‘Lacking empathy’: Economics minister caught in nuclear plant controversy

‘Lacking empathy’: Economics minister caught in nuclear plant controversy

2025-08-13

The minister of economic affairs has once again found himself in hot water. This time, it’s due to remarks that were perceived as dismissive to the residents near the Maanshan Nuclear Power Plant. Minister J.W. Kuo was commenting on the high degree of local support for the plant’s reactivation. He said that the government should consider scrapping the subsidies currently given to residents living near the power plant to see if local support would continue to remain high. Let’s hear the response from the commissioner of Pingtung.

Chou Chun-mi
Pingtung Commissioner
The residents of the Hengchun Peninsula have coexisted with this beast of a plant for 40 years. The subsidies are there due to historical reasons. I hope the minister can be more empathetic and put himself in our shoes.

J.W. Kuo
Minister of Economic Affairs
Why not do a survey? If there weren’t any subsidies, would support still stand at 70%? That’s just a point I raised for discussion. You consider that a blunder?

Rosalia Wu
DPP Caucus
I often find myself acting as the spokesperson for the Ministry of Economic Affairs, having to clarify and explain Minister Kuo’s remarks. The comments he made yesterday lacked empathy.

The DPP lawmaker appears to have grown frustrated with the frequent controversies surrounding Kuo. Meanwhile, rumors of a cabinet reshuffle are swirling, after last month’s failed recall campaigns. Reports say a reshuffle could take place after the next recall and referendum polls on Aug. 23. With growing pressure for change, a change of staff seems all but inevitable.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#politics #郭智輝 #ministry #controversy #nuclearpower #maanshan

"挺核三為了睦鄰費"郭智輝引爭議周春米批:將心比心

2025-08-13

內閣再傳改組消息的敏感時刻，被點名應該下台的經濟部長郭智輝又傳失言！前一天郭智輝備詢時，被問到恆春半島高民調支持核三延役，他竟回應"把敦親睦鄰費拿掉，看居民支不支持"。屏東縣長周春米要郭智輝"將心比心、謙卑"，但郭智輝完全不認為自己有失言。

[[屏東縣長周春米]]
“恆春半島的鄉親，也跟這座廠共存40年，來了這個龐然大物，回饋金有它的歷史緣由，請郭部長將心比心，謙卑以對”

[[經濟部長郭智輝]]
“你要不要調查一下，如果沒有補助的話，是不是70%的人都支持，我只是提出這樣的討論方向，你認為這個是失言嗎”

[[民進黨團幹事長吳思瑤]]
“常常，很多次，大家把我當經濟部發言人，我需要為郭智輝的發言澄清，說明，我想郭智輝部長昨天答詢，回應，不夠有充分的同理心”

郭智輝言論頻頻惹議，綠營立委好無奈，726大罷免失利後，傳出府院黨定調，在823第2波罷免投票後，要進行內閣改組，如何調整施政方向和節奏，符合社會期待，人事異動看來勢在必行。

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Typhoon Podul rips across Taiwan in just 3 hours

2025-08-13

Typhoon-chasing YouTuber back in Taiwan again for Podul

Whenever there’s a typhoon, there’s James Reynolds. The UK-born and Japan-based YouTuber specializes in filming extreme weather events in the Asia-Pacific region. He’s chased typhoons that affected Taiwan since Typhoon Haitang in 2005. This time, as usual, he was prepared for Typhoon Podul to make landfall in Taitung, and he’s yet to break his 25-times streak catching typhoons in Taiwan.

Typhoon Podul lashes Taitung and creates strong rainstorms at Taimali Station. YouTuber James Reynolds, a self-proclaimed “tropical cyclone interceptor” from the UK and based in Japan, did not miss out.

He’s already set up a tripod and he’s wearing a helmet, clearly having done this many times before. And he has, for 20-plus years around the world, Taiwan included.

James Reynolds
YouTuber
I’ve been covering typhoons for 20 years now. It’s just something which I had been interested in since I was a much younger man. It’s a surprising one, it was a pretty weak typhoon, and now as it’s approaching Taiwan it has increased in strength very quickly. Personally, I think this is a good location to observe and film a typhoon from, but it could still be, you know, have some dangers.

This footage of him completely drenched was from a livestream of Typhoon Koinu in 2023. Last year, three typhoons made landfall in Taiwan—Gaemi, Krathon and Kong-rey—and he did not miss out on any of them. He’s filmed typhoons in Taiwan since 2005, starting with Typhoon Haitang. Twenty years has passed since then, but he’s still chasing and livestreaming these weather events.

James Reynolds
YouTuber
This is maybe my 25th time here. My first one was in 2005. I love coming to Taiwan, honestly. Every time I come here it’s such an amazing place to visit. And I love nature. And where I grew up, in England, we don’t have typhoons.

Typhoons keeps Reynolds coming back to Taiwan, again and again. Despite the danger, you can reliably find him near the eye of the storm.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#typhoon #storm #extremeweather #typhoonpodul #nature

2025-08-13

Interview with coffee hunter, Jose Yoshiaki Kawashima

Today, we take you to meet José Yoshiaki Kawashima, a renowned coffee bean hunter and founder of a brand of sustainable coffee. He is known for discovering endangered coffee beans in Madagascar and Réunion Island. Since the findings, he has worked hard to revive and commercialize the beans. FTV reporter Stephany Yang spoke to Kawashima during his recent visit to Taiwan to learn more about his career.

Kawashima honed his expertise in coffee cultivation and selection at the Salvadoran Coffee Institute. In 1999, he discovered two endangered coffee species. Since then, he has dedicated himself to reviving and reintroducing these rare beans to the world. He is recognized as one of the world’s most renowned “coffee hunters.”

José Yoshiaki Kawashima
Coffee hunter and Japanese sustainable coffee brand founder
In 1999, I found Bourbon Pointu coffee on a small island and helped revive a variety that was almost disappearing. To me, it was an incredibly fulfilling accomplishment.

In 2008, he founded a coffee brand, sourcing beans from top-tier estates in Panama, Colombia, and more. The brand offers rare varieties like Geisha. He recently visited Taiwan, the location of his first overseas flagship store, in Neihu.

José Yoshiaki Kawashima
Coffee hunter and Japanese sustainable coffee brand founder
Although Taiwan has many Geisha coffee varieties, I haven’t found one of truly exceptional quality yet, so there’s still potential to keep exploring. The Geisha is a very delicate and challenging variety to cultivate. It requires an environment with low humidity and minimal wind to thrive. It also carries a floral aroma.

Throughout his career, Kawashima has traveled to over 3,000 coffee farms across 50 countries to discover rare and high-quality beans. His mission is to be a bridge between producers and consumers to promote sustainable coffee production.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#geisha #coffee #coffeehunter #JoséYoshiakiKawashima #cofffeebean

2025-08-13

Cherry lovers delight as prices hit 20-year-low

2025-08-13

Taiwan-based comedy duo returns to Japan for Osaka Expo performance

Known as a welcoming city, Osaka also happens to be the birthplace of traditional Japanese manzai comedy. Many comedians hail from Osaka, including the duo Mancai Shaoye. When they came to Taiwan 10 years ago, they didn’t know a word of Mandarin. Now they even use Taiwanese in their shows. Along with their long-time collaborators, the Taiwanese manzai group Dacon.come, they accepted an invitation from the Ministry of Culture to perform in Osaka together.

Lin Yung-chi
FTV reporter
Osaka isn’t just known for its takoyaki. It also produces the most comedians of anywhere in Japan. One group even came to Taiwan a decade ago to try their luck abroad.

Introducing themselves in Mandarin and Taiwanese, this is Miki Furuu and Oota Takurou. Ten years ago, they came to Taiwan to promote manzai comedy. But what is manzai, anyway?

One acts the fool while the other roasts him, eliciting laughs from the crowd. This traditional Kansai form of standup goes back over a century. The theater in central Osaka draws lines of people to see it daily.

Miki Furuu
Mancai Shaoye member
Osaka started as a commercial hub long ago. There were lots of businesspeople. When selling their wares, they liked to joke around. So they got used to joking around with people.

Oota Takurou
Mancai Shaoye member
The first time we performed manzai in Taiwan, no one understood it. They didn’t know what manzai was. Lots of people asked if we meant manga.

Apart from the language barrier, they also had to contend with cultural differences. But now they’ve successfully cracked the Taiwanese market. Miki brought his wife over to settle down, while Oota has developed a taste for Taiwanese food.

Oota Takurou
Mancai Shaoye member
After five days in Japan, I’m already craving pork rice.

Miki Furuu
Mancai Shaoye member
Coming back to our hometown and performing manzai in Mandarin, I don’t even know who I am anymore.

Coming to perform at this cultural expo in Osaka organized by the Ministry of Culture is extremely significant for the duo. They also shared the stage with this other manzai group, who are as Taiwanese as they come.

The two members of Dacon.come studied theater together in college. They started the group over 10 years ago, teaching themselves the art of manzai. Behind their hilarious stage presence is a wealth of experience in the performing arts. They’re dedicated to promoting Taiwanese manzai, and collaborate often with Japanese performers.

A Da
Dacon.come member
When Mancai Shaoye came to Taiwan, they studied Mandarin with us and how to use Mandarin to perform manzai. We also learned from them about authentic manzai culture from its place of origin. It’s still niche in Taiwan, so a lot of performances are relatively lively and free. They also love this kind of energy.

Kang Kang
Dacon.come member
We hope that more people can do this kind of thing. Hopefully then, it could add more depth and variety. Whether it’s on TV or the stage.

Laughter has no boundaries, and language is no barrier. Comedic exchange between Taiwan and Japan can only grow from here!

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#comedy #standup #manzai #Osaka #OsakaExpo #Daconcome #MancaiShaoye #performingarts #performance #WeTaiwan

2025-08-13

MOCA exhibition on disasters and navigating crises

Today, we take you to an exhibition exploring natural disasters. A series of artworks are on display in Taipei, where visitors can reflect on how to navigate crises from mother nature. FTV reporter Stephany Yang takes us in for a look!

This work was created by Taiwanese artist Wang Yu-song, in collaboration with the Earthquake Sketching Group, inspired by the Hualien earthquake on April 3, 2024. In the aftermath of the quake, Hualien-based artists documented the dramatic transformation of the local landscape caused by natural disasters in recent years. They visited the hardest-hit areas to document the evolving landscape through on-site sketches.

Yian Chen
MoCA Taipei PR specialist
The Earthquake Sketching Group formed after the major earthquake on April 3rd last year. They were interested in the earthquake and how Hualien’s environment had changed. Through on-site sketching, they observed different landscapes shaped by the earthquake, such as Taroko Gorge and other areas transformed by seismic shifts.

Chang Chen-wei employs 3D scanning and modeling techniques to recreate a car damaged in the Russia-Ukraine war. Building on his practice of sourcing and printing images from the internet, he utilizes a collage technique to input the car’s shattered exterior onto the fabric.

Yian Chen
MoCA Taipei PR specialist
He crafted the piece as a digital collage on textured canvas, portraying a car wrecked by the Russia-Ukraine war. The image was based on a 3D model he discovered online, originally developed by a Kyiv University architecture graduate who documented the vehicle on the battlefield. Through this work, the artist encourages viewers to consider how war and catastrophe may be closer to our everyday lives than we imagine.

MOCA’s new exhibition invited seven artists from Japan, Switzerland and Taiwan to showcase works about natural disasters and its repair processes. Ranging from immersive installations to multimedia works, artists address the island’s history of earthquakes, typhoons and political instability. The exhibition creates a space that offers both refuge and reflection, and visitors are invited into an environment that feels safely removed from danger, yet close to the realities. The works on display invite visitors to reflect on how to navigate crises and the unknown.

Yian Chen
MoCA Taipei PR specialist
The exhibition presents scenes such as trees toppled by last year’s Typhoon Kong-rey, as well as landscapes altered by earthquakes and storms throughout Hualien. It invites viewers to reflect on how we respond to our environment when faced with these powerful natural threats and how to deal with these situations.

The “Safe Room” exhibition will be on show at the Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei till Sept. 7.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#MOCA #saferoom #naturaldisasters #typhoon #typhoonakongrey #地震寫生團

2025-08-13

Spooked baby ostrich runs 16km after bolting from Yilan enclosure

An ostrich on the run baffled drivers last night, after the bird turned the quiet streets of Yilan into its own personal racetrack. The bird apparently bolted out from its enclosure in Zhuangwei after getting scared by a loud thunder strike. It dashed off into town, and ran more than 16km, before finally coming to a stop across the river in Wujie.

You aren’t seeing things. That is indeed an ostrich taking a midnight stroll. Drivers couldn’t believe their eyes. Is this some kind of prank?

The bird zig-zags down the road, powered by two legs with the power of jet engines. This scene took place over a long stretch of the streets of Yilan. Let’s take a look at a map. It set off from Zhuangwei, across the Lanyang Bridge and onto Luodong. The bird was only stopped at Renqi Road in Wujie, 16km away from home. If you were on a scooter, covering that distance would take a whole half hour. But this bird ran.

Ostrich owner
It must have been scared from the thunder last night, so it bolted out. The door had been knocked over. A friend of mine drove out at night and spotted it and intercepted it. Then I went to pick it up on a truck.

The ostrich, which is just over 1 year old, is thought to have been scared off by loud thunder in the storms brought over by Typhoon Podul. Once it was out of its enclosure it ran amok through the rain without stopping for a second thought. By the time it was found, the bird’s legs were so tired that it had to be carried back.

Yu Cheng-hsuan
Police officer
We warned the owner and issued him a citation in accordance with Article 84 of the Road Traffic Act. Then, he took the ostrich back home.

Lin Hsin-hung
Yilan Agriculture Department
The incident was in violation of Article 20 of the Animal Protection Act regarding pets in public places. According to Article 30, the owner could face a fine of between NT$3,000 and NT$15,000.

The ostrich on the run earned its owner a traffic ticket of NT$600, but that’s not all. He could also face a fine of up to NT$15,000 for violations to the Animal Protection Act.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#funny #ostrich #cute #cuteanimal #lol #babyostrich

2025-08-13

Taiwan’s women’s tug-of-war team wins 6th consecutive World Games gold

Taiwan’s women’s tug-of-war team gave a stunning performance at the 2025 World Games. They won every single match they competed in and ended up bagging their sixth consecutive gold medal from the World Games. After their victorious return to Taiwan, their coach attributed their outstanding job to the training drills that they did before the big day.

As soon as Taiwan’s women’s tug-of-war team arrives at the airport lobby, cheers and applause erupted to welcome them. They’ve just won gold at the 2025 World Games in Chengdu, China. Not only that—it’s their sixth consecutive gold medal in the 500kg category.

Lee I-chin
Team captain
I was on the bench for the women’s team this time. Seeing them do so well in every match is something I’ll never forget.

The team had a rough start, having their first match delayed due to the rain. Still, they persisted and won all five matches before the semifinals against Germany. Then, they won 2-0 against Germany and then went on to win against Sweden in the final. In other words, they won all seven matches including the final.

Lee I-chin
Team captain
For our first match, it had started to rain heavily before we’d even headed out. Then we had to compete under the rain. But everyone really worked so hard in every match.

Kuo Sheng
Coach
We’re very grateful that the tug-of-war association held a series of challenges before the games, two weeks of which was in the rain. This time in Chengdu we also had to compete in the rain. Good thing we’ve already tried it out in Taiwan.

The women’s tug-of-war team gave stunning results this year, having won all seven matches they participated in and nabbed their sixth consecutive gold. This was also Taiwan’s first gold medal at the 2025 World Games. They did it with many drills before the official games, allowing them to stay on top of their game despite the rainy weather.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#worldgames #chengdu2025 #tugofwar #sports #taiwan

2025-08-13

TSMC shares surge past NT$1,200 after board meeting

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