Passport2Liberty Opens Ukrainian Nurse Migration to United States

Featured Image for CGFNS International, Inc.

Featured Image for CGFNS International, Inc.

PHILADELPHIA, July 28, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — CGFNS International, Inc. (CGFNS) is proud to announce its “Passport to Liberty” initiative that will restore credentials for Ukrainian nurses who wish to migrate to the United States. Recognizing that special attention must be given to those forced to flee their country to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster, CGFNS will leverage its credentials assessment expertise, partnerships, and state-of-the-art global educational database to reconstruct the documentation Ukrainian nurses need to practice in the United States.

As an internationally recognized standards-setting body and the world’s largest credentials evaluation organization for nursing, CGFNS’ mission and responsibility to every nurse around the globe is to provide them with the means to have a better life by living and working in their country of choice.

“CGFNS created the Passport2Liberty initiative to address the challenges faced by Ukrainian nurses during this time of crisis. It is grounded in the belief and commitment that safe, orderly, regular migration is a human right, and that the global community has a responsibility to ensure that refugees in all situations are aptly supported and empowered,” said CGFNS President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Franklin A. Shaffer.

To further expand the initiative, the American Hospital Association (AHA) and the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL) will facilitate partnerships with healthcare systems and work with the State Boards of Nursing. “Passport2Liberty offers a path for hospitals and health systems to help displaced Ukrainian nurses find support and assistance in rebuilding their lives while continuing their nursing careers in the United States,” said Robyn Begley, senior vice president and chief nursing officer of AHA and AONL CEO.

A founding partner and the first U.S. healthcare system to commit to the Passport2Liberty initiative is Ochsner Health, an integrated healthcare system with 40 hospitals and 300+ health and urgent care centers across Louisiana, Mississippi, and the Gulf South. “I am so proud of our creative and empathetic nursing teams at Ochsner Health, who saw a need to help their fellow nurses from Ukraine and shared with leadership this idea to participate,” said Warner Thomas, President and CEO of Ochsner Health. “Not only will this program be part of our international RN recruitment strategy, but it’s the right thing to do.”

Another Passport2Liberty partner is the Catholic Health Association of the United States, which is comprised of more than 600 hospitals and 1,600 long-term-care and other health facilities in all 50 states and is the largest group of nonprofit healthcare providers in the nation. Sr. Mary Haddad, President and CEO, added, “The Catholic Health Association of the United States congratulates CGFNS International on its Passport2Liberty initiative and is pleased to participate in the program. The initiative will help Ukrainian nurses who have been forced to leave their homeland get credential verification to practice in this country and connect these nurses with employers who can support their transition into the U.S. workforce.”

Global Nurse Partners, a nurse placement agency specializing in international recruitment, is another Passport2Liberty partner that will help and support nurses through their transition and adjustment to the U.S. Sylvia Mullarkey, Founder and CEO, added, “Global Nurse Partners is honored to collaborate with our founding partners in creating opportunities for nurses and their families impacted by this crisis, and we look forward to supporting their journey.”

Ukrainian Nurse refugees should visit Passport2Liberty.org and fill out the general information form to get personalized information about the accommodation policies for their specific cases.

For more information, contact Frank Mortimer, Director, Marketing & Communication: fmortimer@cgfns.org or visit Passport2Liberty.org

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Trip.com and Ctrip celebrate the return of travel by announcing their strategic partnership with Hylink Digital

Hylink offers full-service advertising through its Travel + Travel Retail practice, Hylink Travel, will offer travel brands exclusive opportunities and resources on the Trip.com and Ctrip platform through our partnership

LOS ANGELES, July 27, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Hylink Digital (Hylink), a 30-year award-winning full-service global agency, was announced as the official strategic partner of Trip.com and Ctrip for the Americas (North and South America). This marks the first of its kind between an advertising agency and an international online travel agency.

As tourism returns, destination marketers, travel brands and travel marketers can expect not only more value from their existing services, but also better rates and exclusive access to inventory and content creation through this partnership.

“We have always had a deep relationship with Hylink, and this particular partnership is very timely as global travel resumes. We anticipate seeing a full recovery within the global travel center,” says Edison Chen, General Manager of Trip.com and Ctrip Partnerships.

In this historic year for travel, it is evident that the travel industry is changing, and the future of travel will look like partnerships like this one. “Trip.com’s business model works across all industries that intersect with travel, be it travel tourism, destination marketing, travel retail, healthcare, education, or travel brands,” says Humphrey Ho, Managing Partner, Americas at Hylink Digital.

Trip.com Group Limited
Website: https://us.trip.com/?locale=en_us
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Trip/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trip/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Trip/
WeChat: https://pages.trip.com/images/social-media/wechatQRCode.png
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TripOfficial

Hylink Digital
Website: https://hylinkgroup.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hylinkdigital/?hl=en
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hylinkdigital
LinkedIn: https://fr.linkedin.com/company/hylink

About Trip.com Group
Trip.com Group Limited, formerly Ctrip.com International, is a Chinese multinational online travel company that provides services including accommodation reservation, transportation ticketing, packaged tours and corporate trave management.

Trip.com is A NASDAQ listed company since 2003 (NASDAQ: TCOM) with more than 1.4 million hotels in 200 countries and regions and a far-reach flight network of over 2 million flight routes connecting more than 5,000 cities around the world. The agency has built an extensive hotel and flight network that gives customers an array of global options.

About Hylink Digital Solutions
Hylink Digital (Hylink) is a fully integrated independent international advertising and communications agency with more than 20 offices worldwide and an American headquarters both in Los Angeles, California and in New York, New York. Ranked #1 Digital Agency by China Internet (CI) Weekly Magazine for 14 consecutive years in a row between 2008-2021. Hylink has also been a multi-year Effie China award recipient for Most Effective Independent Agency Network of the Year and was identified as a fastest growing agency by Adweek in 2021. Hylink Digital has won 32 awards at the 2021 Interactive Creative & Media Marketing Awards (formerly the Modern Advertising Awards).

Hylink comprises industry-leading units in the following disciplines: digital media, interactive creative, programmatic, SEM, content marketing and investment, EPR/social, research, and insights. Hylink services Fortune Global 500 companies, from both headquarters in China and the U.S., and has supporting offices globally. For more information, visit www.hylinkgroup.com, or follow Hylink on LinkedIn or Twitter at @hylinkdigital.

Media Contact: Alana Reid

Name: Alana Reid

Email: alana.reid@hylinkgroup.com

‘I Can’t Wait’ is the Campaign Theme for World Hepatitis Day 2022

World Hepatitis Day 2022 launches today with the campaign theme, ‘I Can’t Wait’. The theme highlights the need to accelerate the fight against viral hepatitis which claims one life every 30 seconds. The day comes as the world faces a new outbreak of acute hepatitis infections affecting children.

World Hepatitis Day – 28 July

World Hepatitis Day – 28 July

LONDON, England, July 28, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, World Hepatitis Day (WHD) launches with the campaign theme ‘I Can’t Wait’. On WHD, the World Hepatitis Alliance (WHA) joins together with its global network of 320 members in 100 countries to lead the campaign internationally to accelerate the fight against viral hepatitis.

The ‘I Can’t Wait’ campaign theme builds on the previous Hepatitis Can’t Wait global campaign, and highlights the social injustice and inequity caused by the current lack of action on hepatitis elimination and focuses on the positive action needed to meet the WHA’s 2030 elimination goals. The campaign amplifies the voices of people affected by viral hepatitis calling for immediate action from decision makers globally to prioritise the elimination of viral hepatitis.

Globally, 354 million people live with hepatitis B or C (WHO, 2022), causing more than 1.1 million lives to be lost each year (WHO, 2021). Hepatitis is one of the most deadly and neglected diseases and health crises – one that is claiming a life every 30 seconds. By 2040, deaths from viral hepatitis are expected to exceed mortality from HIV, malaria, and tuberculosis combined (Foreman, 2018).

World Hepatitis Day comes as the world currently faces a new outbreak of acute hepatitis infections affecting children. As of 8 July 2022, 35 countries in five WHO Regions have reported 1,010 probable cases of severe acute hepatitis in children, including 22 deaths (WHO, 2022).

This new outbreak brings focus on the importance of raising awareness of this viral disease which has traditionally disproportionately affected the economically disadvantaged. An estimated 197 million of hepatitis B-positive people (~79%) live in low- and middle-income countries in the African and Western Pacific region (WHO, 2017).

Danjuma Adda, President, World Hepatitis Alliance says:

“The gains made to eliminate hepatitis have been uneven across the world, with those most impacted often the least likely to benefit. Most countries have failed to meet their Global Health Sector Strategy 2020 targets and many babies still lack access to the hepatitis B birth dose vaccine in many low- and middle-income countries, with less than 10% in Africa receiving a timely vaccine.

“Governments and global funders are turning a blind eye to the 1.1 million deaths each year and the continued impacts on communities across the world. We will no longer accept their excuses. It takes courage to speak out, but this World Hepatitis Day we come together globally to say ‘I can’t wait’ for an end to hepatitis and urge policy makers, global funders, and decision makers to act by increasing investment and financing hepatitis elimination.”

More information: tajinder.tiwana@worldhepatitisalliance.org

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I Can’t Wait

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Nyxoah to Present at the Canaccord Genuity 42nd Annual Growth Conference

Nyxoah to Present at the Canaccord Genuity 42nd Annual Growth Conference

Mont-Saint-Guibert, Belgium – July 27, 2022, 10:30pm CET / 4:30pm ET – Nyxoah SA (Euronext Brussels/Nasdaq: NYXH)(“Nyxoah” or the “Company”), a medical technology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative solutions to treat Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), today announced that the Company will present at the Canaccord Genuity 42nd Annual Growth Conference, which will take place in Boston, Massachusetts, from August 8 to 11, 2022.

Olivier Taelman, Nyxoah’s Chief Executive Officer, is scheduled to present a corporate update on Wednesday, August 10, 2022, at 3:30pm EDT. A webcast of the presentation will be available on the Events section of Nyxoah’s Investor Relations website. The Company will also be available for 1×1 meetings with institutional investors attending the event.

Nyxoah’s updated Investor Presentation can be accessed on the Shareholder Information section of the Company’s Investor Relations page.

About Nyxoah
Nyxoah is a medical technology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative solutions to treat Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). Nyxoah’s lead solution is the Genio® system, a patient-centered, leadless and battery-free hypoglossal neurostimulation therapy for OSA, the world’s most common sleep disordered breathing condition that is associated with increased mortality risk and cardiovascular comorbidities. Nyxoah is driven by the vision that OSA patients should enjoy restful nights and feel enabled to live their life to its fullest.

Following the successful completion of the BLAST OSA study, the Genio® system received its European CE Mark in 2019. Nyxoah completed two successful IPOs: on Euronext Brussels in September 2020 and NASDAQ in July 2021. Following the positive outcomes of the BETTER SLEEP study, Nyxoah received CE mark approval for the expansion of its therapeutic indications to Complete Concentric Collapse (CCC) patients, currently contraindicated in competitors’ therapy. Additionally, the Company is currently conducting the DREAM IDE pivotal study for FDA and US commercialization approval.

For more information, please visit http://www.nyxoah.com/.

Caution – CE marked since 2019. Investigational device in the United States. Limited by U.S. federal law to investigational use in the United States.

Contacts:
Nyxoah
Loic Moreau, Chief Financial Officer
corporate@nyxoah.com
+32 473 33 19 80

Jeremy Feffer, VP IR and Corporate Communications
jeremy.feffer@nyxoah.com
+1 917 749 1494

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ASB Successfully Activates nCino to Help Transform Business Lending

Top three New Zealand institution by asset size is live on nCino following implementation journey during pandemic

AUCKLAND, New Zealand, July 27, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — nCino, Inc. (NASDAQ: NCNO), a pioneer in cloud banking and digital transformation solutions for the global financial services industry, today announced that ASB, one of New Zealand’s leading commercial banks, is live on the nCino Bank Operating System®. ASB deployed nCino’s Commercial Banking Solution as part of their journey to create a single, cloud-based platform to better serve their business customers. The nCino platform will provide ASB with key insights and the automation necessary to deliver a faster response and streamlined experience for both their bankers and customers.

“Our business lending transformation is delivering user friendly, intuitive, compliance-by-design systems and technology. A big part of this is the nCino software platform, which is being configured by our team, to help simplify our lending processes. This frees up our people to provide guidance and advice to our customers, helping them achieve their goals. We are already hearing positive feedback from our pilot users, with the first loan approval completed shortly after go-live,” said Tim Deane, Executive General Manager of Business Banking at ASB.

The New Zealand based $98 billion-asset bank (USD $64B) sought to replace and consolidate 16 existing legacy systems and tools, focusing on one platform that would streamline the lending process for their bankers, as well as provide opportunity to advance compliance by design for regulatory requirements and business processes. This consolidation will provide ASB’s bankers more time with their customers, which can be spent helping them advance their financial progress. The implementation of nCino, alongside Salesforce for business origination, supports ASB’s transition from legacy systems, with ongoing functionality releases as business lending transitions from existing platforms.

“We’re excited to be able to partner with such an esteemed institution with a rich history and commitment to always doing the right thing for New Zealanders,” said Mark Bernhardi, Managing Director of Australia and New Zealand at nCino. “The introduction of nCino is one part of ASB’s largest ever transformation of business and corporate lending. The team at ASB Bank was enthusiastic about learning and integrating nCino’s technology, which empowered them with data-driven insights to serve their clients better. We look forward to our continued partnership with ASB Bank as they deliver seamless, personalised services and experiences for their communities.”

About nCino
nCino (NASDAQ: NCNO) is the worldwide leader in cloud banking. The nCino Bank Operating System® empowers financial institutions with scalable technology to help them achieve revenue growth, greater efficiency, cost savings and regulatory compliance. In a digital-first world, nCino’s single cloud-based platform enhances the employee and client experience to enable financial institutions to more effectively onboard clients, make loans and manage the entire loan life cycle, and open deposit and other accounts across lines of business and channels. Transforming how financial institutions operate through innovation, reputation and speed, nCino is partnered with more than 1,750 financial institutions of all types and sizes on a global basis. For more information, visit www.ncino.com.

About ASB
The ASB Group of companies is one of the largest providers of financial and insurance services in New Zealand. ASB Bank Limited is one of New Zealand’s leading commercial banks, committed to delivering on our purpose of accelerating financial progress for all New Zealanders through our products, services and how we support our community. For more information, visit www.asb.co.nz

Media Contacts
APAC
Catalina Garcia, nCino
+61 418 215 423
catalina.garcia@ncino.com

Holly Ryan, ASB
021 234 7865
holly.ryan@asb.co.nz

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements generally include actions, events, results, strategies and expectations and are often identifiable by use of the words “believes,” “expects,” “intends,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “seeks,” “estimates,” “projects,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “might,” or “continues” or similar expressions. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based upon nCino’s historical performance and its current plans, estimates, and expectations, and are not a representation that such plans, estimates, or expectations will be achieved. These forward-looking statements represent nCino’s expectations as of the date of this press release. Subsequent events may cause these expectations to change and, except as may be required by law, nCino does not undertake any obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially including, among others, risks and uncertainties relating to the market adoption of our solution and privacy and data security matters. Additional risks and uncertainties that could affect nCino’s business and financial results are included in reports filed by nCino with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (available on our web site at www.ncino.com or the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov). Further information on potential risks that could affect actual results will be included in other filings nCino makes with the SEC from time to time.

Certiport Names 2022 Microsoft Office Specialist and Adobe Certified Professional World Champions

Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship

First place winners for Microsoft and Adobe World Championship (left to right): Gabriel Stacie from Romania, Ondrej Cach from the Czech Republic, Rohan Matthias Vargas from Ireland, Selma Sanchez from USA (Adobe), Duy Phong Nguyen from Vietnam, Cong Minh Bui from Vietnam, Tristan Pesqueira from USA on Wednesday, July 27, 2022 in Anaheim, Calif. (Lauren Justice/AP Images for Pearson)

SALT LAKE CITY, July 27, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The winners of the 2022 Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) and the Adobe Certified Professional World Championship have been announced by Certiport, the leading provider of performance-based IT certification exams that accelerate academic and career opportunities for learners.

In its 20th year, the Microsoft Office Specialist competition attracted more than one million contestants from around the world. Students, ages 13 to 22, competed with peers to prove their superior skills in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, culminating in the most popular technology skills competition on Microsoft Office—and the only one endorsed by Microsoft since its inception in 2002.

To enter the competition, students took a qualifying Microsoft Office Specialist certification exam to demonstrate their mastery of Microsoft Office technology. Regional competitions were held worldwide, and 95 finalists qualified to compete in the final round of competition held in Anaheim, CA from July 24-27.

The 2022 MOS World Champions are:

Microsoft Word (Microsoft 365 Apps and Office 2019)

  • First place: Gabriel Stanciu, Romania
  • Second place: Trong Khai Nguyen, Vietnam
  • Third place: Chen Yuen Wong, Hong Kong

Microsoft PowerPoint® (Microsoft 365 Apps and Office 2019)

  • First place: Tristan Pesqueira, USA
  • Second place: Mihail Iliev, Bulgaria
  • Third place: Himanish Angrish, Canada

Microsoft Excel® (Microsoft 365 Apps and Office 2019)

  • First place: Duy Phong Nguyen, Vietnam
  • Second place: Nikolaos Rapanis, Greece
  • Third place: Heero Ramadhana Sipayung, Indonesia

Microsoft Word (Office 2016)

  • First place: Rohan Matthias Vargas, Ireland
  • Second place: Ching Chi Tsao, Taiwan
  • Third place: Ngoc Tung Chi Dao, Vietnam

Microsoft PowerPoint® (Office 2016)

  • First place: Cong Minh Bui, Vietnam
  • Second place: Benjamin Rands, USA
  • Third place: Amanda Gabriela Castillo Diaz, Mexico

Microsoft Excel® (Office 2016)

  • First place: Ondrej Cach, Czech Republic
  • Second place: Andrew Chuang Saladin, USA
  • Third place: Nicolas Stigler Yanez, Peru

In the concluding round, competitors participated in a two-part skills demonstration. The first skills demonstration was a 30-minute timed exam. The second part is an advanced three-hour research project, in which students research their given topic, formulate an opinion, and represent their conclusions and research in an asset appropriate to the competition application (Word report, Excel workbook, or PowerPoint presentation). This is the second year where finalists were required to complete a free-form project.

At the final event in Anaheim, Certiport and Microsoft recognized the top student competitors in the MOS World Championship Awards Ceremony and presented each First place winner with a $7,000 cash prize, Second place with $3,500 and Third place with $1,500.

“The pandemic put our live MOS Championship events on hold. We are so thrilled to be able to return to in-person competitions,” said Ray Murray, Vice President and General Manager, Certiport. “It is inspiring to see students from 21 countries come together to ‘speak Microsoft’. The winners receive extra praise, but every single student who entered has earned a valuable workforce credential that will help them find success in college and in their career. The last two years have highlighted the importance of IT skills for tomorrow’s professionals and it’s incredible to see so many young people get introduced to IT certifications through the MOS World Championship.”

Microsoft Office Specialist is the only official Microsoft-recognized certification for Microsoft Office globally and serves as a powerful instrument for assessing students’ skills and preparing them for real-world application of their knowledge.

“The Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship is one of our favorite events annually, because these students are thrilled to compete and they inspire all of us with their competitive spirit and crowning achievement,” said Rick Herrmann, Vice President Worldwide Public Sector, Education, Microsoft. “These students work diligently to earn valuable industry-recognized certifications, and we know that the future is bright with upcoming business and technology leaders like those we met at the MOS World Championship.”

In its 9th year, the Adobe Certified Professional competition attracted more than 238,000 contestants from around the world to prove their superior digital communications skills using Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign. Salma Sanchez from the United States won the top prize out of 22 finalists who came together for the final round of the global competition from July 24-27.

The 2022 Adobe Certified Professional World Champions are as follows:

  • First place, Salma Sanchez, USA
  • Second place, Manoela Campos, Brazil
  • Third place, Keavey Gamwell, United Kingdom
  • Fourth place, Xixillia Sunaryo, Indonesia
  • Fifth place, Kalin Chervenkov, Bulgaria

Finalists demonstrated their proficiency using industry-leading Adobe Creative Cloud software to design a poster in eight hours for The Ocean Agency, an NGO dedicated to using creativity, technology, and powerful partnerships to raise the awareness and support necessary to help fast-track ocean conservation action.

“All of the entries demonstrated a clear aptitude for design, and an incredible artistic flair,” said Richard Vevers, Founder and CEO of The Ocean Agency. “We were really impressed by the professional-level work these students accomplished in just eight hours – which proves they can follow client instructions and use both their innate design abilities and the Adobe skills they’ve learned in school to create something amazing and industry-ready.”

A panel of judges including The Ocean Agency and design industry experts reviewed the final projects and determined the winners based on visual appeal, their ability to meet the client’s requirements and brand aesthetics, as well as their professional use of Adobe Creative Cloud applications. The First-place winner received $7,000, Second $3,500, and Third $1,500.

“If there’s one thing that the pandemic has shown us, it’s that creativity is needed now more than ever. These creative students have demonstrated an astounding level of talent in the Adobe Championship,” said Ray Murray, Vice President and General Manager, Certiport. “Seeing what these finalists are able to create in just eight hours, it’s apparent that they have a deep understanding of digital design concepts and can leverage their Adobe skills to in a real-world work scenario.”

“We enjoy participating in the Adobe Certified Professional World Championship every year, not only to see the wonderful projects created, but also to connect with ambitious, creative students who are launching their careers with industry-recognized certifications,” said Tacy Trowbridge, Global Education Programs Lead at Adobe. “Seeing what the competitors produced for The Ocean Agency gives us just a taste of their talent. Over the years we’ve watched many of these finalists go on to jobs and internships in creative fields, proving the value of design and technical skills that they learned in the classroom.”

Next year, Certiport will host the 2023 Microsoft Office Specialist and the Adobe Certified Professional World Championship at Orlando, Florida, from July 30-August 2, 2023.

You can learn more about the MOS World Championship here.

Learn more about Certiport’s Adobe Certified Professional World Championship here.

About Certiport

Certiport, a Pearson VUE business, is the leading provider of certification exam development, delivery and program management services delivered through an expansive network of over 15,000 Certiport Authorized Testing Centers worldwide. Certiport manages a sophisticated portfolio of leading certification programs including: the official Microsoft Office Specialist certification program, the Microsoft Certified Fundamentals certification program, the Microsoft Certified Educator program, the Adobe® Certified Professional certification program, the Autodesk Certified User certification program, the Intuit certification program, the App Development with Swift certification program, the Unity Certified User certification program, the Communication Skills for Business certification program, the IC3 Digital Literacy certification, and the Entrepreneurship and Small Business certification program. Certiport reliably delivers over three million tests each year throughout the secondary, post-secondary, workforce, and corporate technology markets in 148 countries and 26 languages worldwide. For more information visit www.certiport.com or follow Certiport on Twitter at www.twitter.com/certiport.

“Certiport” is a registered trademark of NCS Pearson, Inc. in the United States and other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Press Contact:

Greg Forbes (based in UK) greg.forbes@pearson.com

Hannah Davis (based in US) hannah.davis@pearson.com +1 801 319 9835

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/020b9c49-e73b-416d-a9e8-a4098129f6d6

The photo is also available at Newscom, www.newscom.com, and via AP PhotoExpress.

Ukrainians in Taiwan share bilingual insights into war

A group of Ukrainians in Taiwan has recently launched “Ukrainian Voices,” a series of bilingual social media pages aimed at sharing first-hand accounts of life in the country following its invasion by Russia earlier this year.

According to 27-year-old Oleksandr Shyn, one of the founders of Ukrainian Voices, the impetus for the Facebook and Twitter pages came after he realized that some people in Taiwan were being fed Russian narratives on the situation in Ukraine.

Shyn, a Ukrainian MBA student in Taiwan, said that many Taiwanese he met believed that Moscow’s ongoing military intervention was somehow justified by his home country’s large Russian-speaking minority.

“Even just regular people who asked me, one of the first questions is, how do you make peace with your Russian brothers?” he said, adding that Ukraine and Russia are “not brotherly nations in a temporary war,” as some in Taiwan and other parts of the world believe.

One of the goals of the Ukrainian Voices pages was to remain “in control of our narratives,” according to Shyn. He hopes that the pages will become the primary source of information about Ukraine for people in Taiwan.

Shyn said that activists in Taiwan also hoped to “draw the attention of the Taiwanese people to Ukraine once again” given its reduced public prominence in recent weeks.

Fellow page founder Kateryna Leliukh told CNA that they had a “very clear vision about our mission and goal of the project.”

“We’re also sure that there was no such project before, in which Ukrainians explain our news in English and Chinese through the lenses of history and culture,” Leliukh added.

Another of the pages’ administrators, Mariana Savchenko, who spent one-third of her life in China, said she understood perfectly “the importance of skillfully tailored narratives, the efficiency of soft power, the danger of censorship and the force of propaganda.”

“Today, our battlefield against Russian invasion is not only at the front line but also in the realm of information space in this deceptive hybrid war. I also believe that more than ever the Ukrainian identity deserves to be explained and delivered to the world from our own perspective,” she added.

Savchenko and Leliukh are both scholarship students at Academia Sinica, Taiwan’s top research institute, after being accepted onto a program launched by Taiwan’s government in March for Ukrainians who wish to continue their studies here.

As of July 25, Taiwan has granted visas to 288 Ukrainians, 85 of them are Ukrainian students or scholars, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel

Taiwan receives first shipment of monkeypox medication

Taiwan took delivery Wednesday of 504 courses of tecovirimat, an antiviral drug that can be used to treat monkeypox, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said Thursday.

The medication will be given to patients who develop severe monkeypox infections and those at high risk of doing so, CDC Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (???) said at a press briefing.

The batch of 504 tecovirimat courses received Thursday will expire in 2028, and the CDC will purchase more if necessary, Chuang said.

Most monkeypox patients do not require specific treatment, only supportive care to help manage their symptoms and any complications, Chuang said, citing recommendations issued by the World Health Organization and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control.

Tecovirimat has been approved by the European Medicines Agency for the treatment of smallpox, cowpox, and monkeypox, according to the CDC.

In the United States, the drug has been approved for the treatment of smallpox, as well as for severe and high-risk cases of monkeypox, according to the CDC.

Meanwhile, Taiwan is also working to finalize a deal to purchase vaccines that offer protection against monkeypox, Chuang said.

On June 23, Taiwan designated monkeypox as a category 2 communicable disease, which means that physicians are required to report confirmed or suspected infections to the CDC within 24 hours.

To date, two imported cases of the disease have been recorded in Taiwan, involving people who had traveled to Germany and the United States. One of the patients is still in hospital, while the other has recovered and has been discharged, according to the CDC.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel

Taiwan conducts psychological warfare drill with broadcasts, leaflets

Taiwan’s military on Thursday deployed a drone and several vehicles to drop leaflets and broadcast messages in a psychological warfare drill that was part of its annual Han Kuang exercises.

During the drill in Taoyuan, a psychological warfare task force from the Political Warfare Bureau dispatched a drone to scatter leaflets, while its trucks broadcast video and audio propaganda to boost the morale of Taiwanese soldiers, in the scenario of an invasion by China.

Meanwhile, a military truck blared sound effects of fighter jets flying by, shells dropping, and tanks rolling, which were all meant to distract and confuse the enemy on the battlefield, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said.

According to the ministry, cognitive warfare, disinformation campaigns, and rumor spreading have become a major part of modern warfare, alongside conventional kinetic warfare.

The main purpose of psychological warfare is to counter those campaigns and create fear among the enemy, thus weakening their will to fight, the MND said.

The Political Warfare Bureau’s special task force is capable of creating and broadcasting audio and video propaganda material and dropping flyers within 30 minutes of receiving an order to do so, according to the ministry.

The psychological warfare drill Thursday was part of the live-fire component of the 38th edition of the annual Han Kuang military exercises, Taiwan’s largest war games involving all its military branches.

The exercises, which test the country’s combat readiness in the event of a Chinese invasion, kicked off Monday morning and will run until late Friday.

In other Han Kuang drills Thursday, the 99th Marine Brigade held a joint landing operation at a beach in Fangshan Township in the southern county of Pingtung.

Using boats and amphibious assault vehicles, special amphibious troops made a landing at the beach, covered by friendly air and sea forces, according to the MND.

Further north, in Miaoli County, reservists undergoing extended training under the 302nd Infantry Brigade fended off a simulated attempted beach landing by enemy forces.

CM34 and CM32 armored vehicles from the 586 Armored Brigade were also deployed to repel the “invaders.”

According to the MND, the first two-days of the Han Kuang exercises tested the military’s combat capabilities in the event of a full-scale invasion by China.

On Wednesday, the exercises shifted to simulate the joint interception of invading enemy forces around the country, while on Thursday the focus was on joint homeland defense operations, the MND said.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel

Taipei City councilor dismissed from seat over graft conviction

Taipei City Councilor Pan Hwai-tzong (???) has been dismissed from his council seat over a graft conviction, effective retrospectively from July 20, with the vacancy to be filled by a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) member, according to the city council.

The Executive Yuan has notified Taipei City Council of Pan’s dismissal in accordance with the provisions on deprivation of civil rights under the Local Government Act, Taipei City Council announced Thursday.

Pan, from the New Party, was given a two-year prison sentence that was suspended for five years and a five-year suspension of civil rights by the Taiwan Shilin District Court for embezzling NT$3.3 million (US$110,000) in public funds from 2008-2020.

The court’s decision, which was handed down on June 15, has become final after the prosecutors and Pan both decided to waive the right to appeal.

Chen Hsien-wei (???), a DPP member who got the most votes among the losing candidates in Taipei’s Shilin and Beitou districts in the 2018 election, will be taking up the vacant position, the Taipei City Council said.

According to the district court, Pan admitted to funneling government funds allocated to pay assistants’ salaries and utility bills through figurehead accounts belonging to relatives of his office chief Chen Yu-tai (???), which he said he then used to serve his constituents.

Pan again denied that he used the money for personal purposes, via a statement issued Tuesday, adding that he waived the rights to appeal because he had planned to move away from politics to regain his health.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel