In his opening speech at the this year's A-ha Hakka Arts Festival (2006 a-ha 客家藝術節) in Meinung Township, Kaohsiung County on Saturday, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) praised the uniqueness of Hakka culture and said he hoped the government and opposition could set partisan concerns aside to support an increase in resources for the Council for Hakka Affairs.
Su said that having served as Pingtung County commissioner and provincial government councilor, he had visited many Hakka townships and villages. He has appointed several Hakkas to the Cabinet team, including Council for Hakka Affairs Chairman Lee Yung-teh (李永得), Council for Cultural Affairs Vice Chairman Wu Chin-fa (吳錦發) and National Science Council Deputy Minister Yang Hung-duen (楊弘敦), all three of whom hail from Meinung.
Su also said that since President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) election, particular attention has been paid to Hakka culture by increasing the budget for the Council for Hakka Affairs and establishing a Hakka TV station, for example.
PHOTO: CHEN WEN-CHAN, TAIPEI TIMES
He expressed his desire for an increased council budget to enable further promotion of cultural diversity and protection of Hakka culture.
The theme for this year's festival is "music without borders." The event was opened by environmentalist musician Matthew Lien who sang old Hakka favorites together with singer Hsieh Yu-wei (謝宇威).
The festival will take place over four Saturdays at different locations around the island. Saturday's event will be followed on Nov. 11, Nov. 25 and Dec. 12 with events at the Luo Family Complex in Chiatung Township, Pingtung County (屏東縣佳冬鄉羅家夥房), the Chiang Kai-shek Performance Hall in Fengshan City, Kaohsiung County (高雄縣鳳山市國父紀念館演藝廳), and the plaza outside the Kaohsiung City Music Hall (
Further details can be found at www.hakka.gov.tw.
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
RSS