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Cartoon's creator hailed as a real-life Asian hero

Chang Jung-kuei, right, creator of Taiwanese e-cartoon character A-Kuei, receives an award at a ceremony held Wednesday in Tokyo to honor this year's 29 `Asian Heroes' selected by Time Asia magazine. PHOTO: CNA

The creator of A-Kuei (阿貴) -- a Taiwanese e-cartoon character -- attended an award presentation ceremony Wednesday in Tokyo held to honor the 29 "Asian Heroes" selected by Time Asia magazine for this year.

Chang Jung-kuei (張榮貴), whose A-Kuei has a carefree personality and experiences off-beat adventures which have won the character a large fan following in Taiwan, Japan and China, received the Time award for his creation.

The latest issue of Time Asia magazine, which goes on sale Monday, salutes 29 Asian heroes for this year, among whom are Wu Shu-chen (吳淑珍), wife of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁). Wu did not attend the ceremony.

At a press conference held in Tokyo, Chang expressed his appreciation for Time choosing A-Kuei. Chang said that A-Kuei has given him the opportunity to visit Tokyo, which he said he has wanted to do for a long time.

"I most want to go to Disneyland!" he said.

The action cartoon A-Kuei, who Chang says is a representative of Taiwanese culture and traits, began airing on Fuji TV more than two years ago. The program can also be seen via WAP handsets or Internet Web sites.

The other seven Asian heroes for this year included South Korean philanthropist Kim Sang-hun, who has helped save North Korean refugees, and Satoshi Fukushima, the first deaf and blind professor at Tokyo University, who has helped break down prejudices and misperceptions of physically-challenged people and helped found the Japan Deaf-Blind Association.
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