The Taiwan Society said yesterday that it is going to hold an indoor rally in Kaohsiung tomorrow to expand the "local culture movement" to southern Taiwan.
Society president Wu Shuh-min (
Wu said that the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) "colonial culture," which began after World War II, has resulted in "misconceptions" about local culture and national identity.
Yang Wen-chia (楊文嘉), the society's secretary-general, said that the public has been influenced by the KMT's historical view of Oct. 25 as "Taiwan Retrocession Day," but that Taiwan's true restoration has yet to come.
The public has been granted only limited room for reform and promotion of Taiwanese consciousness, Yang said.
Calling the rally "At the Moment of Dawn," Yang said such a cultural movement is being held to symbolize a "refusal to be led by the forces of darkness" and "to heat up Taiwanese consciousness."
The event will also show how many people who had remained silent in the past finally rose up to fight and overcome these forces, he added.
A number of radio program hosts and hostesses from regional radio stations will be invited to the rally, as they are representative of the media on which "local political discourse has long depended on," he said, adding that these media organs have long been marginal-ized by mainstream media.
Democratic Progressive Party Kaohsiung mayoral candidate Chen Chu (陳菊) has promised to attend the rally, Yang said.
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