Sex selective abortions in Taiwan
Last year, Taiwan’s fertility rate became the world’s lowest, dropping from 1.03 in 2010 to a record low of just 0.9 in 2011. The government blamed the decreasing birth rate on people’s superstitions about which zodiac years were best for bearing children. It seems many people were waiting for the year of the dragon, which starts next week and is considered a particularly auspicious period to be born in.
By Simon Cotterill | The Foreign Desk | Tuesday, 10 January 2012 at 10:40 am
Flyjin: my decision to stay in Japan
A new word, flyjin, seems to have entered the Japanese vocabulary. A disparaging pun, it plays on the word gaijin which literally means ‘outsider’ and in everyday Japanese describes foreign people. Flyjins are those foreigners who have fled Japan during the last week and who some Japanese people now view as merely fair-weather friends.
Last Wednesday [...]
By Simon Cotterill | The Foreign Desk | Monday, 21 March 2011 at 4:04 pm
Whether to stay or to leave Tokyo…
The uncertainty over what is happening at the Fukushima plant is one thing. The constant earthquakes are another. But the worst thing about being in Tokyo right now, is not knowing what could happen; in other words, not knowing what a worst case scenario would look like. Without knowing, the imagination runs wild.
No one seems [...]
By Simon Cotterill | The Foreign Desk | Thursday, 17 March 2011 at 4:26 pm
Trying to sleep through Japan’s earthquakes
People are incredibly calm, despite the ground constantly shaking. Many parts of Tokyo are experiencing power cuts due to a national energy shortage. Many train lines have been suspended. And many supermarkets and convenience stores have had their shelves emptied by people trying to ensure they have enough food at home. But if you were [...]
By Simon Cotterill | Notebook | Monday, 14 March 2011 at 12:06 pm
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