Taiwan donates US$100,000 to quake-stricken New Zealand

Taipei, Feb. 23 (CNA) Taiwan donated NT$2,957,200 (US$100,000) Wednesday to help with earthquake relief and recovery efforts in New Zealand and pledged to provide more assistance if necessary.

A 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck the city of Christchurch Tuesday morning, Taiwan time, and killed at least 75 people.

"Our thoughts are with the people of New Zealand, " Taiwan's Foreign Minister Timothy C.T. Yang said Wednesday as he presented a US$100,000 check to Stephen Payton, Director of the New Zealand Commerce and Industry Office, the country's representative office in Taiwan in the absence of bilateral diplomatic ties.

The donation is meant to express Taiwan's condolences to the people of New Zealand, as well as return the friendship New Zealand demonstrated when it made a similar donation to Taiwan in 2009, said Yang.

Wellington donated NT$2,212,400 in aid to Taiwan after Typhoon Morakot devastated the island in 2009.

There were no reports of injury or death among the estimated 600 Taiwanese residents and tourists in Christchurch, Yang said, but his ministry is trying to locate the whereabouts of a female student as of Wednesday.

In his statement to Parliament, New Zealand Prime Minister John Key praised Taiwan as being amongst several countries that "have responded so quickly and have provided assistance in such a timely way."

Payton, New Zealand's representative in Taiwan, lauded Taiwan for its quick response in sending out its first search and rescue team to New Zealand on Tuesday night. The 22-member team is currently en-route with two tons of equipment, and is scheduled to arrive in Christchurch Wednesday evening.

"Only a small number of countries responded that quickly," Payton said.

He added that his office also received phone calls from locals in Taiwan who wanted to donate to New Zealand.

Payton described Taiwan's donation, which will go to the New Zealand Red Cross, as a generous offer, and said that he expects the Taiwanese rescue team will work with their counterparts from other countries in Christchurch.

"We hope that more lives can be saved, " Payton said. (By Chris Wang) enditem/ly

Manila offers no official apology over deportation row: official

Taipei, Feb. 22 (CNA) A Philippine emissary left Taiwan Tuesday without offering a direct official apology over Manila's deportation of 14 Taiwanese fraud suspects to China, but hopeful nevertheless that his substantial and apologetic measures to repair the soured relations with Taiwan over the row will be accepted, Foreign Affairs Minister Timothy C.T. Yang said.

Yang said that during his overnight meeting with Philippine envoy Manuel Roxas, the latter said the Philippines is conducting an investigation and that if related officials are found to have been involved in wrongdoing, they will be punished.

"The punishments will be even more serious than an apology to some degree, according to Roxas," Yang said.

A fact sheet documenting the views and measures agreed upon by Yang and Roxas in their marathon meeting the previous day was distributed to the press by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"There were substantial measures in the fact sheet in which the Philippines expressed regret for the incident and its willingness to repair our relations, " said a diplomatic official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Taipei and Manila have been engaged in a diplomatic row since the Philippines ignored Taiwan's demands and deported the 14 Taiwanese suspects to China Feb. 2. Taiwan has repeatedly demanded a formal apology from the Philippine government, which has insisted that it will not apologize for the deportations.

It appears that the two sides have taken a step back and have toned down their rhetoric in the document.

"In the event that officials are found to have been involved in wrong doing, the Philippine authorities will act accordingly, including the possibility of punitive action, which for the Taiwan side would signify a kind of apology," according to the fact sheet.

Roxas also expressed his goodwill, assuring Yang that he will report directly to President Benigno Aquino III, who views the incident with great concern and desires to repair the damage.

The emissary said the Southeast Asian country did not intend to put the long-standing relations between the two countries at risk.

The Philippines side said it is willing to sit down immediately to begin discussions on the establishment of a mechanism for cooperation and mutual assistance in dealing with similar crimes in the future and wants to enhance bilateral relations, including the launching of talks to determine the feasibility of beginning negotiations for an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA).

Yang said on the first day of a new legislative session that the ministry will weigh all its options in dealing with the Philippines.

"But we're unwilling to expose our bottom line now," he added.

In addition to meeting with Yang, Roxas also had a one-hour meeting with President Ma Ying-jeou, during which a stern-faced president condemned the Philippines for what he called its wrongful deportation of the Taiwanese fraud suspects to China and demanded that Manila officially apologize for the incident.

Ma told Roxas that "future relations between our two countries hinge upon your government's follow-up measures."

He pointed out three grave mistakes in handling the case, saying that while the 14 suspects were expelled by the Philippine government, but Filipino officials claimed that they were deported to China.

Second, while the 14 Taiwanese entered the Philippines legally with valid Taiwan passports, the Filipino officials claimed that they were "undocumented" people with no legal travel documents.

Third, Ma said, since the lawyer for the Taiwanese suspects had already obtained a writ of habeas corpus issued by the Philippines' Court of Appeals Jan. 31, the Philippine government violated its own country's law in deporting them to China Feb. 2.

Roxas, who returned to Manila later Tuesday, said his visit was made to convey the stance of the Philippine government and listen to Taiwan's views. He added that if necessary, he will visit Taiwan again. (By Chris Wang, Kelvin Huang, Emmanuelle Tzeng, Hsieh Chia-cheng and Lilian Wu) ENDITEM/J

Taiwan to send rescue team to quake-struck New Zealand

Taipei, Feb. 22 (CNA) Taiwan will send a rescue team Tuesday night to New Zealand after a powerful earthquake struck one of New Zealand's largest cities Tuesday morning, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs(MOFA).

Taiwan's representative office in New Zealand has been gathering information since a 6.3-magnitude quake struck Christchurch and killed at least 70 Tuesday morning Taiwan time and hasn't reported any injury or death among more than 600 Taiwanese living in the country, group tourists and backpackers, MOFA spokesman James Chang said.

Taiwan's National Fire Agency is scheduled to send a rescue team, which consists of 24 members and two search dogs, to New Zealand vis Sydney, Australia Tuesday night, according to a foreign ministry official. The team will also carry resuce equipment and humanitarian aids.(By Chris Wang) enditem/jc

Ball back in Manila's court: Taiwan foreign minister

Taipei, Feb. 22 (CNA) It is now up to the Philippines to decide what it would do to mend relations with Taiwan following the top level meetings between both sides in Taipei over the last two days, Taiwan's Minister of Foreign Affairs Timothy C.T. Yang said Tuesday.

"The ball is now back in the Philippines' court, " Yang said at a press conference after a meeting between President Ma Ying-jeou and Philippine presidential envoy Manuel Roxas.

Before his meeting with Ma, Roxas was in a marathon conference with Yang for almost 12 hours, from Monday afternoon to early Tuesday morning.

But the two sides failed to make any significant progress toward resolving their dispute over the Philippines deportation of 14 Taiwanese fraud suspects to China Feb. 2.

Yang said that progress had been made "in certain areas" although Roxas' explanation of the Philippines decisions in the matter "did not fully meet Taiwan's expectations."

Taiwan has repeatedly demanded a formal apology from the Philippines while Manila has insisted that the decision was made based on its domestic law and in the best interests of the country.

"That matter (of offering an apology) has been brought to our attention by the minister and that is something not in my mandate, " said Roxas, an appointed emissary of Philippine President Benigno Aquino III, late Monday night.

However, a senior foreign affairs official said that the Philippines was on the right track toward an apology that would lead to other remedial measures.

In what appeared to be a softening of Taiwan's stance, Yang said that the Filipino government officials who were responsible for the errors and mistakes in handling the case should be held accountable and apologize to Taiwan.

"We're giving the Philippines time to carry out its investigations before making our next move," he said, adding that the Philippines Congress and its judicial and administrative arms are currently investigating the incident.

"The Philippine authorities will act accordingly, including the possibility of punitive actions, which for the Taiwan side would signify a kind of apology, " according to a fact sheet provided by the MOFA which detailed the consensus reached by both sides in the marathon meeting.

Both sides have also agreed to begin discussions on a mutual crime-fighting agreement, the fact sheet states.

Roxas said the Philippines is interested in enhancing mutual relations, " including the launching of talks to determine the feasibility of beginning negotiations for an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA)," according to the fact sheet.

Taiwan has so far implemented a string of retaliatory measures, including tightening the screening of applications by Filipino citizens seeking to work in Taiwan and cancelling visa waivers for certain categories of Filipino travelers.

Yang said that according to Roxas, some Philippine officials have kept crucial facts about the case from President Aquino.

In his talks with Roxas, Yang said, he underlined the longstanding friendship between the two close neighbors but also reiterated that the Philippines' handling of the case was like "a stab in the back."

Yang and Ma both made clear to Roxas that Manila's handling of the dispute will be used as "a barometer for the future development of the bilateral ties." (By Chris Wang) enditem/pc

Takahashi takes men's gold in figure skating championships

Taipei, Feb. 19 (CNA) Japan's Daisuke Takahashi scored his personal best in the men's free skating program to win the gold in men's competition at the 2011 Four Continent Figure Skating Championships in Taipei Saturday night

The 2010 world champion had 160.51 points in the free skating program and a total of 244 points, well ahead of silver medalist Yuzuru Hanyu's 228.01 points and American Jeremy Abbott's 225.71 points.

Takahashi said he made some small mistakes Saturday night but was able to win gold thanks to the margin he built up in Friday's short program.

Because of the similarity between Taiwan and Japan, he added, he felt comfortable competing in Taipei.

Earlier in the day, Japan's Miki Ando finished first in the ladies' short program with 66.58 points, followed by compatriot Mao Asada's 63.41 and American skater Rachael Flatt's 62.23. The free skating program will take place Sunday to conclude the championships.

Meryl Davis and Charlie White of the United States won the Ice Dancing category Friday as Canadian contenders Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir withdrew from the free skating program, citing injury.

Qing Pang and Jian Tong of China won their fifth pairs title in the championship the same day.

The championships, sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU) , are being held in Taiwan for the first time with free admission for spectators in order to promote winter sports in Taiwan. (By Chris Wang) enditem/ls

Tseng surges to third-round lead at Honda LPGA Thailand

Taipei, Feb. 19 (CNA) World No. 1 Yani Tseng of Taiwan eagled her final hole to cap a two-under-par 70 on Saturday and take a one-shot lead after the third round of the Honda LPGA Thailand, the LPGA Tour's first tournament of the season.

Tseng, who started the day one shot behind I. K. Kim of South Korea, lost her spot at the top of the leaderboard with bogies on the 16th and 17th holes of the Pattaya Old Course at Siam Country Club before retaking the lead with the eagle on the par-5 18th.

The 22-year-old, winner of the Women's Australian Open and the ANZ Ladies Masters the last two weeks, had a nine-under-par 207 heading into Sunday's final round of the US$1.45 million tournament, one shot ahead of American Michelle Wie and Kim.

Paula Creamer of the United States was another shot back at 209 and Australian Karrie Webb was fifth at 210.

The Taiwanese golfer had an up-and-down day, starting off with a double bogey on the 2nd hole and then scoring five birdies and a bogey between the 7th and 15th holes. She had only eight pars for the round.

Tseng finished third in last year's LPGA Thailand event, six shots behind Ai Miyazato of Japan, but this year the Taiwanese star has more at stake as she tries to defend her No. 1 ranking.

Her closest rival in the Rolex world rankings, world No. 2 Jiyai Shin of South Korea, struggled to a 76 in Saturday's third round, leaving her 13 shots behind Tseng.

Taiwan's Candie Kung tied for 30th at 219 and Amy Hung was 39th at 221. (By Chris Wang) enditem/ls

Chinese pair wins Four Continent Figure Skating Championships

Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) Olympic silver medalists Qing Pang and Jian Tong of China won their fifth pairs title in the 2011 Four Continent Figure Skating Championships Friday with a convincing victory.

The 2010 world champions had a season-best 128.04 points Friday night in the free skating category for a total of 199.45 points to win the prestigious event after previous victories in 2002, 2004, 2008 and 2009.

The Chinese pair also led the short program Thursday with 71.41 points.

Tong told reporters that the duo were happy with the win despite committing some errors and their next goal would be to win the World Championships next month, to be held in Nagano, Japan.

Canadian duo Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford were second with a total of 181.79 points after finishing second in the long program while compatriots Paige Lawrence and Rudy Swiegers were third with 171.73 points despite finishing fourth in the long program.

Daisuke Takahashi of Japan, the 2010 world champion, enjoyed a comfortable lead in the men's short program with 83.49 points. Jeremy Abbott of the Unites States was second with 76.73 points while Japan's Yuzuru Hanyu was third with 72.71 points.

Takahiko Kozuka, who beat Takahashi in last year's Japan national championship, finished a disappointing sixth with 66.25 points.

Takahashi said the setback at home last year motivated him to be more dedicated to the sport so he could be in peak form at the World Championships.

(By Chris Wang) enditem/ls

Taiwan's pro baseball league announces new season schedule

Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) The defending champion Brother Elephants will meet the Sinon Bulls in Kaohsiung on March 19 to open this year's professional baseball season, Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) announced Friday.

The Elephants will meet the Bulls on opening day in a rematch of the 2010 Taiwan Series -- won by Brother in a four-game sweep -- to kick off a 240-game regular season that will conclude on Sept. 25 and be followed by the Taiwan Series starting Oct. 14.

A long period is left between the end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs to accommodate games played to make up for the many rainouts that hit the league during the summer.

The central city of Taichung will host the most number of games, with 40 at the Taichung Baseball Stadium and 22 at the Intercontinental Baseball Stadium. Another 40 games will be played in the northern city of Taoyuan.

The league was forced to move games away from the greater Taipei area because Taipei City will host the IBAF Little League Championship in the first half of the year, according to the league.

A four-team professional league established in 1990, the CPBL consists of the Elephants, the Bulls, the Lamigo Monkeys, which was formerly known as the La New Bears, and the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions.

The league's All-Star Games will be played July 23 and 24. Twelve exhibition games are scheduled from March 5-15. (By Chris Wang) enditem/ls

Philippines envoy to lead fence-mending mission to Taiwan

Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) The Philippines and Taiwan will start trying to mend their current tense relations over a deportation dispute with the arrival in Taipei Feb. 21 of presidential envoy Manuel Roxas to explain and discuss the matter, a Philippines official said Friday.

Amadeo Perez, chairman of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) -- a non-profit organization in charge of Philippine-Taiwan affairs in the absence of official diplomatic ties, confirmed the appointment in a meeting with Foreign Minister Timothy C.T. Yang.

Taiwan reacted strongly to the Philippines' Feb. 2 deportation of 14 Taiwanese fraud suspects to China, saying that the country had ignored Taiwan's jurisdiction rights. It also took punitive action against Manila, including tightening the process for screening applications by Filipino nationals seeking to work in Taiwan.

"President (Benigno) Aquino has appointed his trusted former Senator Manuel Roxas as his special envoy, who is very popular among Taiwanese in the Philippines... to iron out the relationship between the Philippines and Taiwan, " Perez, who arrived in Taipei that same day, told reporters before his 90-minute closed-door meeting with Yang.

The veteran diplomat said after the meeting that Roxas' delegation is scheduled to have a discussion with Yang and "hopefully" to meet with President Ma Ying-jeou.

"On behalf of the MECO, I would like to express our regret to the Taiwanese people for this unfortunate incident, " he said.

Asked by reporters whether the Philippines will offer an official apology, which Taiwan has demanded, Perez said he did not know.

Yang, who said a day earlier that Taiwan's response "will be contingent on who the envoy is and what message he or she brings, " said he was glad Aquino decided to send his trusted friend, whom he described recently as the "troubleshooter" of his administration.

However, whether or not Roxas will meet Ma will depend on what message he brings and will not be decided until after the meeting with Yang.

Taiwan remains firm on its position that the Philippines should offer a formal apology because its handling of the case was "flawed" and violated the legal process, Yang said, adding that Manila wrongfully described the Taiwanese suspects as "undocumented" before sending them to China.

Yang said that the Philippine authorities' mention of the one-China policy and a mutual legal assistance agreement between Taiwan and China as reasons for the handling of the incident was "simply unacceptable. "

"By mentioning those things -- the one-China policy and cross-Taiwan Strait affairs, the Philippines has unnecessarily touched upon a delicate area that should not be involved," Yang said. (By Chris Wang) ENDITEM/J

First cross-strait committee meeting to be held next week: SEF

Taipei, Feb. 18 (CNA) The first meeting of the cross-Taiwan Strait Economic Cooperation Committee (ECC) will be held in the northern city of Taoyuan over three days, starting Feb. 22, Taiwan's top Chinese affairs negotiating body said Friday in a press release.

The committee was established by the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) and its Chinese counterpart the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) to handle the implementation of the historical Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) between Taiwan and China.

The meeting, which was initially scheduled to take place in Beijing, will begin one day after the Chinese delegates arrive in Taiwan.

Zheng Lizhong, vice president of the ARATS, and SEF Vice Chairman Kao Koong-lian will serve as co-conveners of the committee. Meanwhile, Jiang Zhengwei, deputy minister of China's Ministry of Commerce, and Francis Liang, deputy minister Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) , will act as top representatives for both sides, according to the SEF.

The topics to be discussed in the meeting include the establishment of working groups, negotiation of follow-up agreements, and implementation of the ECFA's early harvest program, the SEF said.

The ECC meeting will overlap with ARATS President Chen Yunlin's visit Feb. 23-28, during which the top Chinese negotiator with Taiwan is scheduled to engage in a string of exchange activities in southern Taiwan. (By Chris Wang) enditem /pc