The administration of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has run into some obstacles with its plan to establish Taiwan Academies in the US. The government says US authorities have nothing against the plan as such, but merely got the wrong idea, thinking that the academies were going to charge fees for teaching Chinese. Now, the government says, the misunderstanding has been cleared up and the academies will start operating as soon as they have been granted approval by US authorities. However, it is still not certain that the US will say “yes.”
The idea of setting up institutions abroad to disseminate our national culture is a laudable one. As China has already undertaken something similar with its Confucius Institutes, our government thought it would be a straightforward process, but things aren’t quite that simple. No matter whether the original intention was to compete with China’s Confucius Institutes, the design and modus operandi of the Taiwan Academies need to be rethought.
The first point to consider is whether the US is the ideal starting point. Following the closure of the Taiwan-sponsored overseas Chinese cultural center in Paris in 2007, there is now no such cultural institution in Europe, but learning Chinese is probably more popular there than in the US. Central and South American countries that have diplomatic relations with Taiwan should also not be overlooked.
Second is the question of what these institutions should be called. Using the word “Taiwan” in the title is certain to cause problems for the academies in various countries. It is not without reason that Germany’s equivalent organization is called the Goethe Institute. Likewise, China doesn’t call its cultural offices the “China Institute,” because using the country’s name could be too sensitive. In some countries, people even have problems with the name “Confucius Institute,” so if the name “Taiwan” is to be used, there will likely be many difficulties. Therefore, it would be a good idea to think of another name that has cultural significance, represents Taiwan and is recognizable worldwide. Something like the “Yushan Institute” or “101 Institute,” perhaps.
The third issue relates to which government department should supervise the academies. If teaching Chinese is to be one of their major functions, they ought to come under the directorship of the Ministry of Education. It should also be noted that China’s Confucius Institutes have been established through cooperation between Chinese and overseas universities. If the Taiwan Academies could be set up by Taiwanese universities and their sister universities in other countries, they may encounter fewer obstacles.
The final matter to consider is what exactly these academies are going to do. If their emphasis is to be on teaching Chinese language and propagating Chinese culture, they will inevitably find themselves competing with Confucius Institutes. Therefore, they should emphasize Taiwanese culture and the teaching of traditional Chinese characters, otherwise there would be little to differentiate Taiwan Academies from Confucius Institutes.
Whatever these academies are called, setting up schools that represent Taiwan around the world is certainly a good idea and one that should be acted upon, but the government should make detailed plans, including deciding on a name, picking the best locations, deciding what these academies are going to teach and how they are going to be run. If these things are not properly thought out, the centers will start out on the wrong footing and what was a good idea will end up as an object of regret.
Chang Ruay-shiung is vice president of National Dong Hwa University.
TRANSLATED BY JULIAN CLEGG
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