Association remembered 80 years on

Authors, researchers and descendants of the founders of the Taiwan Culture Association (台灣文化協會) yesterday gathered at the place where it all began to celebrate its 80th anniversary.

Founded on Oct. 17, 1921 by a group of intellectuals where the auditorium of the Blessed Imelda's School (靜修女中) now stands, the Taiwan Culture Association ignited a wave of social movements when the country was under Japanese colonial rule.

Its aim was to awaken a Tai-wanese consciousness in its fellow citizens through cultural enlightenment.

As convener of yesterday's forum, Lung Ying-tai (龍應台), director of the city's Bureau of Cultural Affairs and chairwoman of the city's Historical Research Commission (臺北市文獻會), said that she hoped both the public and politicians would learn something from the forum.

"Through the personal narrations offered by the descents of the association's founders, we'd like the younger generation to learn more about the history of Taiwan's cultural and democratic movements," Lung said.

"In addition, we'd like politicians to start pondering what path they feel is the most beneficial for Taiwan," she added.

In addition to the forum, a collection of 44 black-and-white pictures chronicling the development of the association is on display at the school auditorium until Oct. 21 and at the 228 Memorial Museum from Oct. 24 through Nov. 6.

Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said that the establishment of the association had a tremendous impact on society at the time -- as it does today.

"Although the association lasted only 10 years, it affected and continues to affect Taiwan not only culturally but also politically, economically and socially," Ma said.

Chiang Sung-hui (蔣松輝) -- at 88 years old he is the oldest son of one of the association's founders Chiang Wei-shui (蔣渭水) -- said that he was proud of his late father, who was hailed as "the nation's cultural leader."

"What he did was heroic because he not only galvanized nationalism in Taiwan but also trumpeted an idea few people dared to touch during the Japanese colonial era -- anti-imperialism," he said.

The younger Chiang was only 18 when his father died of typhoid in 1931, at the age of 40, after devoting himself to social movements for 10 years.

Three years before his death, the elder Chiang formed the country's first political party, the Taiwan People's Party (台灣民眾黨), with another founder of the association, Lin Hsien-tang (林獻堂), as the association began to split into two fractions -- socialism and anti-imperialism -- in 1927. The association eventually disbanded in 1931.

Lin Po-cheng (林博正), the eldest grandson of Lin Hsien-tang, said that politicians should learn from their democratic predecessors.

"As the largest cultural group of its time, the association pioneered efforts to stage peaceful resistance campaigns against the Japanese regime. Contemporary politicians might learn something from this," he said.