At a media gathering to launch her new book yesterday, Lung Ying-tai (龍應台) said transforming herself from a writer and social critic to director of the Taipei City Government's new Bureau of Culture was no small task, but she hopes her undertakings will influence the Chinese-language community worldwide.
Lung, who calls her absence from from Taiwan since 1987 "exile," returned from her base in Germany just last Thursday. Today, she takes her post as head of the culture bureau, now under the auspices of a preparatory committee.
One day before her new assignment, however, Lung said she wanted to retain her role as a writer and interact with her readers.
PHOTO: DAI LI-AN, LIBERTY TIMES
But the occasion yesterday perhaps gave her a taste of the future. Although she prefers to think of herself as an expert in "avoiding cameras and reporters," she was welcomed by just that -- a roomful of journalists -- together with her "readers."
"Sitting here, I have already started to adapt myself to my new role," Lung said.
"As a writer, I try to avoid TV coverage as much as I can because I am afraid of being recognized when I walk down the street. But as the director of the Bureau of Culture, I cannot do this. I have to articulate my concepts through the media so as to make myself understood," said Lung.
One of her colleagues offered her some words of caution at yesterday's event. Writer Yang Chao (楊照), who was invited to speak to the audience with Lung about her new book, warned of a "transformation" after taking her new post.
"Maybe three and a half years from now, she will be like [early 20th century writer and social critic] Lu Xun (
Lung, renowned for her sharp observations on social phenomena as well as her idealism, returned his comments with a smile.
"Perhaps from tomorrow [meaning today], I'll start attending the `cram school on darkness' ... In history, although idealistic, passionate people have ended up frustrated, I still appreciate a sort of human glory [in these precedents]; it's something I am willing to pursue," she said.
"Taipei nowadays sits at the center of the Chinese-language community worldwide, not at its margin. If the cultural projects in the city go well [after I lead the bureau], then my influence on the Chinese-language community will no longer be through my writings but through other means," she said.
Meanwhile, Lung said even her readers in China have shown concerns over the fact that a KMT-run city government is willing to recruit a writer like her -- someone famous for her criticism of the KMT -- as a civil servant.
The city's plan to establish the bureau had been aborted by partisan disputes in the city council under former mayor Chen Shui-bian (
The dispute was finally settled when Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) beat Chen last December. The council decision passed a resolution to establish the bureau in July.
The bureau, which will begin operations in November, will be Taiwan's first cultural bureau at the local government level.
LONG FLIGHT: The jets would be flown by US pilots, with Taiwanese copilots in the two-seat F-16D variant to help familiarize them with the aircraft, the source said The US is expected to fly 10 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 70/72 jets to Taiwan over the coming months to fulfill a long-awaited order of 66 aircraft, a defense official said yesterday. Word that the first batch of the jets would be delivered soon was welcome news to Taiwan, which has become concerned about delays in the delivery of US arms amid rising military tensions with China. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said the initial tranche of the nation’s F-16s are rolling off assembly lines in the US and would be flown under their own power to Taiwan by way
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
MISSION: The Indo-Pacific region is ‘the priority theater,’ where the task of deterrence extends across the entire region, including Taiwan, the US Pacific Fleet commander said The US Navy’s “mission of deterrence” in the Indo-Pacific theater applies to Taiwan, Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Stephen Koehler told the South China Sea Conference on Tuesday. The conference, organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), is an international platform for senior officials and experts from countries with security interests in the region. “The Pacific Fleet’s mission is to deter aggression across the Western Pacific, together with our allies and partners, and to prevail in combat if necessary, Koehler said in the event’s keynote speech. “That mission of deterrence applies regionwide — including the South China Sea and Taiwan,” he
UNPRECEDENTED: In addition to the approved recall motions, cases such as Ma Wen-chun’s in Nantou are still under review, while others lack enough signatures The Central Election Commission (CEC) announced yesterday that a recall vote would take place on July 26, after it approved the first batch of recall motions targeting 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and Hsinchu Mayor Ann Kao (高虹安). Taiwan is in the midst of an unprecedented wave of mass recall campaigns, following a civil society push that echoed a call made by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) in January to initiate signature drives aimed at unseating KMT legislators. Under the Civil Servants Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法), Taiwanese can initiate a recall of district-elected lawmakers by collecting
RSS