Hsu Chia-ching (徐佳青) denies wasting public funds or improperly benefiting her
family during her time as Overseas Community Affairs Council minister.

Premier Cho Jung-tai accepted her resignation earlier today.

Hsu acknowledges asking family and friends to help when the council was
short-staffed.

But she says she never used her authority to create jobs for relatives or
spent public money on their behalf.

The TPP alleges her husband used an official vehicle overseas and her son was
passed off as an event photographer.

The Foreign Ministry is still checking those allegations.

Hsu has requested administrative and judicial investigations.

She says resigning was her own decision and that she began handing over
National Day arrangements yesterday.

(PB)

Taipei prosecutors have indicted four people over alleged round-the-clock
surveillance of DPP Legislator and Taipei mayoral candidate Puma Shen and his
family.

Prosecutors say private investigator Cheng Yung-chin (鄭永津) received
360-thousand N.T. from two Hong Kong clients to arrange the surveillance.

He allegedly subcontracted the work to another investigation company.

Prosecutors say a miniature camera hidden beneath a scooter seat recorded the
entrance to Shen's home.

It allegedly monitored Shen, his wife and daughter from October 1st to
November 8th, 2024.

The footage was sent through Telegram and forwarded to one of the clients.

The four face charges of illegally collecting and using personal data.

Prosecutors are seeking an 18-month prison sentence for Cheng.

Both Hong Kong clients have fled abroad and are wanted.

(PB)

Taiwanese Mastercard holders spent more on dining, entertainment and local
activities in Japan and South Korea last year.

The company's analysis shows spending on these experiences rose 39 percent in
Japan and 44 percent in South Korea compared with 2024.

Both increases outpaced growth in shopping.

The study also points to spending spreading beyond the main destinations.

Fukuoka, Okinawa and Sapporo recorded faster overall spending growth than
Tokyo.

In South Korea, Seoul remained the biggest destination for spending, but its
share edged down.

Experience-related spending more than doubled in Jeju and rose 73 percent in
Busan.

Mastercard says the findings suggest travelers increasingly plan trips around
experiences.

The analysis covers in-person Mastercard transactions in 2024 and 2025.

(PB)

Premier Cho Jung-tai has accepted the resignation of Overseas Community
Affairs Council Minister Hsu Chia-ching (徐佳青).

Her resignation today follows TPP allegations that her family improperly used
government resources during her overseas trips.

The party's legislative caucus says her husband used an official vehicle
overseas.

It also alleges that her underage son accompanied her on official trips and
was passed off as an event photographer.

Hsu denies wrongdoing and says the accusations distort the facts.

She has requested administrative and judicial investigations, pledging to
cooperate fully and accept their findings.

The Cabinet says the Foreign Ministry is still checking the allegations.

It says Cho accepted her resignation out of respect for her wish to protect
her reputation.

(PB)

North Korea is criticizing U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, accusing Washington of
raising tensions in the Taiwan Strait.

A commentary carried by North Korean state media today questioned whether the
United States was prepared to confront China over Taiwan.

It criticized the arrival of American-made fighter jets.

Taiwan received its first two new F-16V fighters last Friday, part of a
66-aircraft purchase approved in 2019.

(PB)

Student advocacy groups are calling on the government to expand school
menstrual leave beyond the current one-day monthly limit.

Student groups held a press conference at the Legislative Yuan today, arguing
that the current single-day cap fail to support students with longer or more
severe symptoms.

Administrative Deputy Minister Chu Chun-chang pledged to consult medical
experts, gender equality scholars, and school administrators to revise the
regulations.

Chu also says the education ministry plans to review attendance rules and
grading evaluations to ensure students are not unfairly penalized when taking
leave.

(NS)

New Taipei prosecutors have charged 10 people for allegedly reselling
restricted military-grade chips from two US companies to Hong Kong for China.

The defendants include one man who runs several technology companies in
Taiwan, as well as his brother, and several others.

Prosecutors charged them with fraud, forgery, and money laundering.

They're seeking 10 years behind bars for the suspected ringleader, Chen Jian
Xiong (陳建雄), and one to eight years for the other defendants.

The indictment says that Chen colluded with others to falsely name the
National Zhongshan INstitute of Science and Technology as an end user of high
speed chips that could be used for military purposes.

Then, when the chips were imported into Taiwan, the defendants allegedly
resold them to buyers in Hong Kong, including China-controlled companies,
profiting from the price difference...

to the tune of 300 million NT.

They also fasely labeled the products as having been made in Taiwan when they
were actually manufactured in the Philippines, South Korea, and Singapore.

and speaking of chips,

The CEO of Advanced Micro Devices says, the company plans to increase its
investment in Taiwan's supply chain...

as demand for computing chips continues to exceed supply.

Lisa Su says, the 10 billion dollar investment announced in May was
progressing as planned.

But growing demand for central processing units and other AI computing
products was prompting AMD to invest more.

Su arrived in Taiwan yesterday for her third visit this year.

She says, she met with partners including Acer, Asus, Foxconn, and Quanta...

and will meet with TSMC and other suppliers on her trip.

No damage or injures are being reported after a magnitude 4.5 earthquake
shook the coast of southern Taiwan late this afternoon.

According to the Central Weather Administration, the quake struck just after
4:40 PM at sea ... at about 42 kilometers south-southwest of Kaohsiung City
Hall, at a depth of around 34 kilometers.

The earthquake's intensity was highest in Kaohsiung, where it measured 3 on
Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale.

The quake also measured an intensity of 2 in Pingtung County.

The Food and Drug Administration says frozen organic berry and blueberry
products recalled in the U-S over possible E. coli contamination have not
been imported into Taiwan.

The recalled products include Great Value frozen organic mixed berries and
blueberries ... as well as frozen organic mixed berries sold by Trader Joe's.

The U-S Food and Drug Administration says the products may be contaminated
with a type of E. coli bacteria.

Taiwan's F-D-A is advising businesses not to import the recalled products ...
while travelers to the U-S should avoid buying or eating them.

(IG)

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms that Taiwan's representative office
in Papua New Guinea remains open and fully operational.

The clarification comes after PNG Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko
unilaterally claimed in July that the Taiwanese mission would be closed.

Taiwan suspended spot-market liquefied natural gas imports from Papua New
Guinea following the statement, warning that further measures remain under
review.

Foreign ministry officials reaffirmed their strong protest against unilateral
actions taken without prior bilateral consultation or mutual agreement.

MOFA says it is coordinating with like-minded international partners to
encourage dialogue and protect the mutual interests of both nations in the
region.

(NS)

Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an and DPP Taipei mayoral candidate Puma Shen have
reached a consensus on their televised debate organized by TVBS.

But there's no timeline for that debate yet.

Shen proposed earlier to make drug policy the topic of their first debate,
and Chiang said today that any municipal issue could be discussed, including
drug policy and the candidates' respective positions.


Chiang has also promised to take part in other debates between him and his
DPP rival, saying that's what he did 4 years ago and that they included a
cross-examination segment as well.

Asked why he had chosen TVBS when several other media outlets had also
invited the candidates to debate, Chiang only said the two sides have agreed
to let their staff work out the details.

(JL)

Taiwan's flu outbreak remains at epidemic levels, with the number of severe
cases and deaths reaching record highs.


According to the Center for Disease Control, 219 new severe flu cases and 44
deaths were reported between September 29th and October 5th.

A total of one million people have received flu shots so far, up 2.4 percent
compared with the same period last year, and the biggest increase is among
people aged 65 and older.

Currently people aged 65 and older, and Indigenous people aged 55 to 64, as
well as Children aged 6 months through high school are eligible for
publicly-funded flu shots.

(JL)

Highway officials are warning of long periods of heavy traffic on National
Freeway 5 during the upcoming National Day holiday.

Heavy southbound traffic is expected Friday and Saturday from about 5 AM to 5
PM, while northbound congestion is expected Saturday and Sunday from around 9
AM until late at night.

Southbound entrance ramps at Shiding (石碇) and Pinglin (坪林) will be closed
during peak periods ... and high-occupancy restrictions will be imposed on
northbound entrances from Suao (蘇澳) to Toucheng (頭城).

Officials say taking public transportation could save around 30 minutes ...
or as much as an hour during peak periods.

About 70 percent of intercity bus tickets on western routes and 83 percent on
eastern routes are still available.

(IG)

The Tai-Ex continued to surged towards the 50,000 mark in early trading this
morning.

The main board added 256-points to reach 49,968.

The rise was led by tech stocks after the Nasdaq climbed 1.1-per cent on Wall
Street overnight to set a new record.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing's American depositary receipts surged by
2.75-per cent overnight to hit a fresh high - and that resulted in it share
price adding 15 N-T in early trading on the Tai-Ex to reach 2,590 N-T.

However, other major electronics heavyweights were mixed.

Delta Electronics rose over 5-per cent, Hon Hai added 3.7-per cent, Yageo
rose 1.2- per cent, but MediaTek fell 2-per cent and U-M-C was down nearly
3-per cent.

Market watchers say with Nvidia’s market capitalization hitting a record high
overnight and T-S-M-C's A-D-Rs reaching a new high, technical indicators show
strong momentum and tech heavyweights are expected to push the weighted index
above the 50,000-point level today.

The Ministry of National Defense is reporting no Chinese air sorties
operating around Taiwan for a second consecutive day between 6AM Monday and
6AM today.

However, eight Chinese Navy vessel and eight official maritime patrol ships
were spotted operating in Taiwan Strait over the same 24-hour period.

The Taiwan People's Party is accusing Overseas Community Affairs Council head
Hsu Chia-ching and her family members of misusing public resources during her
trips abroad.

Hsu previously served as deputy Overseas Community Affairs Council head,
before being promoted.

According to T-P-P legislative caucus director Vicky Chen, Hsu has traveled
abroad 47 times for a total of 526 days since 2022 spending a total of
23-million N-T, or about one-third of the council's international travel
budget.

Chen says during that four-year period, Hsu also applied for daily travel
allowances totaling 4.2-million N-T.

The charges come after reports said Hsu had taken personal leave six times
during trips to the United States since 2024, fueling speculation that she
was scheduling such frequent trips solely to visit family members.

An audio recording of an anonymous individual stating that Hsu's husband and
son currently live in Washington, and that Hsu had traveled to Washington or
New York "three to four times" in 2024 has also been released.

The anonymous individual in the recording can be heard to say that the
frequent trips exhausted staff at Taiwan's local Overseas Community Affairs
Council offices and Hsu's American husband used a Taiwan diplomatic vehicle
to drive their son to family reunions.

The Ministry of Finance says two receipts for 10 N-T covering the purchase of
milk tea and payment of an Uber processing fee were among 17 receipts that
won the 10-million N-T special prize in the July-August uniform invoice
lottery.

One of those receipts for 10 N-T was issued for purchases at a FamilyMart
convenience store in Tainan's Yanshui District.

Other special prize winning receipts included a 27 N-T printing receipt
issued by a 7-Eleven store in Taipei, a 29 N-T food purchase at a 7-Eleven in
Taoyuan's Zhongli District, and a 33 N-T food purchase at a 7-Eleven in
Kaohsiung's Fengshan District.

The highest-value winning purchase was a 24,000 N-T wallet bought at the
Loewe counter in Breeze Nanshan in Taipei.

Eleven receipts matched the winning number for the 2-million N-T grand prize
in the July-August uniform invoice lottery.

The winners can claim their prizes from today until January 5 of next year.

And finally,

Independent meteorologist Daniel Wu says a northeasterly monsoon is forecast
to strengthen and will result in the mercury in some low-lying areas dropping
to as low as 16-degrees from today until Friday.

The northeasterly monsoon will also bring rain to parts of the island.

The Central Weather Administration has issued rain advisories.

Heavy rain or extremely heavy rain warnings are in effect for mountainous
areas of Taipei.

While heavy rain warnings have been issued for Keelung City, the North Coasta
area, mountainous parts of New Taipei, Yilan, the Hengchun Peninsula and
Orchid Island.

All of those rain advisories are currently in effect through late this
morning.

The Presidential Office has condemned what it has described as a "typical
case of transnational repression" after reports that China has been illegally
surveilling President Lai Ching-te's son in the United States.

Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo says China's "barbaric" acts show
disregard for human rights and national sovereignty and seek to suppress,
threaten or even harm people who advocate freedom and democracy or their
families.

Kuo said such behavior should not be tolerated in the civilized world.

She also thanked U-S law enforcement authorities for assisting and protecting
Taiwan's people and said the Lai administration would continue to work with
the United States and other democratic allies to jointly combat illegal acts
of transnational repression.

The comments come after C-B-S News reported that the FBI had had arrested a
California-based real estate agent, at Los Angeles International Airport on
charges of acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government.

Law enforcement sources told C-B-S News that the target was Lai's son Lai
Ting-yu.

Lai's son lives in the U-S with his family and reportedly works for the Dutch
multinational Philips.

Eswatini's new ambassador to Taiwan says his country will continue advocating
for Taiwan's participation in international organizations.

He made the comments as he presented his credentials to President Lai
Ching-te.

Vulind-lela Sim-phiwe Ku-nene said global challenges cannot be effectively
addressed while "the knowledge, resources and experience of more than 23
million people were excluded."

Kunene said Eswatini would therefore continue to push for Taiwan's inclusion
in international organizations and mechanisms where its contribution can
benefit humanity.

The diplomat described that support "an expression of friendship" and "a
principled position grounded in fairness, inclusion and the practical
requirements of effective international cooperation."

For his part, the president said Taiwan will continue working with Eswatini
on projects including the Taiwan Industrial Innovation Park, even as it
expanded cooperation in agriculture, healthcare, education, trade and
technology.

Eswatini's King Mswati III's is expected to visit to Taiwan this week to
attend October 10 National Day events.

Taipei City Police Commissioner Lin Yen-tien says six officers have been
disciplined for misconduct after a raid on a gay bar in the Ximending area.

Lin says four of the officers were found to have used inappropriate language
during the raid and each received two reprimands, while the lead investigator
at the scene was given a demerit for failing to promptly stop the remarks.

The police commissioner also says Wanhua Precinct chief has also received two
reprimands over inadequate supervision and that the request was approved.

The raid took place on Saturday evening.

Gender equality group have claimed police used excessive force, violated
procedures, and made discriminatory and degrading remarks toward people with
disabilities.

However, the police commissioner says the raid was lawful and conducted under
a court-issued search warrant in response to reports of suspected violations
of public morality.

Lin said the venue had been the subject of 13 complaints this year alleging
activities that violated public decency.

Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an says the incident was regrettable and any
misconduct during law enforcement will be thoroughly reviewed and police
discipline would be strengthened.

The union representing workers at Kuai Kuai's Zhongli factory is challenging
the company's relocation assurances and accusing a labor broker of pressuring
migrant workers to cross a picket line during an ongoing strike.

The Kuai Kuai union voiced its concerns during a protest outside the Ministry
of Labor in Taipei.

The protest was held three days after workers at the factory began a strike
that has been extended indefinitely.

The strike was called after news broke that Kuai Kuai has sold the Zhongli
site to Advanced Semiconductor Engineering for 5.6-billion N-T and the
company planned to relocate its employees without paying them severance and
other layoff benefits.

Kuai Kuai last Friday announced that it would not lay off workers for the two
years it remains at the Zhongli site, and will provide statutory severance
plus two months' wages for ensuing layoffs.

The union is also alleging that a broker twice brought migrant workers to the
picket line last Friday and asked them whether they wanted to enter the
factory to work, in what the union says was an attempt to get them to cross
the picket line.

According to the union, the plant currently employees about 60 migrant
workers, mainly from Vietnam and Indonesia, none of whom are union members.

The Taipei District Prosecutors' Office has indicted Farxun E-commerce and 25
people over an alleged fraudulent investment scheme.

The company, its CEO, surnamed and 24 others has been charged with violating
the Banking Act.

The company C-E-O has has also been charged with aggravated fraud and money
laundering, while the company's C-F-O has also been charged with money
laundering.

Prosecutors say the company's de facto person in charge could not be located
during the investigation and a warrant has been issued for their arrest.

Farxun allegedly began soliciting investments in January of 2024 through
social media advertisements and investment briefings in Taipei, Taichung and
Kaohsiung for a "Green Energy EV Charger" investment scheme.

The company allegedly told investors they could purchase an E-V charger for
300,000 N-T and receive a guaranteed minimum monthly return of 3,520 N-T,
equivalent to an annual rate of return of 14.08-per cent.

The company also allegedly promised to buy back each charger for 210,000 N-T
after three years.

Prosecutors say the company illegally obtained more than 219-million N-T
between January 2024 and January 2026.

And,

The High Speed Rail Corporation says it will be adding southbound trains to
Taichung starting Thursday, the final working day before the National Day
holiday.

This comes as the company expects an increase in passenger volume over the
three-day weekend holiday period... and after complaints of severe crowding
during the four-day Mid-Autumn Festival and Teachers' Day holiday.

Some passengers with reserved seats reportedly struggled to board and
passengers from non-reserved cars spilled into business-class cars.

Eight southbound trains to Taichung will be added during the four-hour, 5PM
to 9PM peak period, with two trains per hour departing from either Nangang or
Taipei.

All seats except those in business class will be non-reserved.

The trains will stop at Banqiao, Taoyuan, Hsinchu and Miaoli and each train
will have nine to 11 non-reserved cars.

The High Speed Rail Corporation also says to increase capacity, trains
arriving in Taichung will return north from the same platform, allowing them
to depart again within 12 minutes of arrival.

The Taipei District Prosecutors Office has indicted an e-commerce company and
25 people over an alleged investment fraud scheme worth more than 219 million
NT.

It says Farxun E-commerce promoted investments in electric vehicle chargers,
promising investors a guaranteed annual return of more than 14 percent.

Investors were told they could buy a charger for 300-thousand NT and receive
monthly returns, with the company also promising to buy back the chargers
after three years.

Prosecutors say fewer than 200 chargers were actually installed in 2024,
while the company continued soliciting money for more.

They allege some of the funds were instead used to pay earlier investors and
sales bonuses.

The company's CEO, surnamed Hsieh (謝), faces charges including aggravated
fraud and money laundering.

Prosecutors are seeking a prison sentence of more than 16 years for Hsieh.

(CNA_IG)

Chiayi County is launching a raffle campaign as its YouBike system approaches
two million rides.

The campaign runs through November 5th ... with riders earning one raffle
entry for every five rides.

The top prize is a 5-thousand NT voucher ... with other prizes including
200-NT vouchers, outdoor cooking sets and sports bags.

The county currently has 188 YouBike stations and 1-thousand-550 bicycles
serving 16 townships and cities.

Officials plan to expand the network to 240 stations and 1-thousand-800
bicycles by the first quarter of next year.

But officials say they will also review stations with low usage ... and may
relocate bikes or remove stations to concentrate resources in areas with
greater demand.

(IG)

Hon Hai's monthly revenue has topped one trillion NT for the first time in
the company's history.

The Taiwanese electronics giant reported September revenue of 1.15 trillion
NT ... up almost 26 percent from August and more than 38 percent from a year
earlier.

Third-quarter revenue also hit a record 3.03 trillion NT ... up more than 20
percent from the previous quarter and up 47 percent year-on-year.

That puts revenue for the first nine months of year at 7.67 trillion NT ...
which up nearly 40 percent from the same period last year, also setting a
record for the period.

Hon Hai says its cloud and networking business benefited from strong demand
for AI-related products ... while components and computer products also
posted strong growth.

Looking to the fourth quarter ... the company expects its AI business to
continue growing, while ICT products benefit from the traditional second-half
peak season.

However, Hon Hai warns that global economic and political developments remain
a risk.

(IG)

Taiwan High Speed Rail says it will add two more southbound trains per hour
to Taichung during Friday evening rush hours ... starting this week.

The service will run between 5 and 9 PM ... providing eight additional trains
over the four-hour period.

The trains will depart from either Nangang or Taipei and stop at every
station to Taichung ... with all-unreserved seating except for business
class.

T-H-S-R says the measure is aimed at easing heavy demand for unreserved seats.

Under special scheduling, trains will turn around directly at the platform
... allowing them to depart again within 12 minutes and saving about an hour.

The measure follows severe crowding during the recent Mid-Autumn Festival
holiday ... when THSR carried a record 348-thousand passengers on September
24th.

(IG)

The Justice Minister said today that nine types of drugs, including
etomi-date, have been reclassified as Category 1 drugs.

Zheng Ming-qian (鄭銘謙) noted that the circulation and abuse of etomidate-class
drugs have become rampant, threatening public health and social safety.

He stressed that related precursor chemicals have also been listed as
Category 4 drugs to strengthen source management as well.

The Minister emphasized that efforts will continue to strengthen crackdowns
and sever supply chains.

Anti-drug initiatives must also assist users in overcoming addiction,
utilizing cross-disciplinary cooperation to achieve the goals of stable
reintegration.

He made the remarks at an anti-drug forum sponsored by the Ministry of
Justice, in collaboration with the Health Ministry and the U.S. Drug
Enforcement Administration Educational Foundation.

According to the ministry, it has conducted 960 counseling and promotional
sessions within correctional facilities this year, serving over 54-thousand
individuals.
(JL)

AMD Chair and CEO Lisa Su is expected to arrive in Taiwan Tuesday as part of
a tour of Asia.


Su will make only a brief stop in Taiwan, holding several urgent closed-door
meetings with suppliers.

She is also expected to brief the media on AMD's latest strategy.


Market attention is focused on whether Su will meet key Taiwanese suppliers
including TSMC, Quanta, Wistron, Inventec and Pegatron.

The talks could review delivery schedules from the second half of this year
through next year, as well as progress in liquid cooling technology, rack
integration and testing.

AMD has also been stepping up its efforts in software and its broader AI
ecosystem.

(JL)

Taiwan Lottery Company has launched two new scratch cards offering more than
3.5 million prizes with a combined prize pool of over $2 billion NT.

Taiwan Lottery said the first scratch card, "Adding Gold to 10", is priced at
$500.

Players can win prizes by scratching off a single "10" or "10" symbol, two
numbers that add up to "10," or three "10" numbers or symbols.

The company said there are four top prizes of $5 million NT .

The second scratch card, "Joy From Heaven," is priced at $200 with six top
prizes of $2 million NT each...

and the company noted that about 30-percent of the tickets are expected to
win a prize.

(CNA JL)

With inflation reaching the adjustment threshold, the estate and gift tax
exemptions are expected to rise next year.



Compared with the last adjustment in 2022, the Consumer Price Index had risen
a cumulative 11.6 percent as of August this year, exceeding the mandatory
adjustment threshold of 10 percent under the Estate and Gift Tax Act.

The Ministry of Finance said the estate tax exemption is expected to rise to
$14.9 million NT next year, an increase of 1.5 million.

Meanwhile the gift tax exemption is expected to be at 2.7 millin NT, an
increase of 280-thousand.

The M-O-F says the exact increases will not be confirmed until the government
releases October's inflation figures.



The higher exemptions will apply to inheritances and gifts made from
January 1st next year, providing a tax break particularly for wealthier
families transferring assets to the next generation.

(JL)

The Presidential office has accused China of "transnational repression" for a
suspected Chinese agent's alleged surveillence of President Lai Ching-te's
son.

Presidential office spokesperson Karen Guo says Taiwan strongly condemns what
she called "barbaric acts" that disregard human rights and national
sovereignty.

The comments follow a CBS News report that the FBI had arrested a suspected
Chinese agent at Los Angeles International Airport after she allegedly
surveilled Lai's Seattle-based son.

Wan-ying Zhang (張婉瑩), an Irvine, California resident, was arrested on Sunday
before she boarded a flight to Shanghai from LAX, on a charge of acting as an
unregistered agent of a foreign government.

A criminal complaint, filed in federal court by a member of the FBI's
counterintelligence squad in L.A., accused Zhang and an accomplice of
traveling to Seattle in September 2025 and taking pictures at the suburban
home of Lai Ting-yu (賴廷與).

Ting-Yu, an engineer in his 30s, attended college in America and has a young
U.S.-born son with his wife.

According to FBI's criminal complaint, Zhang was acting on instructions from
people linked to the Chinese government.

(JL)

And finally,

The 2026 Asian Games wrapped up its final day of events on Sunday ... and
Taiwan will be coming home with five gold 17 silver and 33 bronze medals.

Taiwan ended the games in 15th place in the overall medals between Qatar in
14th and Indonesia in 16th place.

While the total medal count was only slightly lower than in previous Asian
Games, the five golds were Taiwan's fewest since the 1990 Asian Games in
Beijing, when it didn't win any.

It was also a sharp decline from the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, when Taiwan
tied its best-ever performance with 19 gold medals.

Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung is in the U-S for a three-day visit that
included the opening of Taiwan's new representative office in Phoenix,
Arizona.

Lin is scheduled to preside over the unveiling ceremony for the office...
he's also scheduled to meet with Taiwan business leaders and members of the
expatriate community in the region.

American Institute in Taiwan Washington Managing Director Ingrid Larson will
be with Lin during his Arizona trip.

The foreign ministry is calling the inauguration of the Taipei Economic and
Cultural Office in Phoenix a new milestone in the economic and trade
partnership between Taiwan and the U-S.

The government first announced that it would open a representative office in
Phoenix to strengthen economic, technology, education and supply-chain
cooperation back in July...

The Phoenix office is scheduled to become Taiwan's 14th representative office
in the U-S.

Lin arrived in Arizona after wrapping up a week-long visit to Belize and
Guatemala.

Leaders of Taiwan's major political parties have been rallying in support of
their respective parties mayoral and city council candidates ahead of the
November 28 local elections.

Events on Sunday were held in Taipei, Taichung and Kaohsiung.

In Taipei, President Lai Ching-te praised D-P-P's Taipei mayoral candidate
Puma Shen at the opening of his campaign headquarters.

Shen is running a "positive campaign" focused on policy and the future of the
capital, rather than attacking his opponent.

K-M-T chairwoman Cheng Li-wun attended the opening of the campaign
headquarters of the party's Taichung mayoral candidate Johnny Chiang.

Cheng said the K-M-T needs to win both the 2026 local elections and the 2028
presidential election so that the central and local governments can work in
concert to promote economic development and peace.

Meanwhile, Taiwan People's Party Chairman Huang Kuo-chang joined K-M-T
Kaohsiung mayoral candidate Ko Chih-en at a campaign event for T-P-P
Kaohsiung city council candidate Lin Yu-kai.

Huang touted KMT-TPP cooperation - saying Kaohsiung needs a new,
forward-looking and efficient model of governance.

Former Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen is set to travel to the U-S this week to
deliver a keynote speech at Stanford University.

Tsai's office says she will deliver the opening keynote at Stanford DEFCON's
2026 Technology & National Security Conference on October 7... where she will
share Taiwan's experience in critical technologies and semiconductor
manufacturing...

she'll also touch on its efforts to strengthen international partnerships,
defense and national resilience.

Stanford's Hoover Institution has also invited Tsai to speak on October 8
about democracy, resilience and global security.

That event will be jointly hosted by the Hoover Institution's Taiwan in the
Indo-Pacific Region program and Stanford in Government, the university's
oldest and largest nonpartisan public service and policy organization.

This week's visit to the U-S will be Tsai's first trip there since she left
office in 2024.

Several gender equality groups are calling on the Taipei City Government to
investigate a police raid on a gay bar.

The groups are claiming police used excessive force, violated procedures and
made discriminatory and degrading remarks towards some of the patrons.

The claims come after the Taipei City Police Department's Wanhua Precinct
conducted the raid on a BDSM-themed gay bar in Taipei's Ximending District.

A statement posted on the Taiwan Tongzhi Hotline Association's Facebook page
says police refused to show a search warrant and took dozens of people to the
police station against their will to give statements.

The Wanhua Police Precinct says the raid was a lawful operation in response
to a report of suspected violations of public morals and was conducted under
a search warrant issued by a court.

Police say they found violations of public morals during the raid and took
the person responsible for the venue and other relevant individuals in for
questioning.

Several people have referred to prosecutors on suspicion of public indecency
and violations of the Social Order Maintenance Act.

The Agency of Corrections says the percentage of inmates serving sentences
for drug-related offenses has fallen from 35.1 to 24.8-per cent over the past
five years.

The agency is crediting a policy of diverting eligible offenders into
community-based addiction treatment rather than prison for the decline.

The government's third-phase New Generation Anti-Drug Strategy Action Plan is
said to emphasise tiered diversion and diversified treatment.

Under the policy, people whose offenses involve only drug use and who
primarily require addiction treatment are, where possible, offered deferred
prosecution with court-ordered treatment in the community instead of
imprisonment.

Those involved in violent crimes, serious offenses or other criminal
activities are placed in correctional institutions.

The plans runs from 2025 to 2028.

The Agency of Corrections says as of the end of June of this year, 14,521
inmates were serving sentences for drug related offenses, representing 24.8
percent of the total prison population of 58,455.

The Railway Bureau says the new Tainan Station is scheduled to open October
17 as part of a major project to move the mainline rail infrastructure in the
city underground.

The new station will allow the surrounding area to be redeveloped with a
plaza, parking facilities, a transport hub and green space to improve
connectivity and passenger access.

Taiwan Railway Corporation has said the new Tainan station will also be the
first to use a color-coded way-finding system similar to that of the High
Speed Rail, with blue indicating northbound trains and green for southbound
trains.

The project covers an 8.2-kilometer section of track from the southern end of
Daqiao Station to just of south of Dalin Road.

It also includes two new underground commuter stations.

Once completed, the Tainan Urban District Railway Underground Project is
expected to eliminate 23 railway crossings and other grade-separated
intersections, including nine level crossings, eight underpasses and four
overpasses.