Amid pedicab chaos, Cijin residents say enough is enough

Amid pedicab chaos, Cijin residents say enough is enough

2024-06-25

Turning now to Kaohsiung. Walk the streets of Cijin Island and you’re likely to see tourists, cruising along on rented electric pedicabs. But now locals are saying enough is enough. They’re frustrated by the hit-and-run incidents involving these rented vehicles. Many residents have also found their cars scratched up or damaged by holidaymakers on wheels.

Local
Tourists might run into someone with their pedicab and just run away. And some locals see their cars scratched up, and they say it’s OK, it’s just a little scratch. My neighbors, for example. They’re very nice people.

Tu Sheng-hui
Borough warden in Cijin
When you’re away on vacation and you scratch someone’s car, you might run away out of fear. My car was also struck once, but I didn’t report it. We want rental companies to do more to ensure safe riding.

Yang Chun-hao
Cijin police officer
Low-speed vehicles that operate in unauthorized areas can be fined between NT$300 and NT$1,200.

On Cijin Island, there are designated pathways for electric pedicabs, but many tourists still choose to venture out of bounds. Locals have demanded that red signs be put up, warning the vehicles to stay out of narrow alleys. With the summer travel season soon to peak, these signs will soon be put to the test.

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旗津電動三輪車亂象記者直擊外籍遊客"直直撞"

2024-06-25

高雄旗津是觀光勝地，不少遊客都會租電動三輪車邊騎車邊享受美景，但當地居民車停在門口卻常被三輪車刮花，甚至有遊客撞完就跑，鍋給業者背。

[[當地居民]]
“遊客車撞到人，有的直接騎走了，有(被刮車)的人說，沒關係一點點而已，我們鄰居人都很好”

[[高雄旗津區旗下里里長杜勝輝]]
因為出來玩刮到人家車子，一時緊張啦(就離開)，我的車子也被車輛刮到，只是我沒有去報案。我們希望我們業者，多強調如何安全駕駛怎樣

[[高市警旗津分駐所長楊俊豪]]
“那慢車行駛不依規定的路段，可以處新台幣300至1200以下的罰鍰”

其實觀光局106年時就規劃了三輪車觀光路線，宣導後仍沒改善，當地居民超無奈，聯合陳情，要求在六米的窄巷都掛上「禁止營業用三輪車進入」的紅色告示牌。暑期來臨，旗津遊客大爆滿，電動三輪車穿梭大街小巷，紅色警示牌能否發揮效果，還得再觀察。

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Chen Li-fu
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A head of state with a strong resolve and unwavering determination to defend Taiwan can make China think twice before launching an attack.

Civic groups applauded Lai’s committees as, quote, forward-thinking. They emphasized that through the whole-of-defense committee, Lai will be able to unite the nation and better prepare the people to defend themselves.

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Animal therapy brings companionship in prisons and young offenders’ schools

Animal therapy is being applied in prisons and young offenders’ rehabilitation institutions, to help people who have committed crimes find a new relationship with life. Students at a young offenders’ school in Yanchao District, Kaohsiung, have started to adopt stray cats and dogs. They say it brings companionship and helps them understand how to interact with other people, too. Teachers say that working with animals provides many different opportunities to explore life lessons. A similar scheme has recently begun in Pingtung Prison.

A ginger tortoiseshell cat tucks into his meal happily. He doesn’t mind the crowd of students hanging around, who are all his familiar friends.

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Interacting with the animals and fish helps me understand how to interact with people.

Mingyang High School, in Kaohsiung’s Yanchao District, is a young offenders’ rehabilitation school. The 130 young people here have been convicted of serious offences. The schoolopened its doors six years ago, and students here are encouraged to learn how to take care of rescued cats and dogs, which has unexpectedly brought a breath of fresh air to the school.

Tu Chih-hung
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They may have some unhappy relationships with people. But at least they can be kind to animals, and through that, they can correctly build up a normal kind of connection with other living beings.

The animals give the students companionship, and in lessons, teachers help them understand the value of life.

Tu Chih-hung
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Teachers will often use opportunities like this for education, to tell them, “Humans are like shrimps. If they don’t shed their old shell they can’t grow anymore. Coming out of your shell is painful, and it’s dangerous, but it’s something we have to go through in life.”

A similar project began at Pingtung Prison in May. The prison began a “Caring for Dogs” class, a form of animal therapy.

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Canadian YouTuber Linus Sebastian runs a channel that’s popular among Taiwanese tech lovers. Sebastian recently visited Taipei’s Guang Hua Digital Plaza, where he bought a high-powered self-assembled computer worth NT$170,000. His video about the trip has gone viral, racking up more than 2 million views in two days.

Linus Sebastian
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Wow! That looks awesome. Wow. Hold on. I want to get a picture of it.

With its 15.7 million subscribers, Linus Tech Tips is the brainchild of Canadian tech expert Linus Sebastian. The YouTuber came to Taipei for Computex. While in Taiwan, he paid a visit to Guang Hua Digital Plaza, where he bought a self-assembled high-performance computer. In a video about his trip, he complimented the high-quality computer and its careful packaging. The video earned over 2 million views in just two days.

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It’s great. He’s helping introduce Taiwan to the world. It’s great, absolutely fantastic.

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Taiwan’s taekwondo star Lo Chia-ling is hard at work preparing for the Paris Olympics. She gained the nickname “The Nation’s Girlfriend” after winning a silver medal in Tokyo in 2022. This time she says she hopes to repeat her success. But this year, she’s recovering from an ankle injury, which is a big extra burden. And there’s an unexpected spanner in the works: she’s still getting taller. That makes it harder and harder for her to stay within the weight restriction of her featherweight class.

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Lo reportedly frequently dines on a meal of just salad and water, tough for her coach to watch. Lo is Taiwan’s only taekwondo athlete going to the Paris Olympics. She’s competing not only for herself but for the whole taekwondo world in Taiwan.

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With Taiwan baking under a blazing sun, the Central Weather Administration issued heat advisories for 14 cities and counties on Tuesday.

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Taiwan has endured days of sweltering heat. According to the health ministry, 460 people have sought treatment for heat-related illnesses since June 1. With summer getting underway, more heat is in the forecast.

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Ahead of typhoon season, the Central Weather Administration has optimized its warning systems to improve disaster preparedness.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
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2024-06-25