prove costly for everyone


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Climate refugees cannot be returned home: UN

THREAT TO LIFE:Experts said the UN human rights committee’s judgement is a legal ‘tipping point’ that opens the door to climate crisis claims for protection
It is unlawful for governments to return people to countries where their lives might be threatened by the climate crisis, a landmark ruling by the UN human rights committee said.

The judgement — the first of its kind — represents a legal “tipping point” and a moment that “opens the doorway” to future protection claims for people whose lives and wellbeing have been threatened due to global heating, experts said.

Tens of millions of people are expected to be displaced by global heating in the next decade.

The judgement relates to the case of Ioane Teitiota, a man from the Pacific nation of Kiribati, which is considered one of the countries most threatened by rising sea levels. He applied for protection in New Zealand in 2013, claiming his and his family’s lives were at risk.

The committee heard evidence of overcrowding on the island of South Tarawa, where Teitiota lived, saying that the population there had increased from 1,641 in 1947 to 50,000 in 2010 due to rising sea levels leading to other islands becoming uninhabitable, which had led to violence and social tensions.

He also spoke of the lack of fresh water and difficulty growing crops due to salinity of the water table, causing serious health issues for his family.

He said that as Kiribati was predicted to be uninhabitable in 10 to 15 years, his life was endangered by remaining there.

The New Zealand courts rejected Teitiota’s claim for protection.

The UN human rights committee upheld New Zealand’s decision on the grounds that while “sea level rise is likely to render the republic of Kiribati uninhabitable … the timeframe of 10 to 15 years, as suggested by [Teitiota], could allow for intervening acts by the republic of Kiribati, with the assistance of the international community, to take affirmative measures to protect and, where necessary, relocate its population.”

However, experts say the committee’s ruling opens the way for other claims based on the threat to life posed by the climate crisis.

The committee ruled that “the effects of climate change in receiving states may expose individuals to a violation of their rights … thereby triggering the non-refoulement obligations of sending states.”

“On a personal level for Ioane and his family it is bad news, because obviously it’s decided that his claim that his right to life was threatened in Kiribati wasn’t strong enough,” said Kate Schuetze, Pacific researcher for Amnesty International. “But they said it wasn’t strong enough based on his personal circumstances and the evidence they put before the court and then they made some very strong statements clarifying the roles and responsibilities of states to say … there would be a trigger of international responsibility for other governments not to return people to places where their life is at risk because of climate-induced changes.”

While the judgement is not formally binding on countries, it points to legal obligations that countries have under international law.

“What’s really important here, and why it’s quite a landmark case, is that the committee recognized that without robust action on climate at some point in the future it could well be that governments will, under international human rights law, be prohibited from sending people to places where their life is at risk or where they would face inhuman or degrading treatment,” said Jane McAdam, director of the Kaldor center for international refugee law at the University of New South Wales.

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