Print

Mail

wiki links

Hakka cultural park starts trial run with three-county race

The Liouduei Hakka Cultural Park opened on a trial basis yesterday with thousands of runners joining a 21km race through three townships in Pingtung County and a torch lighting ceremony for the Liouduei (六堆) Games.

Located in Neipu Township (內埔), Pingtung County, the cultural park aims to promote southern Taiwan's Hakka culture, Council for Hakka Affairs (CHA) Minister Lee Yung-teh (李永得) said at a ceremony yesterday to launch the trial run.

Liouduei -- meaning six camps -- is a collective name referring to 12 townships in Pingtung and Kaohsiung counties inhabited by Hakkas.

The region got its name from the six militia camps guarding the Hakka settlements during the Qing Dynasty.

Only one-third of the cultural park will be open during the trial run, as the park will not be completed until January 2009, Wu Pei-chi (吳佩琪), a spokeswoman for the park, told the Taipei Times by telephone.

"During the trial run, visitors can visit handicraft works by local residents and a multimedia exhibition on local history and culture," Wu said.

"You can even trace the roots of families in the region," Wu said.

"Different kinds of performing arts -- traditional Hakka theater, music and Aboriginal dances -- will also be featured," she said.

The ceremony began with a 21km run through three townships in Pingtung County, with approximately 3,000 amateur and professional runners participating in the race.

"This is the first time I've run on Liouduei soil. It's really an unforgettable experience to see the landscape this way," said Lee, a native of the region.

After the run, 12 Liouduei township mayors lit the torch for the 43rd annual Liouduei Games.

The torch relay will pass through all 12 townships until it reaches the Liouduei Games stadium next Saturday for the opening ceremony of the game, Yang Yu-kun (楊鈺崑), a Hakka council spokesman, said during a telephone interview yesterday.

The Liouduei Games is a long-standing tradition in the region. It traces its origins to the martial arts training of militiamen in the past, Yang said.

"But since militias were no longer needed, locals turned the training into a sporting event," Yang said.
This story has been viewed 1275 times.