Fri, Apr 23, 2004 page4

• Kaohsiung aspires to be cultural icon

  'FRIENDLY CITY' Frank Hsieh and his administration are embarking on an ambitious project to turn a city known for its industry and pollution into Taiwan's Paris

  • By Lindy Yeh / STAFF REPORTER
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  Though Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) is seen as the frontrunner for the Democratic Progres-sive Party's (DPP) nomination for the 2008 presidential election, he has declined to comment on his career plans. His current amibition, he says, is to promote Kaohsiung as a "Friendly City" (友善城市).

  One night earlier this month, Hsieh was playing the ocarina, a small wind instrument, in a cafe called "Hobby Mannbo" located on the banks of the Ai River (愛河). Hsieh was playing to entertain visiting writers from Taipei as well as the cafe's clients. His performance was unannounced, and even the cafe owner had not been informed.

  Since there was a professional band playing in the cafe, he was simply pushed by his guests to show his amateur talent. He therefore stepped upon the stage and played in a relaxed way. The performance was typical of his easygoing style.

  

  A cafe scene on the banks of Kaohsiung's Ai River at night.

  PHOTO: CHANG CHUNG-YI, TAIPEI TIMES

  The patrons immediately recognized him and responded to his performance with enthusiastic applause. When he stepped down from the stage, people approached him, asking him for autographs and taking pictures. His popularity was obvious.

  Hsieh does not take this for granted. He earned his support by his efforts to launch several major infrastructure projects in the city, and he won his 2002 re-election by only a thin margin of some 20,000 votes over his Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) rival, Huang Jun-ying (黃俊英).

  In the presidential election last month, President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) strong showing in Kaohsiung was interpreted by many political analysts as a referendum on Hsieh. Chen beat KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) by more than 100,000 votes in Kaohsiung.

  

  The interior of the old main hall of Kaohsiung Train Station has been remodeled and turned into an exhibition center.

  PHOTO: LINDY YEH, TAIPEI TIMES

  Hsieh's most visible achievements include cleaning up the Chienchen River (前鎮河) and the transformation of the Ai River's banks into a commercial, art and cultural activities area that is modeled after Paris' Seine River.

  The Ai River's transformation is part of an effort initiated by Hsieh's predecessors, which began around 20 years ago. But Hsieh has spent four years and a budget of NT$2 billion cleaning the Chienchen River.

  The heavy pollution in the two rivers was so notorious that the Chienchen River was once called the "black dragon river" (黑龍江) and the Ai River stank to such an extant that many well-off residents moved to other districts.

  Nowadays, the areas along the two rivers have become trendy again, with luxury houses, apartment buildings, shops and cafes springing up along the riverbanks. Several yachts in the Ai River are in service for tourists.

  Luxury apartment buildings with river views have lured celebrities and prominent citizens, such as Deputy Secretary-General to the Presidential Office Chen Che-nan (陳哲男), whose family lives in Kaohsiung.

  Real estate prices along the two rivers have appreciated 10 to 20 percent since the SARS outbreak last year, according to information released on April 4 by Rebar Rehouse (力霸房屋) -- a major real estate agency -- on its Web site Rebarnet.

  Besides the riverbank areas, districts around the newly-developed parks, like the Neiweipi Cultural Park (內惟碑文化園區), have become trendy areas for the upper-middle class. The 10-hectare Neiweipi Wetland is preserved for ecological purposes and tourism.

  Kaohsiung's MRT, which is under construction, is another boon for shops and businesses. Real estate close to MRT stations is also appreciating by at least 10 percent on average, Rebarnet said.

  "Southern Taiwan's economy has been sacrificed by the central government's national policy, which has long favored Northern Taiwan in all aspects. Our main goal [in developing Kaohsiung] is to make Kaohisung Taiwan's business center, as Taipei is the political center," said Wu Mon-ter (吳孟德), director-general of the Bureau of Urban Development of Kaoshiung Municipal Government.

  Not only was southern Taiwan's economy victimized, but "the southern Taiwan people's dignity was hurt, too. It's time to win back confidence, " said Albert Lin (林耀文), director-general of the Department of Information of Kaohsiung City Government.

  The belief that southern Taiwan has been slighted by the central government is related to its background as the base of Taiwan's industry and agriculture, while most middle class, upper class and social elites have traditionally lived in northern Taiwan, which is perceived as having greater business and career opportunities.

  Thus, a project dubbed "Friendly City" has been put in place to promote the harbor city as the ocean capital of Taiwan.

  For a long time, Kaohsiung has been an industrial base and most residents have been blue-collar workers. In addition to heavy industrial pollution, quality of life was poor.

  Therefore, the city had long been stigmatized as a "cultural desert," Hsieh said in a brochure entitled "Friendly City."

  "But all of that belongs to the past," Hsieh said.

  In a bid to gather more ideas about strengthening Kaohsiung's cultural character as a "friendly city," the city government invited people from literary and artistic circles for a visit in mid-April.

  In a meeting with city officials, the poet Xiang Yang (向陽) proposed honoring Kaohsiung-based writers, such as the novelist Yeh Shih-tao (葉石濤), by erecting signs which indicate the location of their residence.

  "Mr. Yeh may be unwilling to be bothered by tourists, but it will be a good move to showcase the city's abundent literary resources," said Xiang Yang, which is the poet's pen name.

  Sun Ta-chuan (孫大川), a Puyuman professor as well as a former vice chairman of the Cabinet-level Council of Aboriginal Affairs, urged the city government to add an element of Aboriginal culture to the city.

  "Kaohsiung used to be a stop-over for many young Aboriginal people from Taitung -- such as myself -- before going on to Taipei. It would be nice to create an Aboriginal atmosphere at Hsiaokang International Airport (小港機場), as Taiwan's Aboriginal exchanges with other Austronesian peoples have become more frequent in recent years," said Sun.

  But for some Kaohsiung residents, like writer Wang Chia-hsiang (王家祥), the issue is not the ability of Hsieh's governance, but the city council's ability to supervise and to voice dissent.

  "It is accepted that Mayor Hsieh's staff is competent and energetic. But the team has pushed city development at such a high speed that the city councilors are unable to catch up," Wang said.

  Wang's remark refers to the grassroots background of many Kaohsiung city councilors, whose credibility as supervisors has been jeopardized by former Council Speaker Chu An-hsiung's (朱安雄) vote-buying scandal.

  "For instance, why do we need so many Western-style cafes along the Ai River, instead of local-style tea houses? In my opinion, the City Light Corridor (城市光廊) is not a great space for leisure and artistic performance, but a place that is merely decorated with artificial lights," Wang said.

  But even as most people agree that the choice between drinking traditional tea or imported coffee is a question of personal taste, so too do most people agree that the question of whether the City Light Corridor -- located near the river -- is an artistic success is a matter of individual opinion. But there has emerged a consensus among residents to try to preserve the city's past and its memories. How this will be accomplished is not always clear, but some effort has been made.

  For example, the old main hall of the Kaohsiung train station was moved 82m away last year to allow construction that will integrate the train service and the yet-to-be-completed High Speed Rail and MRT.

  Now, the old train station hall serves as an exhibition center, and will be moved back to its original location in 2010 and put in service as a city museum. In addition, the old city government building has been preserved as a municipal museum of history.

  "The old train station reminds me of my first love, during my high school years," recalled poet Lee Ming-yung (李敏勇).

  As a high school boy who had to commute from his hometown of Pingtung to Kaohsiung to study, "I always met my girlfriend in front of the main hall of the train station for our dates," Lee said.

  Among the many old stories shared by Kaohsiung residents, the most popular one is the tragic tale of a pair of lovers who drowned themselves in the Kaohsiung River (高雄川) in 1949. The river was thereafter dubbed the Ai River, which means "Love River" in Chinese. In 1991, the Kaohsiung City Council passed a motion to rename the river the Ai River.

  "A rich history contributes to the charm of a city, and we are always aware of this while mapping out a blueprint for the city's future," Albert Lin said.
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