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taiwan-subdivisions: 成功 彌陀 復興

title: 三立電視深耕超過30年 公布明年推動影視內容升級與永續發展

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墨新聞｜記者梁偉華／台北報導

三立董事長張榮華(左) 三立總經理高明慧(右)舉辦2025內容創新發布會 照片提供：三立電視

三立電視深耕影視內容超過30年，意即三立電視陪伴台灣觀眾度過台灣電視史上超過一半的時光。而一路以來，三立堅持製作跨世代、跨平台、跨國界的多元內容，這些作品不僅是台灣文化的重要篇章，更是你我共同的記憶。隨著時代演進，三立持續讓家喻戶曉的經典節目再創新、也勇於挑戰新題材，開拓新商模，打造更多優質的台灣IP走向國際，成為台灣內容的代表品牌。

今（3）日三立電視舉辦「2025三立集團內容創新發布會」，正式公布明年度重點節目計畫，展現三立持續以內容創新為核心、以科技整合為驅動的全方位佈局。現場貴賓雲集，出席嘉賓包括文化部長官、海內外各電視台主管、OTT平台高層、廣告客戶與科技業代表等，共同見證台灣影視產業邁向新階段的關鍵時刻。本次發布內容涵蓋新聞、綜藝與戲劇三大領域，新聞台將推出「鍍晶的心臟-AI之島」紀錄片。綜藝類包括全台的嘻哈選秀節目《大嘻哈時代3》、首檔跨國辦桌實境節目《請世界吃桌》。戲劇方面則將拍攝浪漫奇幻愛情劇《佛系使者–阿夜》、溫馨家庭長劇《愛鄰洗衣店》、女性成長勵志喜劇《我的媽媽欠栽培》等。製作人賈永婕與合作藝人，包括隋棠、陳隨意、美食YouTuber 千千；姚以緹、柯叔元、曹佑寧、任容萱、禾羽；鍾欣凌、黃嘉千、劉香慈等都親臨發表會現場。

2025三立集團內容創新發布會、正式公布明年度重點節目計畫 照片提供：三立電視

三立電視總經理高明慧於致詞中指出，今天這場「創新內容發佈會」，不僅是成果的分享，更是一場「共創未來的邀請」。未來三立將持續以「內容創新」、「科技創新」「治理創新」，推動影視內容升級與永續發展，期許台灣的軟實力，能與同業夥伴匯聚成「TEAM TAIWAN」影視隊，讓內容成為國力，攜手走向國際。高明慧更指出，三立是台灣人的電視台，初心不變，未來更會朝向以內容為核心的科技公司努力，秉持「OPEN SANLIH」開放與創新的精神，誠摯邀請各界跨界合作、共推永續，攜手打造完整的文化內容生態鏈。

三立新聞近年拍攝了許多深度的報導與紀錄片，不僅榮獲各大新聞獎的肯定，今年更在金鐘獎上大有斬獲。繼亞洲貓科大復興獲得自然科學紀實節目獎的肯定後，即將又有新的紀錄片作品包括歷經兩年拍攝，我們選擇走在掌聲之前，跟著中華隊羽球選手，征戰10國、18座城市紀錄片《奪牌之路：誰羽爭鋒》，另一則是一部深入AI產業核心的紀錄片《鍍晶的心臟—AI之島》。

大嘻哈時代阿跨面(左起)三立總監曾琴、比杰 照片提供：三立電視

綜藝方面，全台最具指標性的嘻哈選秀節目《大嘻哈時代》強勢回歸！該節目自第一、二季播出以來掀起「台饒旋風」，不僅讓嘻哈文化正式出圈，更成功引領年輕世代的音樂潮流，成為台灣最具代表性的音樂品牌之一。節目累積挖掘眾多饒舌新血，打造出多位具有市場號召力的新世代饒舌歌手。前兩季在YouTube累積超過20億次曝光，更連續兩屆榮獲金鐘獎五項大獎肯定，而《大嘻哈時代3》即將重棒回歸，全新賽制、內容再升級。當天第二季學長總冠軍阿跨面及最具討論度的比杰也代表出席，並帶來精采炸場的表演。另一備受矚目的跨國實境節目《請世界吃桌》，由賈永婕擔任製作人，節目不只是美食旅遊節目，更是一場跨越文化與語言的「味覺外交行動」。主持與嘉賓陣容華麗，包括隋棠、藍正龍、浩子、陳隨意以及美食YouTuber千千等人組成「辦桌台灣隊」，預計明年一月開拍，將橫跨半個地球，在澳洲雪梨歌劇院、日本熊本城、美國紐約時報廣場等全球知名地標前挑戰「辦桌」創舉，把最具人情味的台灣辦桌文化，帶上世界舞台。

賈永婕笑說：「當初想這個案子的時候，我只是因為愛做菜成為主持人人選，沒想到案子越寫越大，從台灣辦桌變成世界級，我也變成賈董，辦桌的壓軸地點還選在101！」她透露，節目製作成本難以估計，自己「無償擔任製作人」，還親自奔走拉贊助，「希望企業能和台灣美食結合，一起讓世界看到台灣。」談到料理趣事，她笑說在露營時邊喝酒邊煎牛排，結果鹹到爆，「我做菜都憑感覺，蒸魚像在擲筊！」但老公一吃就能精準說出「多蒸6秒」，讓她又好氣又好笑。她也透露，兩個女兒雖在國外，但現在會傳食物照給她，看來廚藝遺傳成功。

綜藝節目【請世界吃桌】陳隨意(左起)隋棠、賈永婕、千千 照片提供：三立電視

隋棠說：「能把文化推廣出去很棒，我從小對辦桌文化就有感情。小時候長輩生日都會辦桌，長大後這樣的場合變少了。」她笑說自己一直想爭取下廚，但大家好像不太信任她的廚藝，賈永婕還補刀說：「美女通常廚藝都不好。」隋棠則幽默回應，希望藉節目「好好練廚藝」。她回憶以前長期在國外讀書時，最想念台灣的小吃是花枝羹與蚵仔麵線，聊到廚藝她笑說平時家人和小孩喜好吃原型食物，所以我煮得都很簡單，小孩也吃得跟一般小孩不太一樣。

台語歌手陳隨意笑說：「我其實是辦桌廚師出身，因為小時候家裡窮，當廚師可以先試吃，這樣做到現在三十幾年。」他透露團膳現在不好做，錢賺不多所以當歌手賺錢，但這次在節目裡能重拾鍋鏟讓他很開心，「我們五個人不只要幫忙煮菜，還要表演給台下吃桌的人看，我負責唱〈愛拚才會贏〉沒問題！」

出席內容創新發布會藝人姚以緹、劉香慈、黃嘉千、鍾欣凌、柯叔元、曹佑寧、任容萱、禾羽照片提供：三立電視吃播網紅千千這次終於正式踏入綜藝節目，愛吃的她表示：「我真的很開心能接到這節目，但表演主菜我不太行，製作組也很頭痛要把我放哪裡。」但她仍積極準備，還特地去學日文，希望在海外能更融入外國文化與嘉賓互動。陳隨意也笑自己要好好練英文才能跟外國人溝通，還誇張說千千「吃功了得」，保證「我們這組不會有廚餘問題」。

戲劇方面，三立電視將推出三部風格迥異、題材創新的重磅劇集，展現內容製作的多元創作。《佛系使者–阿夜》是一齣浪漫奇幻愛情大戲，故事圍繞「孤寂死神與人類少女」的命運交會，將擦出什麼樣的火花？本劇由《模仿犯》金獎導演張享如執導，演員陣容包括姚以緹、胡宇威等實力派卡司，打造出唯美與深情兼具的超現實愛情，而胡宇威也將首次挑戰大魔王一角，姚以緹則飾演活了五百年的九尾狐。第二部作品《愛鄰洗衣店》則是一部60集溫馨家庭好戲，故事將時空拉回到90年代的台灣，《愛鄰洗衣店》見證了台灣經濟變化，也串起了鄰里間的人情味。本劇由曾打造《用九柑仔店》、《未來媽媽》等口碑之作的金獎團隊再度操刀，演員包括柯叔元、周幼婷、曹佑寧、任容萱與禾羽等，共同詮釋跨越時代的人情與愛。

姚以緹代表《佛系使者－阿夜》出席 照片提供：三立電視

壓軸登場的《我的媽媽欠栽培》則由《花甲男孩轉大人》原著作家楊富閔最新文學改編，並獲得文化部3500萬製作補助，是一部屬於全天下媽媽們的勵志喜戲！劇中以五位媽媽為主角，講述她們為家庭犧牲、放棄理想後的人生逆襲，那些看似平凡的母親，其實都是「我們的媽媽都曾經是天才少女，她們只是欠．栽．培。」由《犀利人妻》導演徐輔軍執導，主要演員包括鍾欣凌、黃嘉千、劉香慈等，以幽默筆觸描繪現代女性的成長、勇氣與自我重生。

鍾欣凌笑說十多年前與劉香慈合作節目時，對她印象深刻：「香慈是一個很可愛、一心向佛的小女生，嘴邊常念『阿彌陀佛』，還會幫動物迴向祝福。」她更回憶生日當天收到劉香慈送的精美佛經，相當感動。劉香慈則透露，這是她睽違五年多重返戲劇圈，過去幾年雖有邀約，但一直在等待真正適合的角色，「當看到《我的媽媽欠栽培》的企劃案，連劇本都還沒看完就立刻答應！」黃嘉千則幽默表示自己也是「欠栽培」一員，笑說：「如果沒進演藝圈，我應該會變成天才廚師！」她分享當媽媽後開始下廚，沒想到第一次就煮得很成功，從此開啟廚藝之路。鍾欣凌則透露自己小時候都會在房間自己唱歌跳舞，大玩五個燈的梗，她毫不客氣地說：「要是沒有當演員，就會是唱跳歌手了！」

出席內容創新發布會藝人姚以緹(左起)劉香慈、鍾欣凌、隋棠、黃嘉千、賈永婕、柯叔元、任容萱、禾羽、曹佑寧、陳隨意、千千 照片提供：三立電視

而柯叔元在60集長劇《愛鄰洗衣店》中與周幼婷睽違十多年再度合作，他開心地說：「以前大多演反派，沒機會湊對，這次終於能跟她演夫妻！」同時也笑說久違重返三立拍戲格外感慨。曹佑寧繼《華麗計程車行》後，再度面臨台語考驗：「這次還是要多練習，特別是比較接地氣的台語。」他也坦言這是自己首次接手20集以上的長劇，期待又緊張。任容萱這回挑戰以台語演出，並首度詮釋反派角色，她笑說：「我和曹佑寧一樣，出道第一部戲的導演就是阿福導演（《終極三國》），很懷念也很期待！這次第一次講台語演戲，又演反派，真的很新鮮，也希望到時候台語不要NG就好。」來自富邦啦啦隊的禾羽之前有演過《戲說台灣》，這次再挑戰戲劇，她開心表示：「從小跟阿嬤一起長大，台語很自然，而且我從小看台八長大，偶像就是曾莞婷！」這次演戲有事先跟球團協調時間，她透露會上更多表演課精進自己。

至於姚以緹代表《佛系使者－阿夜》出席記者會，她在劇中飾演「九尾狐」，她談到角色時笑說：「因為演了不少鬼戲，還有鬼后的稱號，我也很好奇劇本會多奇幻。」她透露劇組劇本仍在發展中、預計明年四月開拍，她也好奇九尾狐的動畫特效會如何呈現，也開心能再與胡宇威合作。

此篇文章最開始出處為: 三立電視深耕超過30年 公布明年推動影視內容升級與永續發展


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圖:獨立樂團創作大賞演出者大合照。(圖/阿里山管理處)

(記者張耀元報導)

交通部觀光署阿里山國家風景區管理處（下稱阿里山管理處）於11月1日至2日在鄒族逐鹿文創園區盛大舉辦「阿里山muni音樂季」，以原住民族音樂與文化為核心，打造融合傳統與創新的觀光盛事。今年活動延續去年熱烈迴響，吸引全台各地原住民創作樂團齊聚，為阿里山山腳下注入滿滿原音能量。

阿里山管理處處長黃怡平表示，「muni」一詞源自鄒語，意為「發出聲音」。這個字不僅代表音樂的展現，更象徵原住民族與自然、土地之間的連結。阿里山的文化就像「muni」一樣，是從山林與族人心中發出的聲音。希望透過音樂，讓更多人聽見原民的故事，感受文化的脈動，也讓觀光更有深度與靈魂。

圖:情歌王子-范逸臣熱情地與民眾互動。(圖/阿里山管理處)

「muni音樂季」首日（11月1日）舉辦「獨立樂團創作大賞」決賽，今年共有多組原民創作樂團脫穎而出，展現強勁的創作能量。經由專業評審團—劉允墨老師、Cemelesai徹摩老師與馬詠恩老師—綜合評比後，最終由阿美族「風的孩子」勇奪本屆muni大賞獎及15萬元獎金；布農族「TAU」獲得評審團大獎與10萬元獎金；太魯閣族「Lawa 吳采蓁」則榮獲嘹亮之星獎與5萬元獎金。評審團表示，今年參賽團隊表現亮眼，展現台灣原民音樂的創作能量與國際潛力。

圖:鐵肺歌后-戴愛玲。(圖/阿里山管理處)

活動第二日（11月2日）以「原住民族打擊樂」為主題，透過擊樂、歌謠、舞蹈與神話故事的交織，呈現最震撼的視聽盛宴。由國際鼓樂大賽冠軍「羽．擊舞藝術」震撼開場，並邀集多組原民樂舞團隊接力演出。特別的是，「逐鹿表演藝術團」與「Resonance留聲樂團」跨界合作，以阿卡貝拉人聲融入鄒族舞蹈節奏，帶來融合傳統與現代的全新體驗。壓軸由「情歌王子」范逸臣(上午場)與「鐵肺歌后」戴愛玲(下午場)熱情演出，將氣氛推向最高潮。

圖:祖韻文化樂舞團演出。(圖/阿里山管理處)

除了音樂演出，現場也設有「muni美學市集」、「鄒文化DIY體驗」與「烤雞分享宴」等活動，讓遊客在歌聲與香氣中體驗鄒族文化的溫度與熱情。阿里山管理處表示，未來將持續以「文化+觀光」為推動方向，透過音樂、藝術與在地故事，讓更多人「聽見muni、看見阿里山」，用阿里山的旅程體驗原民文化的深度與美好。

圖:跨部落合作-逐鹿表演藝術團與Resonance留聲樂團。 (圖/阿里山管理處)

title: 阿里山「muni音樂季」原音響山林    以文化律動開啟阿里山新篇章


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實習記者藍郁淳／新北報導

新北粉紅超跑白沙屯媽祖遶境活動，在10月31日至11月2日舉行，為祈求國泰民安、風調雨順，年度盛事，由北辰宮主辦的繞境活動，今年難得特別規劃為期三天的巡安行程，行經新北土城、板橋等地區，信眾們隨香祈福，排隊鑽轎腳，共同感受媽祖慈悲護佑的信仰力量。

▲白沙屯媽祖遶境畫面。（圖/藍郁淳提供)這場活動在北辰宮舉行「起駕大典」，由主委吳美秀率領眾信徒恭請媽祖出巡，現場鼓聲與鞭炮聲齊鳴，氣氛莊嚴熱烈。第二天巡經社區，進行「駐駕祈安」儀式，讓地方民眾參拜祈福。最後一天返回北辰宮舉行「安座大典」，為活動劃下圓滿句點。此外，此次活動主辦方也同步推出線上直播服務，讓無法親臨現場的信眾也能透過網路參與遶境。

taiwan-subdivisions: 新北 土城 白沙 板橋

title: 影音/粉紅超跑來了 媽祖駕到吸引信眾前來新北祈福平安


title: /稿件撤銷 — YY Group Holding Limited/

content_text: 請注意， YY Group Holding Limited 通過美通社發佈的《YY Group與全球茶飲巨頭霸王茶姬達成合作協議》新聞稿件（發佈時間： 29-Oct-2025），請新聞媒體和讀者予以忽略。


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‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action   By Chen Yu-fu and Esme Yeh / Staff reporter, with staff writer and CNA

US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.”

Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea.

“He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview.

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping talk as they leave a bilateral meeting at Gimhae International Airport, on the sidelines of the APEC summit, in Busan, South Korea, on Thursday. Photo: Reuters

However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in the event that China takes military action against Taiwan.

“I don’t want to give it away — I can’t give away my secrets,” Trump said. “I don’t want to be one of these guys that tells you exactly what’s gonna happen if something happens.”

The subject of Taiwan was not discussed during his meeting with Xi on Thursday last week in South Korea, Trump said.

“People were a little surprised at that,” Trump said in the 60 Minutes interview. “He [Xi] never brought it up, because he understands it, and he understands it very well. Taiwan is a very interesting case. It’s 69 miles [111km] away from China. We’re 9,500 miles away. But that doesn’t matter. He understands what will happen.”

Hung Pu-chao (洪浦釗), deputy director of the Center for Mainland China and Regional Development Research at Tunghai University, told a forum in Taipei that Trump’s remarks were consistent with his political style, adding that his claim that Xi promised not to take military action against Taiwan during his presidency was typical Trump-style political language.

Trump sought to establish a powerful image of him that conveyed “China would not attack Taiwan by force as long as I am here,” Hung said.

The language sets an order where he plays the leading role in the Asia-Pacific situation, not only displaying his authority, but also strengthening the discourse that the US is “a stabilizing force,” he said.

Taking Taiwan by force remains the worst strategy from China’s perspective, as Chinese leaders invariably valued strategic focus, Hung said.

The most effective strategy against Taiwan is “to win without war,” meaning to trade time for space and to amass leverage over Taiwan with more pressure, he said.

China is more likely to use multiple approaches — including politics, economics, legislation and public opinion — to create a sense of “isolation and constraint” in Taiwan, undermining Taiwan’s diplomatic space and social resilience without waging a war, Hung said.

For Taiwan, the most important thing is not what Trump said or Xi promised, but to prevent itself from being used as a bargaining chip in US-China negotiations, he said.

Institute for National Policy Research executive director Wang Hung-jen (王宏仁) said the most economical strategy for China is to take Taiwan via agreements.

Xi did not mention giving up on forcefully annexing Taiwan, particularly when he talked about “Taiwanese independence forces” or external forces, Wang said.

As long as China’s ambition to “unify with” Taiwan does not change, it would be impossible for China to get rid of the idea of using military force against Taiwan and Xi would continue with his policy, he said.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) does not know whether Trump’s successor would be more supportive of Taiwan and would adjust its attitude depending on the future situation, he said, adding that what is sure is that the CCP would not abandon “unification by force.”

China would probably be more prudent during Trump’s terms simply because the cost would be too big, he added.

Beijing has failed in handling its economy and relations with Washington, and corruption in the Chinese People’s Liberation Army and national security issues have compounded its problems, Wang said.

Under such circumstances, Xi would be putting his personal power and status in the CCP at a greater risk were he to arbitrarily attack Taiwan by force, he said.

“He could be overthrown,” Wang added.

title: China will not attack Taiwan: Trump


people: 羅美玲 王定宇 顧立雄

title: US delivery of glide bombs delayed to 2028

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F-16 JETS: Delivery of 66 US-made fighter planes has also been delayed, but the plane maker now has two shifts working 20 hours a day to accelerate output

US delivery of AGM-154C Joint Standoff Weapons (JSOW) would be delayed to 2027-2028, as Taiwan opted for the new Block 3 version that requires restarting production lines and system integration, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday.

The Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee invited the ministry to deliver a briefing on arms procurement delays, including F-16V Block 70 jets, AGM-154C JSOW and Mark 48 heavy torpedoes.

The AMG-154C glide bombs were originally scheduled to be delivered this and next year, but procuring the latest version of the weapons requires restarting production lines, sourcing materials and system integration, so delivery has been reset for 2027-2028, the ministry said.

Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo speaks at a meeting at the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee in Taipei yesterday.

Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said that the air force has required these bombs for a long time, and pilots told him they have been waiting for them when he visited the front lines.

As the delay is related to procuring the latest model of the bombs, Wang asked whether future purchases would also include older models.

Department of Strategic Planning Director Lieutenant General Huang Wen-chi (黃文?) said that the military is procuring AMG-154C Block 3 bombs, which are a generation ahead of what the US is currently using.

Air force Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Lee Ching-jan (李慶然) said that according to meetings with the US, full delivery is scheduled for 2027-2028.

Meanwhile, US delivery of Taiwan’s order of 66 F-16V Block 70 jets has been delayed due to production problems, but some of them might be delivered on time next year, Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said.

All 66 aircraft were originally scheduled to be delivered by the end of next year.

Fifty of the Lockheed Martin jets are already on the production line, and by the end of this year, 10 of the multirole jets are expected to roll off the assembly line, after which they are to undergo test flights before being delivered to Taiwan, Koo said in response to questions by DPP Legislator Loh Mei-ling (羅美玲).

“We want the public to know that this does not mean there is no progress,” Koo said. “The work is moving ahead at full speed, with two shifts working 20 hours a day.”

“If the tests go well, I think we can expect some of the F-16Vs to be delivered next year,” he added.

Lee said that Taiwan must send personnel to the US to inspect and take delivery of the jets, after which a contingent would stay there to undergo training on the aircraft before flying back to Taiwan..

Pressed by Huang on whether the US might deliver only one F-16V next year, Lee said it would be “more than that,” citing the latest US report on the matter.


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By Tsai Yun-jung and Sam Garcia / Staff reporter, with staff writer

Draft legislation to classify high temperatures as hazardous weather, and allow local governments to suspend school and work on extremely hot days, is expected to be announced later this month, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday.

The agency attended a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Transportation Committee to discuss the proposed amendment to the Meteorological Act (氣象法). Legislators have also proposed a version that classifies high temperatures as hazardous weather.

The Executive Yuan has yet to propose its version, as the CWA needs to submit a final version to the Ministry of Transportation and Communications before it is sent to the Cabinet.

Central Weather Administration Administrator Lu Kuo-cheng speaks at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee in Taipei yesterday. Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times

The agency is working on a new draft, after the ministry sent the first one back for revisions.

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said that if the bill cannot be proposed this legislative session, guidelines must be established for next summer.

CWA Administrator Lu Kuo-cheng (呂國臣) said that Taiwan’s temperatures have continued to rise, with Yushan (玉山) posting record highs this year and Taipei having more than 70 days hotter than 35°C.

Work and school need not be suspended for the full day on extremely hot days, Lu said.

Standards for suspension could vary, as indoor and outdoor workers, as well as farmers and students have different needs, he said.

The agency also suggested that tropical depressions be classified as hazardous weather, as they have caused disasters over the past few years, such as severe flooding in southern Taiwan on Aug. 23, 2018.

Legislators suggested that typhoon days be decided uniformly by the CWA, taking the pressure of decisionmaking off local governments, as it is largely based on CWA data.

Typhoon days used to be determined by the central government, but are now decided by city and county governments.

Typhoon days are not based solely on wind and rainfall forecasts, Lu said.

Several factors, such as living conditions, water, electricity and environment must also be considered, Lu said..

title: CWA working on bill for ‘holidays’ during hot weather


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Cabinet reviewing a proposal to expand migrant helper eligibility

The Executive Yuan is still reviewing a proposal to expand eligibility for one-child families to hire foreign domestic helpers and is expected to announce details of the policy and related support measures as soon as the end of the year, an official said today.

In September, President William Lai (賴清德) pledged to allow all families with one child under age 12 to apply to hire foreign domestic helpers.

The current regulations state that families with three children under six, or four children of whom two are under six, can apply.

Under the Employment Service Act (就業服務法), families who hire foreign domestic helpers must pay an employment stabilization fee of NT$5,000 per month.

The Cabinet is considering raising to NT$8,000 under the new policy to control demand and ensure adequate helpers are available.

To hire foreign domestic caregivers to care for the sick and the elderly, families must pay an employment stabilization fee of NT$2,000 per month.

The Cabinet first finalized plans to allow the hospitality sector and ports to hire intermediate-skilled migrant workers, provided they increase the monthly salary of their lowest-paid domestic worker by NT$2,000 for every foreign hire, starting next year.

The policy was announced on Thursday last week, without including any details of the upcoming changes to the foreign domestic helper policy.

As Lai’s proposal is more complicated, officials today said that the government wishes to first complete consultations before announcing any details.

As Lai’s proposal attracted criticism, the Ministry of Labor, Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Cabinet have been in discussions with various organizations and held multiple meetings to explore policy directions, the unnamed official said.

There are currently 850,000 migrant workers in Taiwan, of whom 220,000 held social welfare-related jobs, with 2,000 hired as domestic helpers, labor ministry statistics showed.

Most of the remaining 218,000 are employed as domestic caregivers caring for the sick and elderly.

The new policy must not undermine Taiwan’s long-term childcare support system and should be categorized as a labor policy, not a social welfare policy, the official said.

It must also ensure that adequate helpers are available for children with rare diseases who are most in need and may be disadvantaged by the new policy, they said.

Other issues under review include whether stay-at-home parents could also apply, or whether families must first prove that both parents are working full-time, and whether grandparents or elderly family members in the home would affect eligibility, they added.


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Afghanistan quake kills at least 20, injures hundreds

A powerful magnitude 6.3 earthquake yesterday shook northern Afghanistan before dawn, killing at least 20 people and injuring more than 500 others, a health official said, adding that the numbers could increase.

The US Geological Survey said the quake’s epicenter was 22km west-southwest of the town of Khulm, and that it struck at 12:59am at a depth of 28km.

Sharafat Zaman, a spokesperson for the Afghan Ministry of Public Health, said 534 injured people and 20 bodies had been brought to hospitals in Balkh and Samangan provinces.

A resident stands among the debris and ruins in her doorway following an earthquake in Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan, yesterday.  Photo: EPA

Rescuers were on the scene and the figures were changing, he added.

In the nearby province of Badakhshan, the quake partially or completely destroyed 800 houses in one village in the Shahr-e-Bozorg district, said Ihsanullah Kamgar, spokesperson for the provincial police headquarters.

However, given a lack of Internet in the remote area, there were still no accurate casualty figures, he added.

Yousaf Hammad, a spokesman for Afghanistan’s disaster management agency, said most of the injured suffered minor wounds and were discharged after treatment.

In the Afghan capital of Kabul, the Ministry of Defense announced that rescue and emergency teams had reached the quake areas in Balkh and Samangan, which suffered the most damage, were transporting the injured and assisting others.

The Taliban government’s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, posted on X that the earthquake caused casualties and financial loss.

He said government organizations were working to get needed help.

Afghan officials said the earthquake was also felt in Mazar-e-Sharif, the capital of northern Balkh province, where footage on social media showed damage to the historic Blue Mosque. Several bricks had fallen from the walls, but the mosque remained intact. The centuries-old site is one of Afghanistan’s most revered religious landmarks and a major gathering place during Islamic and cultural festivals.

The quake was felt in Kabul and several other provinces. The Afghan Ministry of Defense said that a rockslide briefly blocked a main mountain highway linking Kabul with Mazar-e-Sharif, but the road was later reopened. It said some people who were injured and trapped along the highway were transported to the hospital.

The UN in Afghanistan said on X that the temblor came just weeks after a deadly earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan.

The UN said its teams were on the ground assessing needs and delivering urgent aid.

A magnitude 6.0 earthquake hit eastern Afghanistan on Aug. 31 near the border with Pakistan, killing more than 2,200 people. On Oct. 7, 2023, a magnitude 6.3 quake followed by strong aftershocks left at least 4,000 people dead, the Taliban government said.


title: Trump does not rule out military option in Nigeria

content_text:
US President Donald Trump has repeated his threat of a military operation in Nigeria over “killings of Christians,” and that it could be ground or air attacks.

As claims of Christian “persecution” in Africa’s most populous country have found traction online among the US and European right, experts say Nigeria’s myriad conflicts kill both Christians and Muslims without distinction.

Trump’s remarks came after the Nigerian presidency suggested a meeting between the two leaders to resolve the issue.

A woman prays after attending a Mass at the Church of the Assumption in Lagos on April 21.  Photo: AFP

Asked by an Agence France-Presse reporter aboard Air Force One if he was considering US troops on the ground in Nigeria or airstrikes, Trump replied: “Could be, I mean, a lot of things — I envisage a lot of things.”

“They’re killing the Christians and killing them in very large numbers. We’re not going to allow that to happen,” he said on Sunday.

Nigeria’s government denies that Christians are especially targeted.

In an explosive post on his Truth Social platform on Saturday, Trump said that he asked the Pentagon to map out a possible plan of attack in Nigeria, one day after warning that Christianity was “facing an existential threat” in the west African nation.

In his post, Trump said that if Nigeria does not stem the killings, the United States would attack and “it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians.”

Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s spokesman Daniel Bwala told AFP on Sunday that “Nigeria is US’s partner in the global fight against terrorism. When leaders meet there would be better outcomes.”

“Nigeria welcomes US support to fight terrorism as long as it respects our territorial integrity,” he said.

“We know that Donald Trump has his own style of communication,” he said, suggesting the post was a way to “force a sit-down between the two leaders so they can iron out a common front to fight their insecurity.”

Earlier, Bwala had suggested in a post on X that the two leaders could meet soon.

“As for the differences as to whether terrorists in Nigeria target only Christians or in fact all faiths and no faiths, the differences if they exist, would be discussed and resolved by the two leaders when they meet in the coming days, either in State House or White House,” he said.

Bwala, who was speaking on the phone from Washington, declined to disclose details of any potential meeting.

Trump posted on Friday, without evidence, that “thousands of Christians are being killed [and] Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter.”

Nigeria faces a jihadist conflict in its northeast, “bandit” gangs in the northwest and deadly farmer-herder conflicts in its central states.

“Christians are being killed, we can’t deny the fact that Muslims are [also] being killed,” said Danjuma Dickson Auta, 56, a Christian and community leader in Plateau state.

The central state has for years suffered deadly clashes between mostly Christian farmers and Muslim herders over dwindling land, as well as attacks from armed criminals.

Speaking from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state — the epicenter of Islamist militancy in Nigeria — Abubakar Gamandi, a Muslim who heads a fishermen’s union, told AFP that “even those who sold this narrative of Christian genocide know it is not true.”


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INCENTIVE: The CDC aimed to increase the vaccination fee for young children to NT$200 and NT$150 for everyone else at the urging of the medical community

The Taipei City Department of Health yesterday said it would offer an additional NT$100 (US$3.24) bonus for administering any dose of publicly funded routine immunization vaccines to children aged six or younger whose household registration is in Taipei.

The bonus comes as the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) seeks to increase the fee amid pressure from clinics and doctors.

The CDC in June said that medical professionals have been calling for the vaccination treatment fee to be increased, after it fell back to NT$100 following the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The centers said that the then-Central Epidemic Command Center offered an additional NT$100 bonus to the base NT$100 fee to encourage clinics to offer vaccinations during the pandemic, but the fee returned to its original level after the command center disbanded.

CDC Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) last month said the Cabinet agreed to increase the vaccination budget, which, if passed by the legislature, would raise the vaccine administration fee to NT$200 for young children and NT$150 for everyone else.

The Taipei health department said its publicly funded routine immunization program includes nine types of vaccines, consisting of 19 doses, including 17 doses received up to age three.

The coverage rate of the publicly funded routine immunization for young children in Taipei reached 97.8 percent last year, but the department continues to encourage healthcare facilities to administer the vaccines, she said.

The department has allocated NT$19.6 million budget for the policy, which could take effect shortly after it is passed by the city council, she added.

Meanwhile, the department urged Taipei’s elderly residents to get vaccinated, as they are at higher risk of developing severe complications, possibly leading to death, from Streptococcus pneumoniae infection during autumn and winter.

Pneumonia steadily ranks third among the 10 leading causes of death among Taipei residents, it said, adding that 1,815 city residents died of pneumonia last year, and the standardized mortality rate has been rising annually.

S pneumoniae is a leading cause of pneumonia, and vaccination has been proven an effective method to reduce the risk of infection, as well as the risk of developing meningitis, sepsis or other severe complications, or death from infection, it added.

title: Taipei to offer clinics bonus to give vaccines


title: Two die while cleaning hot spring hotel in Taipei

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Two cleaners on Sunday died from suspected hydrogen sulfide poisoning at a hot spring hotel in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), authorities said.

The Taipei City Fire Department said it received a call at 10:49am about two workers who lost consciousness while cleaning a water storage tank at a hot spring hotel off Wenquan Road.

Upon arriving, firefighters found the workers — identified as a 54-year-old man surnamed Hsieh (謝) and a 42-year-old woman surnamed Yun (雲) — not breathing and without heartbeats, authorities said.

Firefighters in Taipei attempt to rescue two workers from a water storage tank at a hot spring hotel in Taipei’s Beitou District on Sunday. Photo: CNA

They were taken to a local hospital, where they were later pronounced dead, authorities said, adding that the exact cause of death had yet to be determined.

Local media reported that firefighters initially detected hydrogen sulfide inside the storage tank at a concentration of 200 parts per million (ppm), far higher than the 10ppm legal limit.

Firefighters set up equipment to ventilate and remove water from the tank, reducing the hydrogen sulfide concentration to about 85ppm, before descending into the tank to extricate the cleaners, who were taken to the hospital at 12:15pm, the reports said.

Hydrogen sulfide is a gas that gives sulfur springs their characteristic “rotten egg” smell.

It can cause loss of smell at a concentration of 100-150ppm and marked eye and respiratory irritation at 200-300ppm, while at a concentration of 500-700ppm, it can cause a person to collapse within five minutes and die within 30 to 60 minutes, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

The hotel where the incident occurred was not open to the public at the time, the Taipei City Labor Inspection Office said in a statement.

The hotel “conducted drainage” on the storage tank on Friday to allow the workers to clean silt from the inside on Sunday, a preliminary investigation showed.

The gas was likely released into the air as the cleaners were scrubbing the tank, the office said.

The hotel has been ordered not to resume cleaning the tank until the investigation is concluded.

Taipei hot spring operators, many of which are cleaning storage tanks in preparation for the winter, have been asked to enhance employee training for working in confined spaces, the labor office said.


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Cancer survivors start 10-day, 1,100km cycling trip

Fifty cancer survivors and members of their families on Sunday set off from Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taipei on a 10-day, 1,100km cycling journey around Taiwan.

The annual round-island ride, now in its 13th year, brought together participants aged 40 to 84, representing three generations of cancer survivors and their loved ones to show that people can lead active and meaningful lives after cancer.

At the flag-off ceremony, Taiwanese Anti-Cancer Association chairman Huang Wen-chieh (黃文傑) said that public education about cancer should begin with awareness and understanding.

A group of cancer survivors and their loved ones gather in front of Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taipei on Sunday before embarking on a 10-day cycling tour around Taiwan. Photo courtesy of Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taipei

The association provides resources and emotional support to people with cancer and their families, while promoting public engagement in cancer care, he said.

The recovery period after treatment is especially critical, Huang said.

Maintaining a balanced diet and regular exercise not only strengthens the body, but also improves mental health, helping survivors rediscover joy and hope, he said.

Mackay Memorial Hospital superintendent Chang Wen-han (張文瀚) praised the riders’ resilience, saying that their spirit demonstrates that true strength lies in pressing forward despite adversity.

More than 300 volunteers from across Taiwan are to join the cyclists at different legs of the 10-day journey, supporting their message of perseverance and hope.

Wu Hsing-chuan (吳興傳), a stage-three colorectal cancer survivor who launched the event in 2011, said he hopes all cancer survivors make exercise a part of daily life, adding that regular physical activity can help prevent cancer and reduce the need for medical visits.

Reflecting on his 16 years since cancer, Wu, a former running coach, said he believes exercise boosts immunity.


title: Wealth gap to fuel more populism, academic says

content_text:
DISPARITY: The gap between the richest 20% of households and the poorest 20% has widened fourfold since 1991, an issue the DPP cannot ignore, the expert said

The success of the semiconductor industry would widen Taiwan’s wealth gap, increasing populism and negative sentiment toward the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), an Academia Sinica academic said on Saturday.

Wu Jieh-min (吳介民), a distinguished research fellow at the academy’s Institute of Sociology, told a conference organized by the Koo Kwang-ming Foundation that he generally views the development of Taiwan’s semiconductor industry in positive terms.

However, the better Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) and the chip sector perform, the more there would be a “relatively poorer” group of people who “hate” the DPP, creating a “hotbed” for populism and provocateurs, he said.

Academia Sinica Institute of Sociology researcher Wu Jieh-min speaks at a forum in Taipei on March 16. Photo: CNA

“Voters want to oppose China ... but they need to have their basic needs met,” Wu said, adding that the DPP needs to make up its mind to address the wealth gap, or it would lose the 2028 national elections.

The richest 20 percent of households in Taiwan held 66.9 times more wealth than the bottom 20 percent as of the end of 2021, up fourfold from 16.8 times the wealth in 1991, the last time such a report was released, a report released last year by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics showed.

If TSMC and its peers are performing so well, why are Taiwan’s science parks “full of engineers who hate the DPP and support the Taiwan People’s Party?” Wu said.

The comments on wealth contrasted with the largely positive tone of his speech, in which he praised the government for shifting Taiwan’s economy away from China and toward the US, Japan and Europe.

Geopolitically, the country has also moved from the periphery to the “core” of the so-called global north, he added.

Wu downplayed the security risks of TSMC building more factories in the US, saying that it is more important to keep the company’s research and development headquarters in Hsinchu County and pursue a global layout that benefits Taiwan.

Increasing TSMC’s overseas chip production would ease pressures on Taiwan’s environment, power and water supply, and give Taiwan its first multinational corporation, he said.

DPP legislators Puma Shen (沈伯洋) and Fan Yun (范雲), and Taiwan Economic Democracy Union convener Lai Chung-chiang (賴中強) also attended the conference on “passing the generational baton and reassembling civic force.”


title: Ex-tenant named as suspect in deadly Taichung blaze

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Police yesterday named a 64-year-old former tenant as a suspect in a house fire in Taichung’s Wurih District (烏日) that left a 17-year-old and her 50-year-old mother dead.

Wurih Precinct Deputy Chief Hung Ming-chiang (洪明強) told a news conference that a van without license plates belonging to the suspect, surnamed Hsu (許), was found badly damaged by the fire at the scene.

The Taichung Fire Bureau said it received a report of the blaze at the two-story sheet-metal building on Wuguang Road at 2:15am yesterday morning.

Taichung Criminal Investigation Corps officers escort a suspect surnamed Hsu, center, who is believed to have started a fire that killed two people. Photo: CNA

Most of the flames and smoke were coming from the ground floor of the building, it said, adding that the fire was extinguished at 2:44am.

The mother and daughter were found on the upper floor of the building with no signs of life and transported to two different hospitals, the bureau said.

The mother, who had sustained second-degree burns to 80 percent of her body, was in critical condition at Chung Shan Medical University Hospital in Taichung, but later declared dead.

Her 17-year-old daughter sustained second-degree burns to 20 percent of her body and was later pronounced dead at Asia University Hospital, the bureau said.

Police said Hsu was a tenant of a property owned by the victims’ family for more than 20 years, but was served an eviction notice in July.

A member of the landlord’s family, who identified Hsu as a suspect to police, said he believed the family’s former tenant might have caused the fire because of the contentious nature of the eviction.

In addition, the landlord’s family was seeking damages from Hsu, whom they accused of sexually harassing the teenage victim, police said.

Hsu was located at 4:20am after his daughter contacted police to report that he had attempted suicide, police said.


content_text:
STALEMATE:  Nikkei Asia cited two sources saying that after China’s sanctions on Lithuania they are worried Estonia would find little support in such a situation

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said it is willing to have practical discussions with Estonia on improving bilateral relations and mutual understanding, after a news report said that Taiwan’s plan to open a de facto embassy in Estonia has been blocked for two years due to a disagreement over its name.

The report published by the Nikkei Asia yesterday, titled “Taiwan’s plan to set up mission in Estonia hits wall over name,” said that while the Estonian government in 2023 permitted Taiwan to open a representative office in Tallinn, it has not opened yet.

“Estonia and Taiwan are stuck in a stalemate over plans to open a de facto Taiwanese embassy in Tallinn, according to multiple sources,” it said.

It cited a source as saying that Taipei wants the office to be named in the same format as its Vilnius office, the Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania, but “Estonia has insisted on using ‘Taipei’ out of concern about a Chinese backlash.”

The Nikkei Asia, citing its previous report about Taiwan and Canada not signing a deal months after it was agreed on, said the two episodes suggest that “although many countries are concerned about China as a strategic rival and potential security threat, they remain hesitant to enhance relations with Taiwan in fear of antagonizing Beijing.”

The Japanese news outlet also cited two sources who mentioned China’s economic sanctions on Vilnius after the opening of the Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania, and said that Estonia would struggle to find any help from other EU countries in such a situation.

The Nikkei Asia reported that the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had not received any request from Taiwan to open an office, and Tallinn continues to follow its “one China” policy.

The report said MOFA responded that Taiwan and Estonia have “friendly” exchanges in “various fields,” rooted in common values of democracy and human rights.

The Nikkei Asia cited two analysts suggesting that Taiwan should open a mission in Estonia regardless of its name, and demonstrate institutional momentum and establish substantive engagement.

When asked about the matter, MOFA said Taiwan and Estonia have good relations and close interactions in various fields.

“Based on common values of democracy, freedom and human rights, Taiwan will continue to deepen cooperation with like-minded partners, including Estonia,” it said.

Additional reporting by Fan Wei-li

title: MOFA open for talks on Estonia office


content_text:
By Yang Yuan-ting, Chen Chien-chih and Esme Yeh / Staff reporters, with staff writer and CNA

The source of an African swine fever (ASF) outbreak at a hog farm in Taichung was likely incompletely steamed kitchen waste, the ASF central response unit said yesterday.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture Tu Wen-jane (杜文珍) said the inference was based on the significantly higher 39.3 percent death rate of pigs that ate leftovers as feed compared with those that ate regular feed (2.5 percent).

Samples from another hog farm, which acquired kitchen waste from the same place as the ASF-positive farm, but had properly steamed the leftovers and uploaded that data as scheduled, tested negative for ASF multiple times, she said.

From left, Deputy Minister of Agriculture Tu Wen-jane, Minister Without Portfolio Chen Shih-chung and Minister of Agriculture Chen Junne-jih speak at a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Photo: Lo Pei-de, Taipei Times

The ASF-affected farm had not uploaded data on kitchen waste processing after July and had not bought more fuel for steaming after getting two 20-liter tanks of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in April, Tu said, adding that personnel found the two tanks at the farm when disinfection was conducted last week.

The possibility that the virus was carried by people, pigs or vehicles has been ruled out, she said.

National Taiwan University veterinary medicine professor Tsai Hsiang-jung (蔡向榮) said that investigating the farm’s operations was difficult, as the farm’s management records had reportedly been “damaged” in September.

The investigators initially did not know that the farm owner only bought fuel for steaming leftovers once this year until they called the LPG supplier, he said, adding that the owner bought fuel three times last year.

Although the owner said that farm staff used wood as fuel, he could not show any evidence, Tsai said.

Even if the owner steamed the leftovers using wood as fuel, the temperatures might not have remained above 90°C for at least an hour, which is needed to exterminate viruses, he added.

In related developments, personnel from the Taichung Animal Protection Office on Sunday disinfected the ASF-positive farm, without notifying the ASF central unit, leaving the farm too wet to collect valid samples.

Veterinary Research Institute Director-General Deng Ming-chung (鄧明中) yesterday said that the farm remained wet as of 10am.

Whether the wetness was caused by the office’s disinfection remains uncertain, he said, adding that sampling would not be conducted until the conditions at the site meets ASF testing guidelines.

The city government on Sunday said it did not order the office to conduct the disinfection.

A worker hired by the office, surnamed Cheng (鄭), said they misunderstood their supervisor’s order and entered the farm to conduct the disinfection, it said.

A source speaking on condition of anonymity yesterday said that Cheng is a temporary worker hired by the office to execute tasks under the ASF response scheme.

Cheng receives daily wages, which were fully covered by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency, they said.

title: Kitchen waste likely cause of ASF outbreak


title: DPP, civic group oppose KMT’s absentee voting bill

people: 林沛祥 吳思瑤

content_text:
Members of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and a civic group yesterday expressed objections to a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) push to allow absentee and mail-in voting in elections.

“The bill to allow absentee voting should first apply to national referendums so that the Central Election Commission can evaluate its feasibility. Only after that should it apply to elections,” DPP Legislator Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said yesterday.

“It is safer to do it this way, as the commission can detect problems, make corrections and revise the procedure,” Wu said.

A man casts his vote in a ballot box in a national referendum in Taipei on Aug. 23. Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times

The DPP is opposed to the KMT bill, which the Taiwan People’s Party also supports, that would apply to all local and national elections, including presidential elections.

The bill would also enable mail-in ballots.

Currently, Taiwan’s election law requires people to vote in their “home district” where their household registration is, and it is common for students and people working in big cities to travel to their hometown to cast ballots.

“Amending the law to allow absentee [and mail-in] voting in elections is a big change, and there is no full agreement on how to proceed on that, so Taiwanese society should reach a consensus first,” Wu said.

There are risks concerning the application of absentee or mail-in voting in China, she said.

“If we allow absentee [and mail-in] voting, it would pose some dangers to Taiwan’s democracy. An enemy state could try to use it to subvert the democratic process, so it should be handled with extreme caution,” she added.

Taiwanese should oppose the bill, as it would make it easier for China to interfere in elections, Taiwan Economic Democracy Union convener Lai Chung-chiang (賴中強) said.

“For both absentee voting and mail-in ballot methods, the biggest risk is that Beijing could use financial pressure to mobilize Taiwanese doing business in China to vote for certain candidates or political parties it favors,” Lai said.

He urged lawmakers not to allow absentee voting in Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, as they are extremely close to China.

“The Chinese government in the past launched such mobilization campaigns, providing low-cost air tickets and other incentives for Taiwanese working in China to return where their household registration is to vote in Taiwan’s elections,” Lai said.

“We have warned about this for years, but the government still has no effective way to deal with it, as it is difficult to investigate and find solid evidence of vote-buying, which might have happened beyond its jurisdiction,” he added.

On the other hand, KMT Legislator Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said that “many democratic countries, including the US, have absentee voting, so we can follow its method and introduce such a bill to move our country forward.”


content_text:
Fewer workers on unpaid leave, Ministry of Labor says

The number of workers on unpaid leave in Taiwan decreased for the first time in the second half of this year, by 212 people, data released yesterday by the Ministry of Labor showed.

A total of 8,331 workers were placed on formal furlough programs, compared with 8,543 announced on Oct. 16.

Meanwhile, the number of employers with furlough programs increased from 432 to 455, data showed.

Department of Labor Standards and Equal Employment Director Huang Chi-ya (黃琦雅) told a news conference that the decrease in furloughed workers resulted from 18 firms ending their furlough programs early, as their orders rebounded.

Three of the firms, all in the machinery and equipment manufacturing industry, accounted for 563 employees returning to work.

In general, 372 firms in the manufacturing sector reported a total of 7,849 furloughed workers, accounting for about 95 percent of all the workers on paid leave, Huang said.

The metal electromechanical industry constituted the majority in the sector, with 293 firms and 6,019 furloughed workers, she added.

A total of 370 firms, with a total of 7,575 furloughed workers, cited US tariffs as the main reason for the furlough programs. That was 16 more firms but 348 fewer workers from the middle of last month, Huang said, adding that firms that shortened their furlough programs were mainly large companies.

She said that 418 of 455 firms with furlough programs had fewer than 50 employees, while 17 firms had more than 100 employees.

The ministry said that 329 of the firms, or 72.3 percent, were eligible for employment stability measures, meaning that 6,782 of the workers (81.4 percent) can apply for wage subsidies.

In related news, funds managed by the Ministry of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Funds posted the fourth-highest gains in history in September as global stock markets enjoyed significant performance in the month.

The bureau said that the labor funds it managed recorded NT$216.7 billion (US$7.03 billion) in September, only trailing NT$277.8 billion in August, NT$242.2 billion in March last year and NT$240.2 billion in November 2020.

Accumulated gains, which reflect increases in the value of assets in the funds’ portfolios and/or increases in income on investments, rose to NT$558.8 billion in the first nine months of this year after the strong showing in September, the bureau said.

The TAIEX, the weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, surged 12.09 percent, and the MSCI World Index jumped 18.44 percent largely on a boom of artificial intelligence development as well as a rate cut cycle initiated by the US Federal Reserve.

The bureau said that 57.67 percent of the investments made by the labor funds were made overseas, and the remaining 42.33 percent was invested domestically.

The combined value of the funds managed by the bureau, including the Labor Pension Fund, the Labor Retirement Fund, the Labor Insurance Fund, the Employment Insurance Fund and the Arrear Wage Payment Fund, which covers payouts for workers’ wages, pension and severances, totaled NT$7.44 trillion as of the end of September.

Based on that value, the NT$558.8 billion in gains represented a rate of return of 8.14 percent in the first nine months of this year, the bureau said.

The value of assets in the new Labor Pension Fund, launched in 2015, totaled NT$4.92 trillion at the end of September, the highest of any fund, and its rate of return was 7.69 percent, the bureau said.

The Labor Retirement Fund, which has been in place since 1984, had about NT$1.04 trillion in assets as of the end of September, with a rate of return of 12.57 percent, the bureau said.

Meanwhile, the Public Service Pension Fund Bureau yesterday said that the Public Service Pension Fund it managed recorded NT$78.87 billion in gains in the first nine months of this year, with a rate of return of 7.80 percent.


content_text:
PARTNERS:  The establishment of a cooperative network among Indo-Pacific nations would help them stand up to China’s coercion, the National Security Bureau said

Taiwan’s “visibility” at the APEC summit improved this year, with many member economies seeking cooperation with the nation in several advanced technology fields, said presidential adviser Lin Hsin-yi (林信義), Taiwan’s envoy to this year’s APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting.

“Compared with the past, when Taiwan needed to invest far more effort to attract foreign investment and cooperation, many economies now approach us without much prompting,” Lin told a news conference yesterday.

“When the flower blooms, the butterfly comes naturally,” Lin said, adding that he held “constructive exchanges” with many leaders and delegation members, who expressed willingness to cooperate with Taiwan in semiconductors, information and communications technology, medical technology, and small and medium-sized enterprises development.

Presidential adviser Lin Hsin-yi, Taiwan’s envoy to this year’s APEC summit, speaks at a news conference at the Presidential Office in Taipei yesterday. Photo: Tu Chien-rong, Taipei Times

“These interactions not only enhanced Taiwan’s visibility, but also laid a solid foundation for future substantive economic and trade cooperation,” he said.

Lin represented President William Lai (賴清德) at this year’s APEC Leaders’ Meeting in South Korea, which concluded on Saturday.

Although Taiwan is a full APEC member, its president cannot attend the meeting — due to Chinese objections and political pressure — and appoints a special envoy to go in their place.

This year’s APEC discussions focused on technological innovation, supply chain security and artificial intelligence (AI), with South Korea highlighting AI and demographic changes, Lin said.

The international economic order is facing uncertainty due to geopolitical changes, supply chain restructuring, technological transformation and climate change, he said.

Lai instructed the delegation to emphasize three key themes to the international community, Lin said.

First, Taiwan is committed to bolstering economic resilience and promoting regional economic development.

Second, the nation is willing to share its experience in leading industries.

Third, Taiwan is accelerating efforts to promote people-centered AI development.

The nation continues to promote AI applications across industries through public-private cooperation, Lin said, adding that he highlighted some examples at the meeting.

In other news, the National Security Bureau yesterday said in a meeting at the legislature’s Foreign and National Affairs Committee that US President Donald Trump’s tour of Asia would benefit Taiwan.

The establishment of a cooperative network among Indo-Pacific nations would help the region stand up against China’s economic coercion, and bolster the economic resilience and security of Taiwan’s democratic allies, it said.

The US’ cooperation with regional partners in key industries would help Taiwan leverage its advantages and experience as a global leader in semiconductor manufacturing to work with like-minded nations and develop a democratic supply chain for an emerging technology ecosystem, the bureau said.

Moreover, the expanded US-Japan alliance framework to include regional partners would help curb China’s attempts to undermine regional peace and stability, and the “status quo” in the Indo-Pacific region, it said.

Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) meeting on Thursday last week marked a new stage in US-China relations, although strategic mistrust remains between Washington and Beijing, as issues such as security and technological competition remain difficult to resolve, the bureau said.

Both sides are seeking to bolster self-reliance in key technologies and critical materials to reduce mutual dependence, it added.

The US remains concerned about China’s military activity and coercive behavior in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, as it seeks to ensure that US allies in the Indo-Pacific region are capable of defending their own interests, it said.

Additional reporting by Hollie Younger

title: Better Taiwan visibility at APEC this year: envoy

people: 林信義 賴清德 習近平


content_text:
The military’s plan to create an uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) group for each of the country’s five theaters of operations would help counter China’s “gray zone coercion” and surprise attacks disguised as exercises, a military expert said in an essay.

Army Chief of Staff Chen Chun-yi (陳俊義) on Oct. 23 told legislators that the army would establish a UAS group in each theater to defend northern, central, southern and eastern Taiwan, as well as outlying Penghu County.

The combat units are expected to be in place by July next year, Chen said.

Cadets of the Republic of China (ROC) Military Academy in Kaohsiung take part in a course on drone operation on Aug. 7. Screengrab from the ROC Military Academy’s Facebook page

Ko Yung-sen (柯永森), a researcher at the government-funded Institute for National Defense and Security Research, wrote on Thursday last week that drones’ rapid dispatch makes them well suited to respond when a military drill turns into an actual attack.

Compared with tanks, artillery or surface vessels, drones are more flexible, involve lower risk and are more cost-efficient, he said.

They can also be used for reconnaissance, intelligence sharing, denying or slowing access and breaking blockades, bolstering deterrence and defense, he said.

The development of drone combat units would encourage industry collaboration — for example, with the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology — to upgrade and domestically produce components such as optical sensors, bolstering supply chains and defense-industry resilience, Ko said.

He recommended setting up an interim “experimental” drone unit before July to address operational challenges and said that specialists should be trained in mission planning, image analysis, communications-link monitoring, maintenance and logistics.

Practical flight training is constrained under the Civil Aeronautics Administration’s Regulations on Drones (遙控無人機管理規則), especially near airports and densely populated areas, he said.

Careful planning of garrisons, training sites, airspace and curricula is essential to avoid training shortfalls that could weaken combat effectiveness, he said.

The military plans to procure six drone types: tactical short-range, land-based, shipborne, target acquisition, surveillance/reconnaissance and micro models, the Ministry of National Defense said in a report to the legislature in March last year.

As these platforms would be fielded across the army, navy and air force, a unified data link and a joint operational picture are critical for streamlined command, reconnaissance and strike operations, Ko said.

As nascent units, the drone groups should draw on foreign experience to develop standardized operating procedures, guidelines and doctrine to establish command chains and interoperability across service branches, he added.

title: Uncrewed aircraft deployment to boost defense: expert


title: Leopard cheers

content_text: Peach Girls, cheerleaders for Taiwanese professional volleyball team the Taoyuan Leopards, pose for a photograph at the team’s home court in Taoyuan in an undated photograph. The squad is scheduled to perform at the home court at the weekend.


title: Iconic spot

content_text: People visit the Flower Vase rock on Pingtung County’s Siaoliouciou Island yesterday.


title: Trump tightens grip on top AI chips

content_text:
Artificial intelligence (AI) giant Nvidia Corp’s most advanced chips would be reserved for US companies and kept out of China and other countries, US President Donald Trump said.

During an interview that aired on Sunday on CBS’ 60 Minutes program and in comments to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said only US customers should have access to the top-end Blackwell chips offered by Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company by market capitalization.

“The most advanced, we will not let anybody have them other than the United States,” he told CBS, echoing remarks made earlier to reporters as he returned to Washington from a weekend in Florida.

An Nvidia GB10 Grace Blackwell Superchip is displayed at the company’s GTC conference in San Jose, California, on March 19. Photo: Reuters

“We don’t give [the Blackwell] chip to other people,” he said during the flight.

The remarks suggest Trump might impose tighter restrictions around cutting-edge US AI chips than US officials previously indicated, with China and potentially the rest of the world barred from accessing the most sophisticated semiconductors.

The Trump administration in July released a new AI blueprint seeking to loosen environmental rules and vastly expand AI exports to allies, in a bid to maintain the US’ edge over China in the critical field of AI tech.

Nvidia on Friday said it would supply more than 260,000 Blackwell AI chips to South Korea and some of the country’s biggest businesses, including Samsung Electronics Co.

Questions have also swirled about whether Trump would allow shipments of a scaled-down version of Blackwell chips to China since August, when he suggested he might allow such sales.

Trump told CBS he would not allow the sale of the most advanced Blackwell chips to Chinese companies, but he did not rule out a path for them to obtain a less capable version of the chip.

“We will let them deal with Nvidia, but not in terms of the most advanced,” he said during the interview.

The possibility that any version of Blackwell chips might be sold to Chinese firms has drawn sharp criticism from China hawks in Washington, who fear the technology would supercharge China’s military capabilities and accelerate its AI development.

US Representative John Moolenaar, who chairs the House Select Committee on China, said such a move “would be akin [to] giving Iran weapons-grade uranium.”

Nvidia has not sought US export licenses for the Chinese market because of Beijing’s stance on the company, CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) said last week.

“They’ve made it very clear that they don’t want Nvidia to be there right now,” he said during a developers’ event in Washington, adding that it needed access to China to fund US-based research and development.


title: OPEC raises oil output before signaling pause

content_text:
Oil prices rose after OPEC+ signaled that it would pause output increases next quarter, following a modest hike for next month.

Brent for January rose above US$65 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate was near US$61.

OPEC and allies on Sunday said they would raise output by 137,000 barrels a day next month, matching expectations. The group then takes a three month hiatus from January to March.

A 3D printed oil pump jack is seen in front of displayed OPEC logo in this illustration picture, April 14, 2020. Photo: Reuters

Global benchmark Brent has slumped about 10 percent over the past three months, as the market faces the prospect of ballooning oversupply. Still, prices recently bounced from a five-month low after tighter US sanctions on Russian producers raised some questions about supply prospects from that nation.

The OPEC+ output decision and planned pause are “an acknowledgment from the group that the market is facing a sizeable surplus next year,” ING Groep NV head of commodities strategy Warren Patterson said in Singapore.

There is plenty of uncertainty concerning the scale of oversupply, and it is unclear how disruptive the latest sanctions on Russia are going to be, he added.

The eight key members of OPEC+ are left with about 1.2 million barrels a day of their current supply tranche still to restore. Actual output increases have fallen short of advertised volumes, as some members offset earlier overproduction and others struggle to pump more.

Following the OPEC+ move, Morgan Stanley raised its near-term price forecast for Brent, while maintaining a warning for a “substantial surplus.” The United Arab Emirates yesterday added to the chorus of producers who have come out to downplay glut concerns.

Traders are monitoring disruptions to flows, after a Ukrainian drone attack in the Black Sea left a tanker ablaze and damaged loading facilities in the port city of Tuapse, Russia. The area is home to a refinery run by PJSC Rosneft Oil Co, which was sanctioned last month by the US, along with PJSC Lukoil Oil Co.

US President Donald Trump threatened possible US military action against militants in Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer, if the country’s government does not halt the groups’ “killing of Christians.” He hinted at an immediate cutoff in aid to the OPEC member.


content_text:
Central bank faces tightrope to dodge ‘manipulator’ tag by US Treasury

CURRENCY VALUATION: Heavy intervention early in the year leaves the central bank limited maneuvering room to avoid censure by the US Treasury Department

The New Taiwan dollar’s rally is boxing in the central bank, leaving it with limited room to intervene to avoid a “currency manipulator” label from the US.

Heavy intervention in the first half of the year leaves the central bank with a buffer of US$4.5 billion for the second half, Bloomberg said. That is based on US Department of the Treasury criteria that net purchases of foreign currency in interventions should be below 2 percent of GDP over 12 months.

A smaller intervention cushion poses a challenge for the central bank, with the NT dollar forecast to rally further by about 2 percent this quarter as the artificial intelligence (AI) boom drives up demand for local semiconductors. Constraints on intervention would put investors on alert for abrupt moves such as the one in May when the local currency surged the most since the 1980s.

Breaching US Treasury criteria risks putting Taiwan in the crosshairs of US authorities and could lead to unfavorable outcomes for the nation in trade negotiations. Some analysts expect the central bank to use interventions sparingly into the end of the year.

“Taiwan’s central bank would need to be more selective in when to step into the market and how much it intervenes to smooth out volatility,” Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd head of Asia research Khoon Goh (吳昆) said. “As a result, we could see greater fluctuations in the Taiwan dollar for the rest of the year.”

The NT dollar has risen more than 6 percent so far this year to 30.75 per US dollar, and a Bloomberg survey showed it might advance further to 30.2 this quarter. The central bank already bought US$13.25 billion of US currency to cap the local currency’s gains from January to June, the most for a half year period since 2020.

Although its dollar purchases for the next US Treasury review that cover the 12 months through June are below the US threshold, the central bank would need to rein in further operations this year to avoid the manipulator label. The previous US report showed Taiwan on the list of countries that the US Treasury is closely monitoring.

The US dollar’s decline this year amid US fiscal concerns is boosting major Asian currencies, providing another tailwind for the NT dollar.

“Should Japanese yen and the Chinese yuan continue to strengthen, there could also be more room for Taiwan dollar to gain,” Malayan Banking Berhad senior foreign exchange analyst Fiona Lim said.

One option for the central bank to avoid the ire of US authorities is to influence the exchange rate.

In June, the central bank asked lenders to delay US dollar sales from exporters in a rare move, people familiar with the matter had said.

Investors are likely to keep a close watch on Taiwan’s trade data on Friday after exports to the US rose sharply in September despite tariffs. Another stellar month would boost the market’s confidence in the local economy and lay the ground for a stronger NT dollar.

“This makes the central bank’s job more challenging amid the presence of the Treasury Report, which acts as a hindrance to the [central bank’s] intervention efforts,” Lim said.


title: Manufacturing showing growth again

content_text:
Taiwan’s manufacturing sector returned to expansion mode last month for the first time in five months, signaling improving industrial momentum driven by robust global technology demand, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday.

The purchasing managers’ index climbed to 50.3 from 48.3 in September, moving back above the 50-point threshold that separates expansion from contraction.

“Factory activity showed signs of recovery following a consolidation period in the third quarter, in line with Taiwan’s strengthening export trend,” CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) told a news conference in Taipei.

A person observes robotic arm demonstrations during the Taiwan Automation Intelligence and Robot Show in Taipei, Taiwan, 20 August 2025. The Taiwan Automation and Robot Show takes place from 20 to 23 August 2025. Photo: EPA

New orders and industrial production led the rebound. The new orders gauge rose 3.9 points to 51.1, while the industrial output sub-index jumped 4.5 points to 53.2, marking a return to expansion for both indicators.

Demand linked to artificial intelligence (AI) continued to fuel orders for power systems, energy-related equipment and cooling solutions, as well as advanced semiconductor packaging and high-bandwidth memory systems, the institute said.

The electrical and machinery equipment sector PMI expanded for the second straight month, rising to 51.8, with orders and output in growth territory. Raw-material costs increased sharply, with the price sub-index accelerating above 60 percent.

Supply-side adjustments among upstream producers — including output cuts and production-line reconfigurations — pushed up prices for precious metals, rare-earth materials, memory chips, central processing units and passive components, the institute said.

Raw material price pressures were particularly sharp in the electronics and optical industry, where the input price index surged 6 points to 68.6, the fastest increase since June 2022 and the 10th consecutive month the index has risen, the institute said.

Despite the improvement in activity, manufacturers remained cautious. The six-month business-outlook gauge stayed in contraction at 43.8, although sentiment improved from September with a 3.5-point gain.

Lien warned that it remains too early to conclude that the impact of tariffs has fully passed, saying that traditional industries continue to face significant strain.

Strong performance in AI-related hardware, energy and machinery sectors helped offset some of the drag, he said.

“The robust momentum in the AI industry is indeed underpinning Taiwan’s economic activity,” Lien said.

In services, the non-manufacturing PMI rose to 54.4 from 52.1, supported by strong third-quarter exports, TAIEX rallies and holiday-driven consumer spending, he said.

While manufacturing and services reported business improvements, companies remain largely guarded.

“It is not clear if the economy will sail smoothly and continue to positively surprise this quarter,” Lien said, urging policymakers and companies to remain cautious.

In related news, Bank of America Corp yesterday raised its forecast for Taiwan’s economic performance this year, lifting its GDP projection from 5.2 percent to 7 percent, as the economy is withstanding a local currency appreciation and US tariffs better than anticipated. That would mark Taiwan’s fastest expansion since 2010.

External headwinds appear to be easing after the US and China reached a trade agreement, the bank added.

The improving geopolitical backdrop could create a more favorable environment for Taiwan’s export-driven economy, it said.

The bank also upgraded its GDP forecast for Taiwan next year to 4.5 percent from 2 percent, citing continued AI-related investment momentum and a recovering global tech cycle.


title: Car sales going up

content_text:
Taiwan’s new car sales last month registered a second month of growth, growing 7.1 percent to 34,511 units from 32,227 units, reflecting momentum in the local car market, market research group U-Car said in a report yesterday. On an annual basis, new car sales rose 3.9 percent.

U-Car attributed the growth in sales to tax incentives announced by the government in September, which enable buyers to take advantage of a NT$50,000 break in commodity tax for passenger cars with engine displacements of less than 2 liters. The rules are to expire on Jan. 7 next year.

The government has proposed to extend the exemptions of vehicle license tax and commodity tax to 2030.

Imported vehicles are pictured at a terminal at the Port of Taipei on June 26. Photo courtesy of a reader

“We feel the market sentiment is improving,” U-Car said in the report. “Carmakers and dealers became more aggressive in selling their cars by rolling out revamped models or brand new models, hoping to boost sales in the final quarter of the year to catch up with car sales in 2024.”

The tax incentives are expected to further spur car sales this month, market leader Hotai Motor Co (和泰汽車) said yesterday.

Hotai, which distributes Toyota and Lexus cars in Taiwan, aims to sell 14,200 vehicles this month, up 11.51 percent from 12,734 units last month, which grew 25.5 percent from September, the company said.

During the first 10 months of this year, new vehicle sales in Taiwan dipped 12.4 percent to 330,648 units compared with the same period last year, as consumers halted purchases amid speculation about potential tax cuts on imported vehicles from the US amid trade talks with Washington.


title: Traditional wares

content_text: A vendor selling bananas yesterday waits for customers at Lambaro traditional market in Aceh Besar, Indonesia.


title: EDITORIAL: Business deals must be transparent

content_text:
E.Sun Financial Holding Co’s rumored acquisition of Mercuries Life Insurance Co at NT$8.2 per share was the most controversial business news in Taiwan over the past few days and was far more interesting than the earnings results released by several electronics companies. The merger and acquisition (M&A) deal involves questionable information disclosure that could harm the rights of shareholders, and is attracting a lot of attention from investors, the business circle, lawmakers and financial regulators.

It all started when CTBC Financial Holding Co on Oct. 23 announced that its board of directors had approved an investment plan without naming the target. That fueled speculation that it had submitted a formal bid to acquire financially strained Mercuries Life. The next day, local media reported that E.Sun Financial had outbid CTBC Financial to win Mercuries Life. Investors reacted positively to the possibility of a deal — Mercuries Life could improve its financial structure while E.Sun Financial could enter the life insurance business and complement its strength in banking and wealth management. However, neither companies confirmed the details at the time.

CTBC Financial on Monday last week during its stock exchange announcement said it had completed the bidding process of the investment and that it had no impact on the business. E.Sun Financial remained tight-lipped about the deal during the day and filed an exchange statement that night, saying it would disclose information after receiving board approval.

The next morning, Mercuries Life said it would release information based on board resolutions, and in accordance with company procedures and laws.

While all the parties involved said their assessment and execution of the M&A had strictly adhered to corporate governance principles and board regulations, followed the requirements of regulatory authorities and maintained strict confidentiality of the binding offer, they seemed to have forgotten that it is a publicly traded firm’s obligation to provide shareholders with full and transparent information on such matters as soon as possible. Does their delayed disclosure of information, which neither clarified rumors nor disclosed any details, not expose local investors to risks — especially those who bought E.Sun Financial shares, and were trading in the dark and unable to prepare a response amid a sell-off — while allowing insiders to gain from the information discrepancy?

The parties had signed confidentiality agreements and could not disclose the content of the deal, but their statements raised another question: Had their management teams submitted a binding offer with details such as transaction price and share swap ratio along with their board of directors’ authorization?

Even if the management teams had gathered opinions from financial, accounting or legal advisers about the M&A, prior authorization from the board of directors is necessary. The board plays a crucial role in maintaining corporate governance. Submitting a binding offer without their approval is tantamount to acting unilaterally and renders the board ineffective.

The M&A has not only raised the question of whether the parties involved can regain investors’ confidence in their management integrity and corporate governance — especially E.Sun Financial, which has for years carefully cultivated an image of a model financial holding company in Taiwan — but also puts the financial and stock exchange regulators’ credibility to the test. Moreover, the issue could have negative implications for local financial markets if the regulatory authorities fail to take punitive action against the parties.

To resolve doubts and investor dissatisfaction, the authorities should conduct a thorough investigation of the issue, and if the results suggest traces of illegality, justice could be enforced.


content_text:
The central bank has launched a redesign of the New Taiwan dollar banknotes, prompting questions from Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators — “Are we not promoting digital payments? Why spend NT$5 billion on a redesign?”

Many assume that cash will disappear in the digital age, but they forget that it represents the ultimate trust in the system. Banknotes do not become obsolete, they do not crash, they cannot be frozen and they leave no record of transactions. They remain the cleanest means of exchange in a free society.

In a fully digitized world, every purchase, donation and action leaves behind data. An authoritarian regime just needs one command to make someone economically disappear.

During Hong Kong’s anti-extradition bill protests, demonstrators’ credit card records became clues to track them. In China’s Xinjiang region, even buying fuel with cash can raise suspicions.

When China’s central bank first began promoting its digital yuan, it sounded quite appealing — counterfeit-resistant, convenient and secure. The reality is that it is a state-level financial surveillance system. Every transaction can be tracked in an instant and anonymity is virtually nonexistent.

The government can impose time limits, regional restrictions and usage conditions, and subsidies can only be spent within a specified time frame or area. Such currency is no longer circulating money — rather, it is a management tool.

Documents state that the digital yuan could help achieve social governance and macroeconomic control. It could be frozen, revoked, flagged or punished — erasing a person’s economic existence in the blink of an eye. The more efficient digital currency becomes in the hands of the regime, the faster freedoms die.

While Taiwan’s banknote redesign might seem traditional, it is actually quite avant-garde. By choosing to update its paper currency, Taiwan is refusing to be ruled by algorithms. Cash allows the public to preserve their privacy. The redesign is more than just an anti-counterfeiting measure — it is the most basic pledge of freedom that could be made in a democratic society.

China’s move to eliminate paper money reflects a power grab, while Taiwan’s banknote redesign is a choice rooted in trust.

Shen Yan is a political commentator.

Translated by Kyra Gustavsen

title: Banknote redesign shows freedom


title: Taiwan is more than just its chips

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At the Golden Bell Awards last month, Vietnamese actor Lien Binh Phat took home the Best Leading Actor in a Television Series award for his role in the multilingual medical drama The Outlaw Doctor (化外之醫) — the first Vietnamese in the award’s history to do so. A paradigm shift in Taiwan’s cultural strategy is under way, and the New Southbound Policy’s (NSP) years-long push in the cultural sphere appears to be finally bearing fruit.

The Outlaw Doctor represents a reimagining of what is possible for the Taiwanese drama industry. Its success is proof that film and TV are at last no longer bound by the tired confines of family values, urban love stories and campus idols. Finally, we are becoming bolder and reaching for stories that, despite having long been played out on Taiwanese soil, are still overlooked: stories of immigrants, migrant workers, intermarriages and cultural clashes.

The award showed support for the show’s creators, who dared to push audiences outside their comfort zone. It also demonstrates that our truest form of localization is globalization — especially in a country where “local” is fundamentally multicultural.

To truly harness this shift, the government, and the film and TV industry should establish an NSP fund for the production of diverse Asian content. The Ministry of Culture and the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA) should also establish a fund for coproduction of content with Southeast Asian input. Recipients should be encouraged or required to seek Southeast Asian talent in roles such as screenwriters, directors or actors, making cross-cultural cooperation the norm on and behind the screen.

Additionally, there should be a platform to train and match Southeast Asian talent to projects. Taiwan has no shortage of good actors such as Lien — what it lacks is the eye to discover them. The government should work with universities, colleges and performing arts centers to establish pathways for Southeast Asians to study acting, screenwriting or behind-the-scenes technology, and create an official talent pool that production teams could cast from and collaborate with.

Taiwan must go beyond viewing Southeast Asians as simply a source of labor, and instead value them as a rich pool of cultural and creative talent.

Finally, multilingual distribution should become a goal. Dubbing and subtitling shows into Southeast Asian languages such as Vietnamese, Indonesian or Thai could be a standard procedure in the early stages of production, rather than being added as an afterthought. TAICCA’s international promotion capacity should be taken advantage of, concentrating on multicultural content, and tapping into major streaming platforms and movie theaters in Southeast Asia. Taiwan can show audiences in the region that it can capture their stories too — perhaps with even greater depth than they might typically see at home.

More than just a trophy, Lien’s Golden Bell Award suggested that, amid fierce international competition, Taiwan has found a way forward through which it could demonstrate its value on the frontiers of culture. The nation has far more to show than just chips. Forget the silicon shield; what Taiwan must show the world is that the nation, with its freedom, democracy and diversity, can deliver some of Asia’s most multicultural and impactful stories yet.

Chen Jie-an is a legal specialist for a technology corporation.

Translated by Gilda Knox Streader


title: Speak out on the situation in Gaza

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President William Lai (賴清德) last week attended a dinner in Taipei with representatives from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). During the event, he expressed “relief” about the release of Israeli hostages and said that Taiwan had “provided assistance to the Israeli people through humanitarian aid and medical supplies.”

While such remarks might reflect Taiwan’s concern for humanitarian issues, they highlight a glaring omission: the ongoing catastrophe in Gaza. Palestinian civilians, particularly women and children, have been under relentless bombardment and severe obstruction of humanitarian relief. This silence exposes a troubling double standard in Taiwan’s human rights discourse — one that threatens to undermine its international credibility.

Over the past two years, Gaza has faced one of the most devastating humanitarian crises in modern history.

UN data showed that more than 37,000 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 2 million have been displaced. Amnesty International and several governments have condemned Israel for serious contraventions of international humanitarian law. South Africa has gone a step further, filing a case with the International Court of Justice, accusing Israel of genocide.

Taiwan’s government has remained silent, continuing to deepen diplomatic and economic ties with Israel. This raises an uncomfortable question: Can Taiwan still claim to uphold universal human rights while turning a blind eye to suffering in Gaza?

Amnesty International said that Israel’s actions in Gaza are crimes against humanity, including the deliberate killing of civilians, forced displacement, collective punishment and the obstruction of humanitarian aid.

The organization urged governments to support the International Criminal Court in investigating and holding Israel accountable. Refusing to do so would only perpetuate Israel’s sense of impunity and weaken the global human rights framework.

If the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Presidential Office continue to highlight the “good news” of hostage releases while ignoring the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, this reveals not only a moral blind spot, but also a strategic misjudgment. Taiwan’s strength in global diplomacy lies in its moral standing — its ability to present itself as a democracy committed to universal values. If it applies those values selectively, it risks losing the moral high ground that has long distinguished it from authoritarian regimes.

At a time when the international community is calling for a ceasefire and increased humanitarian access, Taiwan’s one-sided sympathy for Israel risks portraying it as inconsistent on human rights. Such a stance could alienate potential allies in the Global South and civil society organizations that have historically supported Taiwan’s democratic aspirations.

Taiwan has much to gain by adopting a principled, balanced position — one that acknowledges the security concerns of all parties while reaffirming the universal rights of people. Calling for an immediate ceasefire, urging respect for international humanitarian law and offering aid to Palestinians in Gaza would not only demonstrate moral courage, but also improve Taiwan’s reputation as a responsible and compassionate democracy.

Taiwan’s history gives it a unique moral perspective. Having struggled for decades to secure democracy and human rights, Taiwan understands the value of global solidarity. Just as Taiwan hopes the world would stand with it in times of crisis, it, too, should stand with others when their fundamental rights are under assault.

Human rights cannot be selective, nor should moral conviction be silenced by diplomatic convenience. If Taiwan truly aspires to be a nation founded on human rights values, it must have the courage to speak out for justice — even when doing so is politically inconvenient.

Silence in the face of suffering is not neutrality; it is complicity. Taiwan must choose to be on the side of humanity. Only by doing so could it earn the respect, trust and solidarity of the international community it so rightly seeks.

Chiu E-ling is the executive director of Amnesty International Taiwan. Echo Lin is the chair of Amnesty International Taiwan.


title: Japan PM Takaichi is new ‘Trump whisperer’

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After a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, and before Trump’s talk with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), the US president said: “Taiwan is Taiwan.”

The statement came as Takaichi declared a new golden age in US-Japan relations, affirming Tokyo’s central role in Washington’s China and Indo-Pacific strategy. It also serves as a clear indication of Trump’s position on Taiwan.

Trump’s infamous and often last-minute decisionmaking strategy can be a mystery to allies and rivals alike — it often depends on who he last spoke to. Those who have his ear, known as “Trump whisperers,” enjoy something of a direct line of influence in the White House.

The efforts of Finnish President Alexander Stubb and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, both of whom are regarded as influential Trump whisperers, have played a part in Trump’s shift to a harder line against Russia.

Thanks to the legacy of former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, Takaichi might be well on her way to becoming Trump’s newest whisperer.

Abe’s name came up several times during the Taikaichi-Trump meeting, and both parties affirmed a commitment to uphold Abe’s vision of deepening the US-Japan alliance and enhancing Japan’s defense capabilities. Trump emphasized that the two countries’ relations are stronger than ever and that the US would lend its full support to Japan wherever it needed it.

Taikaichi took the opportunity to stress the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and reiterate Abe’s call for a free and open Indo-Pacific region — just as she had done during the East Asia Summit last week, framing the issue as core to Japan’s engagement and cooperation with the ASEAN. Her continuation of Abe’s line of countering Chinese dominance is unmistakable.

As Trump and Takaichi reenacted the old Trump-Abe friendship, Japan’s political sphere rejoiced at the return of the US-Japan alliance. For Taiwan and allies in the region, it is a welcome revival of the wider vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific region.

The New York Times earlier predicted that Takaichi’s position as Abe’s understudy — the “Abe card” — would be key for her ability to gain Trump’s trust, gauge his position on Taiwan’s defense and understand Washington’s strategic direction in the Indo-Pacific region.

Likewise, a Washington Post editorial said that the outcome of a clash between Trump and Xi over Taiwan could hinge on Trump’s relationship with Takaichi — and that Taiwan would be a critical item on their meeting’s agenda. In hindsight, both assessments proved remarkably insightful.

It seemed that there was nowhere on Trump’s visit to Tokyo that Abe’s shadow did not reach. During Abe’s US visit in 2017, he rode with Trump aboard the presidential Marine One helicopter from the White House to an air base near Washington, before flying together on Air Force One to Florida for golf.

Last week, Takaichi also rode with Trump aboard Marine One to a US naval base near Yokosuka to view the USS George Washington aircraft carrier. Following the suggestion of Abe’s widow, Akie Abe, Taikaichi also presented Trump with one of the former prime minister’s cherished golf clubs as a gift. Despite a packed schedule, Trump also still took the time to meet Akie Abe.

Shinzo Abe’s influence manifested in everything from the exchanging of gifts to meeting arrangements, and ultimately in the outcome of Taikachi’s talks with Trump. With this, she continues in his stead to safeguard Taiwan and the security of the Indo-Pacific region.

Chen Yung-chang is a freelance writer based in Taipei.

Translated by Gilda Knox Streader


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The government and local industries breathed a sigh of relief after Shin Kong Life Insurance Co last week said it would relinquish surface rights for two plots in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投) to Nvidia Corp. The US chip-design giant’s plan to expand its local presence will be crucial for Taiwan to safeguard its core role in the global artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystem and to advance the nation’s AI development.The land in dispute is owned by the Taipei City Government, which in 2021 sold the rights to develop and use the two plots of land, codenamed T17 and T18, to the

US President Donald Trump has announced his eagerness to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un while in South Korea for the APEC summit. That implies a possible revival of US-North Korea talks, frozen since 2019. While some would dismiss such a move as appeasement, renewed US engagement with North Korea could benefit Taiwan’s security interests.The long-standing stalemate between Washington and Pyongyang has allowed Beijing to entrench its dominance in the region, creating a myth that only China can “manage” Kim’s rogue nation. That dynamic has allowed Beijing to present itself as an indispensable power broker: extracting concessions from Washington, Seoul

By AlanJeong 鄭勳燦

Taiwan’s labor force participation rate among people aged 65 or older was only 9.9 percent for 2023 — far lower than in other advanced countries, Ministry of Labor data showed. The rate is 38.3 percent in South Korea, 25.7 percent in Japan and 31.5 percent in Singapore. On the surface, it might look good that more older adults in Taiwan can retire, but in reality, it reflects policies that make it difficult for elderly people to participate in the labor market.Most workplaces lack age-friendly environments, and few offer retraining programs or flexible job arrangements for employees older than 55. As

By DinoWei 魏世昌

title: EDITORIAL CARTOON


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What is Tokyo’s coolest neighborhood? There isn’t oneTrendsetters and hipsters are racing to ‘discover’ increasingly more obscure areas of the Japanese capital to claim as their own and establish their credibility

It is fair to say that Tokyo has some of the world’s hippest neighborhoods, but I was not the only one to raise an eyebrow when Time Out magazine declared Jimbocho to be not just the coolest in the Japanese capital, but in the entire world.

Jimbocho? Really? The place with the bookstores and ski shops?

Look, as areas go, it is perfectly lovely. Nestled in between the northeast side of the Imperial Palace and the Kanda River, it boasts more than 100 bookshops and perhaps the capital’s best curry. It has a pleasing mix of modern and classic, exemplified by the mash-up of artisanal cafes and traditional kissa coffee shops. The student-heavy crowd means it has a youthful skew, while Yasukuni Shrine, the Nippon Budokan arena and the Tokyo Dome are all within walking distance.

However, other parts of the capital have all that and more. Fundamentally, what even is a “coolest” neighborhood? Who gets to arbitrate these things?

Tokyo has been featuring in these lists for years, but it was not until the late 1990s or early 2000s that global images began to shift from Blade Runner-style neon skyscrapers to the city’s walkable districts. Japan was, for most, still unknown back then — and like all things that are trendy, the foremost requirement is that I, the writer, know the subject more intimately than anyone else.

That seems to have set off a game of brinkmanship as hip areas are discovered by the masses, forcing trendsetters to move to ever more obscure ones. Coverage once focused on the likes of Shimokitazawa, Koenji or Kichijoji, offbeat hipster districts with indie music venues and plenty of flavor. Over time, coverage moved to the likes of the upscale-yet-still-cool Daikanyama (for reasons that baffle me sometimes known in tourist literature as “Little Brooklyn”) or nearby Nakameguro — although by 2019, when Harry Styles of One Direction was living there and reading Haruki Murakami (so passe!), you knew things had moved on.

More recently, attention has shifted to the likes of Tomigaya, a leafy suburb near Shibuya, or the lively Sangenjaya. These days, local magazines often rave about areas east of Tokyo, such as Kuramae or the coffee oasis of Kiyosumi-Shirakawa.

I do not know what deems these places cool, but I know it when I see it. It seems to involve some combination of lively, but not busy, near a major transportation hub, but not part of one. They need to be walkable and local, but not overly residential, with rents low enough to attract artisanal coffee shops, vintage clothing stores and record shops.

Not being a coffee snob, fashionista or audiophile, I have never quite understood this, although I will accept that they seem to draw in a certain kind of clientele — the artists, DJs and part-time models of the likes seen in the karaoke scene of Lost in Translation. There cannot be too many people who are rich enough to afford fancy cars, but there definitely cannot be many genuinely working-class people. Once foreign tourists arrive with their backpacks and cargo shorts, we have to decamp and find a new one.

We know the areas that are not. Hiroo or Azabu are desirable places to live, but too full of wealthy expats. Somewhere like Kita-Senju is too authentic, too day-to-day Japanese. Roppongi was perhaps once trendy, but only with a certain type of banker or clubber. The artificial islands of Odaiba and Toyosu would not be in vogue for decades, if ever. Ueno is too lowbrow; Nishi-Shinjuku too sterile. Others are trendsetting, but not cool — think the 2000s image of Harajuku as a global fashion center (these days much too commercial).

As a long-suffering Shibuya resident, if these lists help disperse tourists to some underappreciated areas, then so much the better. However, Tokyo cannot be reduced to a single trendy suburb: What is appealing is precisely the incongruity of its locales.

What I like about a place like Shibuya is how you can cross a street and go from a grungy back alley of clubs and suspicious head shops to a leafy upscale residential enclave of chief executives and politicians. The main thoroughfares might be packed with tourists, but they rarely find the tucked-away lanes or Japan’s greatest secret — the tiny bars and local spots stacked vertically in the upper reaches of midsize mixed-use buildings.

Most importantly, you can walk in one direction and be in leafy Tomigaya or Yoyogi Koen in minutes. Head in another, and you will encounter the hidden boutiques of Daikanyama, the upscale shopping of Aoyama and Omotesando, the trendy bars of Ebisu or the up-and-coming Ikejiri-Ohashi. These are the differences that make Tokyo special — and the ease of travel means you can decamp to another area if one becomes overrun.

So give up trying to find the single coolest Tokyo neighborhood, because there is not one. Frankly, even if there was, I would keep it to myself.

Gearoid Reidy is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering Japan and the Koreas. He previously led the breaking news team in North Asia, and was the Tokyo deputy bureau chief. This column reflects the personal views of the author and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.