A Canadian teacher at an English as Second Language (ESL) elementary school in Greater Taichung said his first-grade students have sent letters to Lin Yu-chun (林余駿), the taxi driver who was allegedly beaten by a Japanese man and local singer and actress Makiyo, to show him they care.
The teacher, surnamed Honda, told the Taipei Times he was a creative writing teacher at the Li-Yuan Campus of the Washington American School in Greater Taichung.
After reading articles in the Taipei Times about the Makiyo case, which some students had already heard about from other media, they decided to do their part.
Photo courtesy of Honda
“We discussed the issue in class,” Honda said. “Many students expressed their compassion to Mr Lin, while some expressed that we should not use violence against other people when we are angry.”
He said that from this case, his students learned many lessons about what happens when they do not act responsibly.
They also learned how they can care for others and what they can do to be helpful, he said.
The students decided to write separate letters to Lin, which they then sent in a package, he said.
In the letters, most students told him they loved him and hoped he would get better soon so that he could drive his taxi again, Honda said.
One student named Elaine wrote: “My name is Elaine. I am a girl ... I have heard on TV about you. We should not hit others. My teacher is teaching us to help others when they need help. You are a cool taxi driver!”
Honda said they then delivered the letters to Lin through Lin’s attorney, Chou Wu-jung (周武榮).
Chou said he appreciated the student’s compassion and efforts, and would give the letters to Lin.
Lin was discharged from hospital and is resting in a rented house nearby.
Lin was allegedly beaten by Takateru Tomoyori, a Japanese friend of Makiyo, and Makiyo herself on Feb. 2.
Both have been charged with causing severe bodily harm, and the court has started the hearing.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it