Comic, manga and anime fans flock to 2022 Comic Exhibition

2022-07-28

The 2022 Comic Exhibition opened its doors on Thursday, after a two-year hiatus due to COVID. Thousands of manga and anime fans turned up for the first day of the five-day event, some of them decked out in eye-catching cosplay outfits. This year, the exhibition has 800 stands and 110 participating companies, with 30 meet-and-greet events scheduled. Comic fans say they are ready to spend all the money they’ve saved up during COVID.

A long line stretches for more than 100 meters from the entrance of World Trade Center Hall One. Everyone has been itching for this day.

10 o’clock strikes and the doors open. Everyone rushes in. This is the 21st edition of the event, which was on hiatus for two years due to COVID. Finally, the Comic Exhibition is back, attracting hordes of manga and anime fans. In just half an hour, many had already loaded up on merch.

Manga fan
In this goody bag there is a blanket and a pillow. The show was canceled last year. I had been looking forward to this for so long. I had planned to come with friends, but that didn’t happen in the end. I was very disappointed.

Manga fan
I bought one of each kind of goody bag. There was nothing to do over the winter and summer breaks, so I saved up a lot of money to spend it all here. I’m spending all the money from last year.

It’s been too long since there was such a large convention they say. Organizers have put out their best wares to attract plenty of fans. Many cosplayers turned up at the event in full garb.

Cosplayer
I got ready at home and then came over. I wanted to get a hold on one of these, as they only began selling today. I wanted to be the first in line, but I ended up going out half an hour late because of my friend. I ended up being among the first 10.

After two years of COVID the comic convention is finally back. For thousands of fans, it’s an event not to be missed.

因疫停辦兩年! 漫博會今開幕吸引動漫迷朝聖

2022-07-28

第二十一屆漫畫博覽會今天開幕，受到疫情影響連兩屆停辦的漫博，今年捲土重來，多達800的攤位和110家廠商參展，五天展期還有30場簽名會，不少知名的出版社、動漫和遊戲都有列攤，開幕第一天，即使是上班日，依舊一早吸引大批動漫迷前來朝聖。

長長人龍，從世貿一館門口一路排到捷運站，綿延至少有100公尺以上，大家都是在等待這一刻。

十點鐘一到，門一開，民眾迫不及待跑進會場，這裡是第二十一屆的漫畫博覽會，受到疫情影響，連續兩年停辦，終於在今年復辦，動漫迷們早就等不及了，才過去半小時，手上大包小包，通通是血拚完的戰利品！

[[動漫迷]]
“就是福袋裡面有毯子，還有抱枕，去年停辦，就是(去年)已經期待很久，已經跟朋友都約好，但是沒有得來就很失望”

[[動漫迷]]
“就每個福袋都給它買一遍，就寒暑假沒東西可逛，就存錢來這邊直接花掉，把去年的份直接花掉”

真的等太久了，好不容易才有大型動漫展，主辦單位也端出好料，現場有超多動漫周邊系列商品，不少粉絲，也打扮成喜歡的人物，要吸眼球。

[[動漫迷]]
“我是在家裡面換好再過來，本來就是來搶這個，就是今天首賣，本來是來搶第一，但是有人(朋友)給我拖半小時才出門，害我變前十”

睽違兩年再度復辦的漫博，動漫迷們可千萬別錯過了！

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Enjoy Chinese Valentine’s Day in Taipei’s historic Dadaocheng on July 30

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NSYSU develops first made-in-Taiwan mini submarine

2022-07-28

Transport ministry considers opening up improved Suhua Highway to white-plated motorcycles

The Directorate General of Highways is considering allowing more types of motorcycles on the improved Suhua Highway, after a successful trial for heavy motorbikes. The agency is considering opening up the road to motorbikes with white number plates, that is bikes of between 50 and 250 cubic centimeters. Four proposals to make that happen are on the table, including two that would remove the hard shoulder on the road and replace it with an additional traffic lane.

Since last September, large motorcycles like these have been allowed to circulate on the improved Suhua Highway. The six-month trial ended recently and heavy motorbikes could soon be allowed on the road on a permanent basis. Now, the Directorate General of Highways says the next step is to open up the highway to motorcycles with white number plates, between 50 and 250 cubic centimeters. Already, four proposals are on the table for approval from the transport ministry.

Chiang Yu-fong
Directorate General of Highways
There may be another meeting, or perhaps one of the proposals will be implemented. All of the proposals have safety as their top priority.

There are four proposals. The first of them would allow white plate motorcycles to circulate alongside sedan cars on the fast lane, leaving the road shoulder for emergency vehicles. The second would get motorcycles driving on the shoulder only, with some provisions to allow emergency vehicles to circulate as well. The third and fourth proposals would do away with the hard shoulder and replace it with a slow-vehicle lane or a regular lane. Since these two proposals would necessitate adjustments to the current layout, they are less feasible than the others.

Chiang Yu-fong
Directorate General of Highways
The last two proposals would require changing the current lane distribution, and would therefore have a bigger impact on the road. They could even require an environmental assessment and would even affect the emergency evacuation plans for the improved Suhua Highway.

Voice of Lee Ko-tsung
Consumers’ Foundation
The number of lanes on the improved Suhua Highway is very limited. If they end up letting motorcycles use the hard shoulder on weekdays and tour buses use it on weekends, they will have to figure out a way to let emergency vehicles circulate in case an accident happens. They need to consider this.

The proposals all have different safety and traffic volume considerations. Some experts suggest that different kinds of vehicles could be allowed to circulate on the shoulder during the week and during weekends. The Directorate General of Highways says that, if everything goes smoothly, about 200 white number plate bikes could use the highway every day.

2022-07-28

Taiwan central bank says it won’t necessarily follow Fed in raising interest rates

2022-07-28

Taipei Performing Arts Center to open Aug. 5 with ballroom performances

2022-07-28

Chen Shih-chung spills the beans on fellow Taipei mayoral candidates

As the Taipei mayoral election approaches, DPP candidate Chen Shih-chung is considered the party’s best bet in 24 years. But is the former health minister ready to take on Taiwan’s capital? He sat down with FTV Vice President Hu Wan-ling胡婉玲for an exclusive interview. She grilled him on his thoughts on fellow candidates, as well as his response to criticism from current Taipei mayor, Ko Wen-je.

Sitting down with FTV Vice President Hu Wan-ling, Chen Shih-chung expressed his determination to win the Taipei mayoral race.

Chen Shih-chung
Taipei mayoral candidate (DPP)
Firstly, the DPP hasn’t been in power in Taipei for more than 20 years. Secondly, with the DPP in power, the central and local government can cooperate. If you give the DPP, or give me, this opportunity, to get the central and local government to work together, we will make a different Taipei, for sure. People will feel the progress of Taipei. We can promote Taipei’s mountains and rivers to the whole world.

But that dream will require Chen to win the votes. He says his life experience is more than sufficient, and he’s confident about his leadership and organizational abilities.

Chen Shih-chung
Taipei mayoral candidate (DPP)
I think Chiang Wan-an is quite an impressive figure in the KMT. I think he’s a young man with a lot of potential. I think the KMT has not trained him enough. He should get more of a grounding in the Legislative Yuan. Huang Shan-shan has been in municipal governance a long time, of course. Neihu and Nangang are her constituency. But if she has been a city councilor there for so long, why does she still not have a real proposal to solve the transport problem for Neihu, or a well-developed plan?

In his mild way, Chen implied that Chiang is lacking experience and Huang can’t get problems solved. He even took aim at present mayor Ko Wen-je, who has often offered Chen advice.

Hu Wan-ling
FTV vice president
Mayor Ko said your odds are good as you’re a good actor and you’re good at spouting rubbish. You’ve probably heard that comment of his. What do you make of that? Do you accept his criticism?

Chen Shih-chung
Taipei mayoral candidate (DPP)
I think that what he said about me is also true of him. He’s rather good at talking nonsense.

Hu Wan-ling
FTV vice president
Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je said in the past that he did things chaotically in his first two years in office.

Chen Shih-chung
Taipei mayoral candidate (DPP)
If you take him as a mayor, it’s like he is reigning supreme, alone. Of course you can’t win your team’s heart like that. You can’t make use of their experience, and then the city government will go through a chaotic period. I wouldn’t make that mistake.

Chen is known for his tactful demeanor while making pointed remarks. His chat with FTV was no exception.

2022-07-28

President Tsai speaks with a delegation from Japan on security cooperation

A cross-party delegation from Japan is in Taiwan talking defense and security. The delegation of four includes three former defense officials. A recent Japanese defense white paper spoke of the importance of Taiwan’s defense, and this is something former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo also emphasized. Now with a Japanese delegation in Taiwan discussing specifics, it appears Abe’s plans for Taiwan-Japan cooperation on defense may be starting to take shape.

Meeting with a Japanese delegation to discuss security issues, President Tsai Ing-wen again brought up former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo.

Tsai Ing-wen
President
In regard to the deep friendship that Taiwan and Japan have been able to build, former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo played a key role in that. Abe unfortunately left us at the start of this month, and that’s been hard for everyone. Many Taiwanese have expressed grief over his loss, and feel deeply that he will forever be a friend of Taiwan.

Ishiba Shigeru
Former Japanese defense minister
That unfortunate event will not shake Japan’s democracy and democratic system, and our discourse will not succumb to violence. That will absolutely not happen in Japan.

Those comments were made by member of the Japanese House of Representatives Ishiba Shigeru. In the four-member Japanese delegation, two members are former defense ministers, and one once served as deputy defense minister. Their visit to Taiwan is aimed at discussing regional security. Ishiba expressed regret that defense-minded Abe was unable to see his objectives through before his untimely death. He expressed a resolve to continue Abe’s mission. He said he hoped to sign a bilateral agreement on cooperation with Taiwan during his trip.

Ishiba Shigeru
Former Japanese defense minister
What we are talking about is, what kinds of regional situations might develop, and then after those developments, what kinds of treaties or laws will be invoked. Or, what kinds of weapons systems or forces do we need to put in place to put up a resistance. These are all things that need to be discussed in advance, and we need to reach a consensus.

Tsai Ing-wen
President
Taiwan is an important member of international society. We know that safeguarding Taiwan is not just about safeguarding sovereignty, more importantly it’s about regional strategic security. Taiwan is very important to the defense of the first island chain. We will continue to deepen cooperation with Japan and other democratic partners, working together to protect peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.

The security of Taiwan is inextricably intertwined with that of Japan. Abe once said that a contingency in Taiwan is a contingency in Japan. His successors are applying that mindset to their own policies, bringing Taiwan and Japan closer together.

2022-07-28

Taiwan takes delivery of first batch of monkeypox oral drugs

2022-07-28

CECC says BA.5 COVID subvariant may already be spreading in the community

The CECC on Thursday announced 23,822 local COVID infections and 62 COVID-related deaths. It also reported that a suspected cluster infection at a shipyard in Southern Taiwan was in fact two separate clusters.One was caused by the BA.2 strain, which is dominant in Taiwan. The other, involving a shipyard employee and his two children, was caused by the BA.5, signaling that the subvariant could already be spreading in the community. The CECC says it is not considering tightening COVID measures.

Concerns that a cluster infection at a shipbuilding factory in Kaohsiung was caused by the BA.5 subvariant have been dispelled, after genetic sequencing showed that four of the workers were infected with the BA.2 subvariant.

Phillip Lo
CECC
The factory cluster infection and the family cluster involving BA.5, in fact, are two separate events.

In a cluster infection at a shipbuilding factory, 10 contacts tested positive in a first round of testing. Samples from seven of those 10 were sent for genetic sequencing, and four came back as BA.2 – the most common subvariant in Taiwan. The CT values of the other three were too low for testing. Only the initial case from the factory, and his two children, were found to be infected with BA.5.

With the source of the initial case’s infection unknown, the CECC said there is likely already community transmission of BA.5. It advised the public to exercise caution, but said there are currently no plans to implement stricter public health measures.

Phillip Lo
CECC
What we are concerned about now is the possibility that BA.5 has already spread in the community. This newest subvariant will likely continue to spread throughout the community in some way, and eventually replace BA.2 as the dominant strain.

The CECC says that mid-August will probably see another wave of infections, as BA.5 becomes the dominant strain in Taiwan. Next-generation boosters targeting new variants will only become available in the fall, months after the BA.5 wave. The CECC says that despite that, there are no plans to open up eligibility for fourth shots to the general population.

Chuang Jen-hsiang
CECC
Comparatively speaking, if we give fourth shots to young people, it will increase antibodies to levels just slightly higher than those following the third shots. However, in terms of slowing infection, or preventing severe symptoms, there’s no real noticeable effect. So we don’t have any plans for widespread vaccination with fourth shots.

Around the world Israel, France, the U.S., Thailand, Japan and South Korea have rolled out fourth shots, but in all cases, availability has been restricted to certain demographics.

The CECC says that for now it will continue to focus on high-risk groups for additional booster shots, saying the benefit of more boosters for youth is negligible.

2022-07-28