Independence support spikes: surveyADULTERY DECISION UNPOPULAR: The Council of Grand Justices’ Interpretation No. Among the people it surveyed, 54 percent said they support Taiwanese independence, 23.4 percent favored maintaining the “status quo,” 12.5 percent supported unification with China and about 10 percent gave no response or were unsure, the survey showed. Of those who favored the “status quo,” 44.1 percent said they would back independence if pushed, 33.6 percent said they would continue to support the “status quo” and 22.3 percent said they would back unification, the survey showed. “In my research on public surveys on these issues over the past 30 years, this is the highest rate of support among Taiwanese for independence,” You said. “Overall, 55 percent of people said that they do not fear that China would launch a military attack against Taiwan,” Taiwan Association for China Human Rights chairman Yang Sen-hong (楊憲宏) said.

Unemployment hits 4 percent, highest since 2013OUTLOOK: The unemployment rate could rise even higher this summer as relief programs are set to expire this month and graduates are starting to look for workBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterThe nation’s unemployment rate last month rose for the fourth consecutive month to 4.07 percent — the highest since November 2013 — as the COVID-19 pandemic weighed on hiring activity, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) reported yesterday. Photo: Clare Cheng, Taipei TimesThe unemployment rate last month increased 0.04 percentage points compared with an addition of 0.31 percentage points in April. The latest unemployment survey, conducted between May 10 and May 16, has yet to reflect a traditional surge in first-time job seekers during the graduation season. By education level, university graduates had the highest unemployment rate at 5.63 percent, followed by high-school graduates at 3.81 percent and people with graduate degrees at 3.29 percent, the DGBAS said. People aged 20 to 24 had the highest unemployment rate at 11.66 percent, followed by the 15-19 age group at 7.72 percent, the 25-29 age group at 6.6 percent and the 30-34 age group at 3.97 percent, it said.

Cathay lowers GDP forecast to 1.8%RELATIVELY UPBEAT OUTLOOK: Government spending would drive economic growth and private investment would increase 3.2% year-on-year, a researcher saidBy Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporterCathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控) yesterday trimmed its forecast for Taiwan’s GDP growth to 1.8 percent this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, down from the 2 percent it predicted in March. The company said that it expects investment and government spending to cushion the nation’s economy from the effects of the pandemic, making its forecast the most optimistic of all released forecasts. The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) predicted 1.67 percent growth, the central bank forecast 1.52 percent growth and DBS Bank Ltd said that it expects a contraction of 1 percent. Cathay Financial’s monthly surveys found that most consumers last month regained their interest in buying durable goods and making big purchases, Hsu said. Cathay Financial expects the vouchers to boost the nation’s GDP growth by 0.1 to 0.2 percentage points, or generate extra output of NT$200 billion to NT$400 billion (US$6.74 billion to US$13.49 billion), higher than the Ministry of Economic Affairs’ estimate of NT$111.2 billion, Hsu said.

Fireworks welcome back Dajia Matsu at end of tripStaff writer, with CNADajia Matsu returned to her home temple, Jenn Lann Temple (鎮瀾宮) in Taichung’s Dajia District (大甲), late on Saturday following a nine-day annual “inspection tour” of temples in central and southern Taiwan. The grand Dajia Matsu Pilgrimage, the nation’s largest annual religious procession, ended shortly before midnight after three statues of Matsu, the goddess of the seas, were carried out of their separate palanquins and placed on the altar at the temple. “Dajia Matsu has returned!” people shouted as the procession, joined by hundreds of followers, arrived in Dajia on Saturday afternoon, concluding a 340km journey that took the Dajia Matsu through Changhua, Yunlin and Chiayi counties. Pilgrims return to the Jenn Lann Temple in Taichung at the end of the Dajia Matsu pilgrimage late on Saturday. The Dajia Matsu Pilgrimage had been scheduled for March 19 to 28, but was postponed due to fears about the spread of COVID-19.

With four borough wardens leading the charge, they surrounded an oil refinery operated by China Petroleum Corp Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) and demanded answers. Photo: Hung Chen-hung, Taipei TimesDAYS OF PROSPERITYThe Dalinpu area fell under Dutch control when they colonized southern Taiwan in 1624. One of them, Wu Yen-shan (吳燕山), arrived in the Dalinpu area later that year. Taipower’s Dalin Power Plant near Dalinpu village in Kaohsiung was a notorious polluter in the 1980s and 1990s. And last year, Dalinpu residents railed against the construction of an underground CPC pipeline through their community.

Justin Huang spurns Tsai nominationCONTROL YUAN ROW: The KMT said Tsai Ing-wen should have consulted it before reaching out to Huang, while a DPP member said the party was not informed eitherBy Sherry Hsiao, Lee Hsin-fang and Huang Hsin-po / Staff reportersFormer Taitung County commissioner Justin Huang (黃健庭) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday declined a nomination from President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to serve as Control Yuan vice president. The entrance to the Control Yuan is pictured in Taipei on Wednesday. Chen, who is expected to be nominated as Control Yuan president, has been involved in three impeachments and more than 50 cases of corrective measures by the Control Yuan, the KMT said. If Tsai, who doubles as DPP chairperson, believes Huang is suitable for the position, she should defend the nomination, instead of allowing members of her party to attack Huang, the KMT said. The Presidential Office did not communicate with DPP members about Huang’s planned nomination, said a party member, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Taipei exhibition highlights Hong Kong protests‘BE WATER’: Causeway Bay Books owner Lam Wing-kei said at the opening that Hong Kongers should be prepared to fight for the territory from abroadBy Chung Li-hua / Staff reporterAn exhibition documenting pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong against a now-withdrawn extradition bill opened yesterday in Taipei, with a theme that says Hong Kong protesters should be as resilient as water. Hong Kong Outlanders spokeswoman Justine said that the large 23kg banner is iconic, as it embodies the voices of Hong Kongers from all 18 districts in the territory. A person yesterday speaks at an exhibition in Taipei documenting the pro-democracy protests against the now-withdrawn extradition bill in Hong Kong. He is optimistic about Hong Kongers rebuilding Hong Kong from elsewhere in the world, he said, adding that Hong Kong does not have to represent a geographic location. The council should clarify the review procedure for applications prospective Hong Kong immigrants submit and introduce a mechanism for civil participation when offering Hong Kongers assistance, he said.

From left, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators Chen Yu-jen, Lin Wei-chou, Lin Yi-hua and Lee De-wei gesture at a news conference at the legislature in Taipei yesterday. Lin asked if Chen became Control Yuan president, whether investigations into the 58 cases would continue, and if they would, whether Chen would resign if illegalities were found. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has long advocated eliminating the Control Yuan, yet it insists on nominating Chen and 27 Control Yuan members so it can engage in pork-barrel politics one last time, he said. However, Chen is to date the most unfit candidate for Control Yuan president, she said. The DPP should be establishing a parliamentary system and abolishing the Control Yuan and Examination Yuan, instead of handing out positions in organizations it itself calls “unnecessary” and “out-moded,” Chang said.

KMT task force unveils four pillars for stable, peaceful cross-strait relationsBy Shih Hsaio-kuang and Dennis Xie / Staff reporter, with staff writerA Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) task force on cross-strait discourse has proposed new guidelines for the construction of stable and peaceful relations across the Taiwan Strait as part of the party’s reform efforts. In its presentation, the task force proposed that the “1992 consensus” should be viewed as “a historical description of past cross-strait interaction.”Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Johnny Chiang speaks at a meeting of the party’s reform committee in Taipei yesterday. Although past KMT administrations had deemed the “1992 consensus” an important basis for seeking common ground in cross-strait interaction, the term has been marred by President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration, the task force said. The KMT would continue to promote long-term economic and trade relations across the Strait, but would ensure that the fruits of such economic development benefit the majority of Taiwanese, the task force said. “We will do everything we can for peace, but we will never kneel down for it,” the task force said.

The Executive Yuan names Shen Jong-chin as vice premierBy Sean Lin / Staff reporterThe Executive Yuan yesterday announced the appointment of Minister of Economic Affairs Shen Jong-chin (沈榮津) as vice premier and Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua (王美花) to head the ministry. Shen and Wang are to assume their new roles today, Executive Yuan spokesman Ting Yi-ming (丁怡銘) said after former vice premier Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) resigned on Wednesday to contest the Aug. 15 Kaohsiung mayoral by-election. Shen has a well-rounded understanding of the business sector, where he has accumulated many years of experience, Ting said. Executive Yuan spokesman Ting Yi-ming speaks in front of a projection that shows the curriculum vitae of incoming vice premier Shen Jong-chin, who formerly served as Minister of Economic Affairs, at a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) believes that Shen’s expertise would make him his top aide for economic affairs, Ting said.

Daylengths affect burying beetles’ breeding: studyCLIMATE CHANGE: The study examines the adaptability to environment of different populations of burying beetles, which are sensitive to temperature changesBy Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporterThe reproduction of burying beetles is affected by differing daylengths, while they develop different survival mechanisms at varied elevations and latitudes, Academia Sinica Biodiversity Research Center associate research fellow Shen Sheng-feng (沈聖峰) told a news conference in Taipei yesterday. The research team studied the behavior of burying beetles (Nicrophorus nepalensis), which are found across mountains in Asia and are sensitive to temperature changes, to examine the environmental adaptability of different populations of the species, Shen said. Academia Sinica Biodiversity Research Center associate research fellow Shen Sheng-feng, third right, and his research team hold placards showing burying beetles and their habitats at a news conference in Taipei yesterday. To focus on their genetic traits, the team bred the beetles in a laboratory and studied their offspring, Shen said. Even if the beetles at lower elevations emerged from cocoons in times with longer daylengths, they were not sexually mature, he said.

China Steel eyes turnaround by year’s endBy Natasha Li / Staff reporter, in KaohsiungChina Steel Corp (CSC, 中鋼) yesterday said it aims to turn business around by the end of the year by improving post-pandemic market demand and new product developments. China Steel Corp chairman Wong Chao-tung, standing, presides over a company shareholders’ meeting in Kaohsiung yesterday. “We need to set our focus on top-quality and high-precision steel products [in order to maintain growth],” he said. “Major steel companies have slashed production since the second quarter, including us, by 10 percent, in an attempt to stem losses,” Wong said. Citing recent price hikes from Chinese, Japanese and South Korean industry peers, Wong said market demand is showing signs of recovery.

Government holds CHB board‘GROW STRONGER’: Both sides declared victory after the election, with Taishin saying it focused on electing independent directors to enhance oversight at CHBBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterGovernment-appointed candidates yesterday retained majority control of state-run Chang Hwa Bank’s (CHB, 彰化銀行) board of directors, while Taishin Financial Holding Co (台新金控) won four seats, including all three independent directors’ seats. Taishin’s strategy to focus on independent directors’ seats fell in line with the ministry’s expectation, Juan said. The ministry aimed to maintain majority control of the board room and achieved that goal, he added. CHB has nine board seats, including three independent directors who are in charge of the auditing, remuneration and sustainability committees. Taishin urged newly elected board members to soon convene a meeting and elect a new chairperson to lead CHB.

Groups seek improved HK aid planOFFICE ISSUES: Advocates said the rules on political asylum and the conditions for offering humanitarian assistance to Hong Kongers should be revealed to the publicBy Sean Lin / Staff reporterA coalition of civic groups yesterday called for the Hong Kong Humanitarian Assistance Action Plan to be improved by making it more transparent and flexible. The civic groups commended the government for the plan after the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday unveiled it and an office to oversee it, but added that there were problems with it. International law forbids a government from repatriating asylum seekers against their will, so the government must not repatriate applicants to Hong Kong should they not want to return there, she said. Asked whether Hong Kongers seeking asylum through unconventional means would be approved, Executive Yuan spokesman Ting Yi-ming (丁怡銘) at a later news conference said that those situations would be reviewed case-by-case. The government has always provided Hong Kongers with assistance, and the council would likewise strive to provide substantial assistance within its purview, he added.

Public action sought on ‘improper education’By Huang Hsin-po and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerAdditional action by students, families and school faculty is required to support the Ministry of Education’s efforts to curtail improper education at schools, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Fan Yun (范雲) said yesterday. Many schools, whether to “diversify” education content or simply to cover a shortage of teachers, are hiring uncertified people to teach classes, Fan told a news conference in Taipei. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Fan Yun, second right, and parents’ and students’ representatives hold signs and gesture at a news conference in Taipei yesterday on proposed rules to combat “improper education” at schools. There were 65 complaints submitted against the two associations from August last year to April, Fan said, citing data from the ministry’s K-12 Education Administration and other information gathered by her own office. The K-12 administration would maintain close contact with schools via local governments to ensure that they implement the measures, Chang said.