Taiwan Tonight - Formosa English News | Oct. 12, 2026

Legendary K-pop boy band Big Bang is back with a vengeance, reuniting for the first time in 11 years. The supergroup tore up the stage at Taipei Dome over the past three days, with 120,000 VIPs making the pilgrimage to see their idols. For the three performers, it wasn't just about singing and dancing on stage. A visit to Taiwan wouldn't be complete without food. And again, last night, I had Yolo Mian. And also I ate feng shui. Feng shui? Feng shui that Jay Chou gave me. It was really delicious. Taeyang's Taiwan trip featured beef noodles and even pineapple cakes gifted by none other than the king of mando pop. A photo reveals who delivered the pineapple cakes to Big Bang, actor and entertainer Ken Lin. The celeb said he was following orders from Jay Chou's wife, Hannah Quinlivan, to personally deliver the treats to the K-pop idols. But just as the concert wrapped up, a story on G-Dragon's Instagram stirred up controversy. G-Dragon shared a photo of the three Big Bang members riding a backstage cart, captioned, I love you, VIP. The heart in the middle featured Taiwan's national flag, delighting and surprising their fans. But the story didn't stay up for long and was quickly taken down. Fans were left wondering whether it was deleted out of concern over crossing politically sensitive lines. And it didn't just stop there. A backup dancer in Big Bang's crew known as The Bangers celebrated the premiere performance in Taiwan with a post on Instagram featuring the Taiwanese flag emoji. But the caption was quickly changed to say Taipei. On the final night of the concert series in Taipei, G-Dragon thanked fans in Mandarin. But while he expressed his love for fans on stage, the repeated disappearance of Taiwan flags offstage left fans with mixed emotions. Taiwanese professional baseball player Li Haoyu returned to Taiwan during off-season and immediately attended a press conference to talk about his journey. I got hurt almost immediately after I started playing. After recovering and returning, I did not expect to be called up this early until I hit my first home run. This year has been full of surprises. Earlier this year, Li made his MLB debut and has already set Taiwanese single-season MLB records For 114 games played, 87 hits and 10 home runs, with a batting average of .263. This year, Lee has made history as the youngest Taiwanese player to hit a home run in the MLB, also fulfilling a long-time dream of his. The first time I watched the MLB was the Detroit Tigers. I thought that field was beautiful. I told the person next to me, one day I'll play here. Nine years later, I am really playing baseball on that very field. Since it was his first time playing in the major leagues, Li revealed that he was driving home to Detroit when he accidentally took a wrong turn and ended up in Canada, where he was taken into customs interrogation. The customs officer searched up my name and said, oh, you really are here to play baseball. And I said, why would I lie? He said, wow, not bad. You've had two home runs. I said, nope, I've had three. Given his incredible performance, his family is incredibly proud. Lee's mother joked about picking up her son at the airport on social media, saying, I've come to pick up my gangster son. Baseball fans were even curious about who runs the Detroit Tigers' Threads account, seeing as the posts have a distinct Taiwanese style. Can I reveal this? It wouldn't be fun if I did. It's better to keep everyone guessing. Whatever the mystery is, Lee's baseball career is off to an incredible start, As the rookie continues to grow in the major leagues, he will always be supported by Taiwan and its baseball fans. At the age of 86, Father Giuseppe De Doné walks slowly onto the stage to accept an honorary award. Despite his advanced age, he remains full of vitality whenever he speaks of his philanthropic mission. His words radiate a passionate dedication to serving the vulnerable. It has been over 40 years now that we have been caring for these children. Their parents have always been grateful to us, our Catholic ministry, so I am very happy today. After arriving in Taiwan in 1965, Father De Doné, an Italian, has dedicated himself to caring for the disadvantaged in Penghu and Yilan. In 1987, he transformed an abandoned convent in Taing Village, Sanxing Township, into the St. Camillus Center for Intellectual Disabilities. providing long-term shelter and care for over a thousand children with severe physical and intellectual disabilities. Sixteen years ago, he extended his compassionate mission to include long-term care and hospice services. This selfless dedication spanning more than half a century has honored him with the Y.L. Lin Taiwan Devotion Award this year. As for the 30 million NT prize money, Father DeDoné humorously remarked that it certainly wouldn't be going into his own pockets. Not a single cent of this money will go into my own pockets. Instead, it is specifically intended to support the Saint Camillus Center for Intellectual Disability in Luodong. We are currently setting up a small workshop, a project costing tens of millions, and I am deeply grateful to this foundation for providing us with this opportunity. Identifying everyone in the region who is in need, ensuring they can find the resources they require right here, and leading us to see the true value of it all. I believe that is the most meaningful thing. Father Didone has dedicated over 60 years of service to Taiwan and remains deeply rooted in the local community through his selfless spirit. He serves as a source of the warmest and most steadfast support for remote areas and vulnerable populations. A scooter rider in Kaohsiung is giving Santa Claus a run for his money. The motorist was spotted wobbling through traffic, carrying a gigantic pile of bright pink bags that swayed dangerously from side to side. The towering cargo turned heads and impressed onlookers. The police didn't find it amusing and are reviewing CCTV footage to identify the rider. Let's hear more. I would stay away from the scooter. I think doing things like that ultimately is a nuisance to everyone else. If a bag falls off, it could cause an accident and the rider wouldn't even know. It's dangerous and it blocks traffic. It's terrible. Scooters transporting goods must comply with relevant regulations. Violations are punishable with a fine of 300 to 600 NT under Article 31, Paragraph 5 of the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act. But sightings of overloaded scooters are not unique to Kaohsiung. Over in Tainan, a pair of road users was caught carrying a massive Jaws paper furnace through traffic. The feat was accomplished thanks to the passenger sitting backwards while straddling the furnace between his legs. The scooter swayed from side to side on the road, making everyone else fear for the riders and for themselves. After all, one moment of imbalance could end up with everyone on the ground. A team from Osaka carried out an emergency rescue operation, racing against the clock. They smashed windows and pulled out trapped passengers from the overturned vehicle. Taipei's rescue team also faced many challenges. One car overturned to the left, another on the right. They had to control the vehicles while providing first aid to the seriously injured as quickly as possible. It takes a lot of intense, dedicated training to remain calm under pressure, especially for first responders. To put all the training to the test, Taiwan hosted the 2026 International Vehicle Extrication Challenge, which kicked off in Nantou. The primary principles of first aid are, first, to assess whether there are any sources of heavy bleeding. Second, to check if they have any respiratory problems or any blood pressure or circulatory problems. Amongst commanders, rescue personnel, and paramedics, all three must share the same goal, to rescue the victims in a reasonable, comfortable, and stable way. Disasters and accidents have no borders, and technological advancements require cross-border learning exchange. To help Taiwan's fire and rescue officers improve procedures, we conduct exchanges in international cooperation with Japan and the Philippines. Beyond showcasing recent achievements in technique and equipment, Taiwan hopes to improve relations and mutual trust with allies. Through initiatives such as this one, Taiwan continues to play an important role in the region and improves regional rescue capabilities. A televised debate between the two mayoral candidates for Taipei is in the works, with broadcasters TVBS and SCT hosting the event. Six media outlets, including FTV, are hoping to hold a second debate and have sent invitations to the DPP and KMT candidates. On Monday, DPP candidate Kuo Ma Shen agreed to take part, but incumbent KMT mayor Zhang Wan'an has said he doesn't have the time for a second showdown showdown as he has many city policies to direct. Let's hear from the two. I agree to take part in a televised debate for the Taipei mayoral race hosted by Taiwan Television, China Television, Formosa Television, Liberty Times, Mirror, M News, and any other willing media outlet. In line with precedent, I think one is enough. There are many city policies I have to oversee, we can't slow down now or have them be affected. There are so many things to be discussed about Taipei's governance that if we only hold one debate, each issue would only be allotted a couple of seconds. There wouldn't be any depth. Taipei has gone through many elections already. There are plenty of presidents. If he is confident in his governance, taking part in more debates would be to his advantage. It follows that if he's confident about how he's handled the city, the more debates, the more opportunities to bring up all the good things he's done to respond to criticism. We also hope that the relevant details will be finalized soon so we can move forward with it. The six media outlets called the candidates from both camps to accept the debate invitation and make the event a reality. They say such a dialogue would put citizens at the heart of the discussion, showcasing what democracy is really about. Wearing a striped black and white shirt and a bright orange scarf, Kuo Ma Shen kick-started his motorcade campaign and sent supporters into frenzy to capture photos of the voyage. the motorcade was surrounded by supporters waving flags and shouting for Shen closely behind were rows and rows of motorcycles and e-bikes that stretched as far as the eye could see official statistics reveal over 2 000 vehicles followed and took more than 15 minutes to depart from the starting point the motorcade was flooded with supporters some held up signs others waved flags and yet others cheered on Shen the ocean wave boosted sales for nearby vendors our Taipei city is very bitter and very boring it's been nearly 20 years since Chen Shui-bian was mayor and resentment has been building for a long time as the citizens aired their grievances, it became evident that the public has felt bitter for very long, which is why they want to see a change in leadership. Crowds gathered both on ground and online through the livestream with more than 60,000 viewers. As the motorcade passed by the Macai Memorial Hospital, they reminded not to use microphones to avoid disturbing patients. During the motorcade, people held up signs and changed the slogan stating, compatriots must unite, unity is powerful, to Taipei must unite, unity is powerful. Shen felt deeply moved after seeing the signs. However, he also observed some citizens making obscene gestures and responded with the following. In a democratic society, everyone is entitled to expressing their opinions. I think this lets everyone's emotions find an outlet. I think it's for the better. The first time I was at Baoan Temple was when I first started running for election. There were maybe around 1 to 200 people, but this time there were certainly more. We all felt very moved. When the motorcade came to a stop, Taipei's ocean wave arrived at Baoan Temple. The crowd swarmed the area, spreading out to the surrounding business district. Matching the crowd sizes of election nights, the aerial photos were spectacular. Shen put forward five major policies for Zhongshan and Datong, including a service team to extend life in old houses, companionship for the elderly, and the Yuan Shan Citizen Sports Center. China has launched a new six-day military exercise in five maritime areas in waters near Taiwan, right on the first day after Taiwan's National Day Long Weekend. The affected areas include parts of the Yellow Sea, the Bohai Sea, the East China Sea, and the South China Sea. Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense says, It is closely monitoring any developments while condemning China for escalating tensions in the region. Let's hear more. Maritime authorities across multiple regions have issued navigation warnings, announcing that live fire drills, military training and other designated operations will be conducted in several maritime areas beginning today. Based on our preliminary assessment, these activities are all taking place along the coast. We will continue to monitor the situation closely. Whether live fire exercises or military training, these drills create unnecessary anxiety and should be condemned. China has openly stated that the military drills were intended to deter Taiwan independence. Taiwan's defense minister, Wellington Koo, condemned Beijing for heightening regional tensions. That includes numerous incursions by military aircraft over the national day-long weekend. Taiwan detected 21 aircraft incursions on October 9, 21 on October 10, and 4 on October 11. In addition, on October 11, six Chinese military vessels and three official ships were also spotted operating around the Taiwan Strait.