Housing units for senior citizens that were recently opened in Japan, partly funded by donations from the Red Cross Society of the Republic of China, are designed to shelter elderly people who lost their homes in the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami, the charity said yesterday.
The two public-housing compounds with a total of 22 units were opened on Friday in Soma City, Fukushima Prefecture.
Last year, a separate housing compound that was funded by the Taiwanese charity opened in the city, and another one is set to be completed in July, the charity said, adding that the projects are a collaboration between the charity and the Soma City Government.
The compounds, with a combined construction cost of ￥100 million (US$1.01 million), will be able to provide housing for about 100 elderly people, Red Cross deputy secretary-general Samuel Chen (陳士良) said.
Construction of the new 1,980m2 and 4,000m2 compounds began in March last year, said the Red Cross, which received NT$2.57 billion (US$86.02 million) in donations from the Taiwanese public after the disasters in northeastern Japan.
The housing units are to be rented out at a low price to elderly couples or seniors living alone. The design of the compounds was inspired by a 50-year-old Japanese housing style, which stresses use of shared eating, laundry, activity and other public living spaces, the charity said.
In the wake of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, Taiwan donated US$260.64 million in cash to Japan, 90 percent of which came from private donors.
It was the highest amount from any country.
Official figures compiled after the disaster listed 15,883 people dead, 2,681 missing and more than 1.1 million houses destroyed or damaged.
Fukushima, Iwate and Miyagi prefectures were among the areas hardest-hit by the disaster.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS