Taiwan's newly formed Friends of Shinzo Abe Association will establish a scholarship for young Japanese people to study in Taiwan to enhance their understanding of the country and experience Taiwanese culture, the group said in a statement issued Tuesday.
Under the association's current plan, it will offer scholarships to 10 young Japanese people per year to study at universities in Taiwan for at least one year, with the annual scholarship capped at 1 million Japanese yen (US$7,258.72) for each person, according to association head Mark Chen (???).
Chen served as Taiwan's foreign minister from 2004-2006 under President Chen Shui-bian (???) from the Democratic Progressive Party.
The scholarship scheme aims to encourage more Japanese youths to study in Taiwan and enhance their knowledge and understanding of the country, according to the association, which was founded in June.
The plan was formulated after the association raised funds from Taiwanese businesses for a full-page advertisement in the Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun on July 15 paying tribute to former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Abe, known for his pro-Taiwan stance, was shot dead July 8 at the age of 67 during a campaign speech on a street in Nara, near Osaka ahead of the Diet's upper house elections in Japan, which took place July 10.
The association said that from a national security perspective, Taiwan should depend not only on the government but also the private sector to help advance relations with Japan.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel