Hakka push for own commission

As the Taipei City Council convened its new session yesterday, city councilors and academics called for council members to speed up the process of approving the establishment of Taipei's -- and possibly Taiwan's -- first official governmental organization devoted to the Hakka.

The proposed Hakka affairs commission (客家事務委員會) received approval at a city affairs meeting last April and has been awaiting further review and final approval by the city council ever since.

According to the latest census administered by the city's Bureau of Civil Affairs (民政局), Taipei City currently has a Hakka population of roughly 200,000. However, others place it in the vicinity of 400,000, or about 15 percent of the city's total population.

KMT City Councilor Li-Keng Kuei-fang (厲耿桂芳) yesterday hosted a seminar at the city council to push for the inclusion of the Hakka affairs commission in a draft version of proposed modifications to the organizational structure of the Taipei City Government.

In addition to setting up the commission, the draft proposes to upgrade both the Department of Information (新聞處) and the Department of Military Service (兵役處) to bureau status.

Setting up the commission was one of Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) campaign promises. Ma insisted that the commission be set up in an effort to further bring together different ethnic groups.

Li-Keng, who has been vigorously lobbying for the establishment of the commission, said that it is important to set up such a unit.

"I'm afraid that if we keep ignoring Hakka culture and language, within 50 years we run the risk of losing an important part of our country's heritage," she said.

Li-Keng's view was echoed by Fan Chen-tsung (范振宗), presidential advisor and former Hsinchu County commissioner, who is of Hakka descent.

"Only when there is a governmental organization will it be possible to receive financial support to promote and preserve Hakka culture," he said.

Chen Shih-shan (陳石山), publisher of a Hakka magazine and also a Hakka, said that Hakka people need to work together to get the new commission established.

"We are not trying to provoke ethnic conflict here. We are trying to promote ethnic diversity, which is guaranteed by the Constitution," he said.

A political scholar at National Chengchi University, Chu Hsin-ming (朱新民), who is of Hakka descent, said that he hopes Taipei City will follow through in the setting up of Taiwan's first Hakka affairs commission.

"This is our first chance to scrutinize Ma's political credibility. I hope that he has the guts to bring to fruition his campaign promise to us, otherwise he will be setting a very bad example for other politicians," he said.

DPP City Councilor Yeh Hsin-yi (葉信義), a long-time opponent of the proposal, said that he has legitimate reasons to reject it.

"Don't get me wrong. I'm not against Hakka culture. I'm of Hakka descent myself. But I've seen the whole issue being manipulated by politicians for personal political gain," he said. "Besides, a majority of the Hakka people whom I've talked to are not that keen about the idea, either."

Yeh said that a better way to handle Hakka affairs might be to take advantage of the NT$30 million Hakka fund, which was established by President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) when he was the city's mayor.