The six prefectures in Japan’s Tohoku region jointly organized a four-day event in Taipei that starts today to thank Taiwan for its relief assistance in the wake of a magnitude 9 earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan in March 2011.
The “Tohoku Japan Thank You” event will feature a variety of performances, including Japanese sansa folk dance, taiko drumming and shamisen music, said the Interchange Association Japan’s Taipei office, which represents Japan’s interests in Taiwan.
Visitors will also be able to sample Japanese food, try on Japanese festival and TV drama costumes, and participate in a raffle for free round-trip air tickets to Japan, the office said.
In addition, the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, a Japanese baseball team based in Miyagi Prefecture, have donated 100 of their jerseys to give to participants at the event.
In its invitation to the public, the Interchange Association said the residents of the Tohoku region were deeply moved by Taiwan’s disaster aid three years ago and hope to repay that kindness.
The March 11, 2011, earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Japan killed almost 16,000 people and left close to 2,600 missing, mainly in Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures in the northeast of the country.
In the wake of the disaster, Taiwan donated about ￥20 billion (US$193 million) in aid, more than any other single country.
The thank you event was organized by a committee comprising the Tohoku District Transport Bureau, Japanese tourism industry groups and governments of the six Tohoku prefectures — Akita, Aomori, Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi and Yamagata.
It is to be held at Taipei Expo Park until Monday and admission is free.
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS