Japan remains the favorite foreign country and the most desirable travel destination for Taiwanese, far ahead of the US, China and the EU, a survey showed yesterday.
The Interchange Association, Japan, which represents Japan in the absence of bilateral diplomatic relations, yesterday released a survey on Taiwanese perceptions of Japan, the third of its kind since 2008.
Similar to the previous two surveys, most Taiwanese continued to list Japan as their favorite foreign country or region, with 41 percent of respondents choosing Japan, 8 percent opting for the US, 8 percent saying China and 6 percent preferring the EU, while 37 percent offered no opinions.
The survey found that 39 percent of respondents regarded China as the country or region with which Taiwan should have closer relations, followed by Japan with 29 percent of respondents, the US with 15 percent and the EU with 3 percent.
Sixteen percent of respondents did not identify a specific country.
It showed the first six most desirable travel destinations for Taiwanese were Japan, favored by 39 percent of respondents, followed by the EU (32 percent), China (14 percent), the US (5 percent), Southeastern Asian countries (4 percent) and South Korea (3 percent).
As for countries that respondents “have close a connection with,” 75 percent said Japan, an increase of 13 percent from the previous survey, while 53 percent said Taiwan and Japan enjoy cordial relations, up 28 percent from the 2009 survey.
Fifty-four percent of respondents felt Japan was a country worthy of trust, up from 41 percent two years ago, while only 10 percent did not consider Japan trustworthy, down from 12 percent from two years ago, the survey showed.
The devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan on March 11 last year also affected the willingness of Taiwanese to visit the country.
Among the respondents who said they would rather not visit Japan in the near future in the wake of the disaster, 50 percent were worried about radiation from the Fukushima Dai-chi nuclear power plant’s damaged reactors; 28 percent dropped Japan from their travel plans because of the yen’s appreciation, 12 percent were concerned about possible earthquakes and tsunamis, while 5 percent cited personal factors.
About 66 percent of respondent said that the relationship between Taiwan and Japan had grown closer since the disasters, while only 4 percent said it was less close than before, the survey found.
On issues that could negatively affect Taiwanese-Japanese relations, only 1 percent of respondents were concerned about the Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台) known as the Sendukus in Japan.
The survey was conducted from Jan. 30 to Feb. 22. It collected 1,009 valid samples.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS