Several groups in Greater Kaohsiung are calling for the removal of certain episodes of the popular Japanese cartoon Doraemon (哆啦A夢) to protect children’s mental and physical health, saying that it promotes schoolyard bullying.
The cartoon is about a cat-shaped robot sent back in time by its owner to help the owner’s great grandfather.
Greater Kaohsiung Teachers’ Union head Tung Shu-you (董書攸) said that while the bullying scenes in the Doraemon comic appear in only one or two frames, the televised version shows the scenes uninterrupted and can imprint itself on children’s minds.
Web screenshot by Hung Ting-hung, Taipei Times
“We must filter out such programs to ensure our children grow up to be fit psychologically,” Tung said.
Tung, an elementary-school teacher, said many cartoon shows on television contain verbal or physical violence and bullying that is unsuitable for children.
“As Doraemon is very well-liked among children, it has a greater influence over children with its scenes of bullying,” Tung said. “We strongly call for the National Communications Commission (NCC) to withdraw the more violent scenes, and any other shows with similar scenes, from the air.”
One blog recently carried an article titled “Bullying in ‘Doraemon’” in which the blogger wrote: “This is not a cartoon series fit to be watched by children over many years,” adding that the character Takeshi Gouda always tried to get what he wanted and resorted to violence whenever he met with events he did not like.
The blogger said “this is a type of person often seen in schools” and if such people banded together with others, like Takeshi teams up with Honekawa Suneo in the cartoon, “it would be frightening to think: ‘What if your child met with such occurrences at school?’”
The blogger also questioned China Television’s choice to broadcast such shows during the primetime 6pm slot.
A woman surnamed Chiu (邱) agreed with the blog’s content and said that although she taught her children not to pattern their behavior after Takeshi, she was still worried that the show would influence her children.
Adding warning messages to the show would not help at all, Chiu said, adding that she had simply banned her children from watching the show.
Chou Chen (周珍), director of the Down Syndrome Association’s southern office agreed with Tung, saying Takeshi’s violence could easily unconsciously cause children to behave badly.
When reached for comment, commission spokesperson Yu Hsiao-cheng (虞孝誠) on Monday said that the NCC respects the concerns voiced by experts and parents and would forward the issue to its program and advertisement consultation committee for deliberation.
Additional reporting by Kan Chih-chi
POLAM KOPITIAM CASE: Of the two people still in hospital, one has undergone a liver transplant and is improving, while the other is being evaluated for a liver transplant A fourth person has died from bongkrek acid poisoning linked to the Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, as two other people remain seriously ill in hospital. The first death was reported on March 24. The man had been 39 years old and had eaten at the restaurant on March 22. As more cases of suspected food poisoning involving people who had eaten at the restaurant were reported by hospitals on March 26, the ministry and the Taipei Department of Health launched an investigation. The Food and
The long-awaited Taichung aquarium is expected to open next year after more than a decade of development. The building in Cingshui District (清水) is to feature a large ocean aquarium on the first floor, coral display area on the second floor, a jellyfish tank and Dajia River (大甲溪) basin display on the third, a river estuary display and restaurant on the fourth, and a cafe and garden on the fifth. As it is near Wuci Fishing Port (梧棲漁港), many are expecting the opening of the aquarium to bring more tourism to the harbor. Speaking at the city council on Monday, Taichung City Councilor
A fourth person has died in a food poisoning outbreak linked to the Xinyi (信義) branch of Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in Taipei, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said on Monday. It was the second fatality in three days, after another was announced on Saturday. The 40-year-old woman experienced multiple organ failure in the early hours on Monday, and the family decided not to undergo emergency resuscitation, Wang said. She initially showed signs of improvement after seeking medical treatment for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but her condition worsened due to an infection, he said. Two others who
Taiwanese should be mindful when visiting China, as Beijing in July is likely to tighten the implementation of policies on national security following the introduction of two regulations, a researcher said on Saturday. China on Friday unveiled the regulations governing the law enforcement and judicial activities of national security agencies. They would help crack down on “illegal” and “criminal” activities that Beijing considers to be endangering national security, according to reports by China’s state media. The definition of what constitutes a national security threat in China is vague, Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) said. The two procedural regulations are to provide Chinese