WANG WENJIN/CHINA NEWS SERVICE More than 80 people with the surname Zhang traveled from Taiwan to Xiamen, Fujian, in August to discover their roots. People are studying their family trees and age-old stories in the hope of reconnecting with long-lost relatives. Zhang Yi reports from Xiamen, Fujian. On June 9, Huang Ching-hsiung woke at about 3 am in his hotel bed in Xiamen, Fujian province. He was too excited to sleep. At daybreak, he was one of a group of 11 members of his family that set out to visit Pujin, a village two hours from downtown Xiamen by road. The settlement has the same name as Huang's home village in Lugang town, Changhua, Taiwan, and most of the residents are named Huang. The Huangs on Taiwan are direct descendents of settlers who arrived on the island centuries ago. Several batches of Fujian residents moved to Taiwan during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) in the hope of making their fortunes, and those who were members of the same family banded together as they fought to make new lives. They named the places they settled after their hometowns and retained the customs they had brought from the mainland. Roughly 80 percent of Taiwan residents share blood ties with people from Fujian. About 110 settlements on either side of the Taiwan Straits that share the same village and family names have established official exchange programs, according to the Fujian-Taiwan Compatriots' Association. In the 1980s, the descendants of those early settlers started visiting the mainland to discover their roots, inspired by family histories passed down through generations. Place your feet on the land our ancestors came from, Huang's father told him, shortly before he died 12 years ago. rubber bracelets ukwristbands ukdesign your own wristbandsilicone fidget spinnermake your own rubber bracelet
TAIPEI -- The application of Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) to restart the second reactor at its No 2 nuclear plant has been approved by the island's atomic energy authority.Taiwan's legislative body has the final say on the restart.Taipower applied to the atomic energy authority on Feb 5 to restart the reactor which was shut down in May 2016, when it had a short circuit during maintenance.Taipower said if the reactor is restarted, the No. 2 nuclear power plant would increase its operating power reserve margin by three percent, and would alleviate the shortage of power supply in Taiwan.The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authority has pushed a nuclear-free policy to phase out all existing nuclear power plants in Taiwan by 2025.Taiwan has four nuclear plants. The fourth has never been put into use. There are a total of six reactors in the first three nuclear power plants, but only half of them are operating.The reduction in nuclear power and increase in fossil energy has caused air pollution in Taiwan, and strong protests from the public.Taiwan's atomic energy authority has organized a group to conduct a one-month investigation into nuclear safety and waste management at the reactor.It is not clear whether the reactor will be restarted before the summer power demand peak which starts in May.The DPP insists that its aim of a nuclear-free Taiwan by 2025 will not be changed.
