Stories about Taiwan (ROC) from December, 2008
The Death of Ai Iijima, the End of an Era
For many men in Taiwan, this Christmas Eve was a day of regret and disappointment. It is not because that at this eve some of us would need to spend a significant amount money to please our lovers--thanks to the endless bombing from merchants and commercials. And neither it is because that others would be upset due to lack of lovers for the holiday--yes, for most people, Christmas in Taiwan is more like Valentine's Day--perhaps the forth or the fifth one. It is that in the era of closure on any discussion of sex issues, an ex-AV porno Japanese actress who accompanied us during much of our private time, and later successfully transformed into an entertainer in show business, was found dead in the afternoon at her house in Shibuya, Tokyo: her name is Ai Iijima.
Northeast Asia: 2008 Review
The northeast Asia region is becoming more integrated politically, economically and socially. State leaders from China, Japan and South Korea recently signed a Joint Statement for Tripartite Partnership to address the serious challenges in the global economy and the financial markets. Peace talk between North and South Korea continues, while...
Taiwan: Charter 08 and Taiwan
David on Formosa commented on Charter 08 along with quotes from Taiwan News and Financial Times. At the end he said: “In realising the dream of a free China lessons can certainly be learnt from Taiwan. A key lesson is the importance of transitional justice. If China can transform itself...
Taiwan: Pandas arrive at Taipei Zoo
Two pandas arrived in Taiwan yesterday from China and are now in quarantine at Taipei Zoo. They will go on public display in late January. Michael Turton explains the pandas are likely to be a fad. The Foreigner in Formosa writes that accepting the pandas means sacrificing Taiwan's sovereignty.
Taiwan: Winners of Citizen Journalism Award
Peopo, a unique and successful citizen media project presented by Taiwan's Public Television Service(PTS), just announced the second Citizen Journalism Award winners. The five video reports are about the disaster caused by typhoon, the management of stray animals, taxi drivers’ voices and lives, hoboes’ heath problems, and an old lady...
When you've been in Taiwan too long
SpinalCord shared an absolutely hilarious but also down to earth article exemplifying the most possible outcome in 261 items if a foreigner stays in Taiwan for too long…
Taiwan: Support for Greece Student/Anarchist Movement
Em, a devoted Taiwanese female anarchist and civil media journalist expresses her support for Greece students. She remarks that Greece students are the most active and influential among global anarchists(zh).
Taiwan: The government could not wait to harvest wild strawberries
The forced eviction of Wild Strawberries Movement at the Freedom Square this morning (Dec 11), just a few hours after the International Human Rights Day, shows the Taiwan government's hypocrisy in the implementation of human rights .
Taiwan: police evict Wild Strawberries
In the early hours of this morning police forcibly evicted students from the Wild Strawberry movement [report also in Chinese (zh)] from Freedom Square in Taipei. The students had maintained a continuous protest there for over one month after an earlier protest at the Executive Yuan in response to police...
Taiwan: President out of mind?
Social activist Wobblies says on his twitter(zh): “Knowing that Ma refused Dalai Lama's visit to Taiwan, I began to think that my father's friend is correct. He said that this President is either a body double, or is just kidnapped by someone. Or whatelse can there be such an idiot...
Taiwan: Newspaper for the Immigrants
Bao Bon Phuong, a unique immigrant-focussing Vietnamese newspaper celebrates its second year from its first issue in Dec. 2006. On its blog(zh), the editor 張正 Zhang Zheng writes : “Everyday, the editorial team receives dozens of letters written in Vietnamese. Each letter contains different state of mind: to thank somebody,...
Taiwan: HIV+ Bloggers’ Love for Life
For most of the bloggers in Taiwan and around the globe, Dec 1st is World AIDS Day, but for HIV+ bloggers everywhere, everyday is AIDS day. Two days ago I yelled on my personal twitter: "Does anyone know any HIV Positive bloggers?" I soon received a reply.
Taiwan: Flawed advice from abroad
Michael Turton analyses some views of Taiwan from the US establishment. The Far-Eastern Sweet Potato criticises the advice of the European Chamber of Commerce Taipei.
