The Presidential Office began preparations for the year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of China (ROC), but the slogan was toned down to avoid sensitive political issues.
Jerry Fan (范可欽), creator of the slogan, said it originally read “Republic of China, Founded 100 Years (中華民國，建國一百)” but was later changed to “Republic of China, Splendid 100 (中華民國，精彩一百).”
“Founding a republic sounds political, so we chose a more neutral word to reflect Taiwan’s historical status,” he said.
The Republic of China (Taiwan) Centenary Foundation held a press conference at the Presidential Office yesterday morning to introduce the slogan and logo of the celebration activities. Aside from Examination Yuan President John Kuan (關中), the four other government branch heads all attended the event. Kuan was in Thailand attending his daughter’s wedding.
Foundation vice chairman Spencer Tsai (蔡詩萍) said the logo was simple, containing only eight Chinese characters and three numbers. They called on the public to use and customize it with their preferred colors or images so it would be ubiquitous.
Ma, who spoke at the event, said “100” was a good number because it symbolized perfection and was a good omen.
Since the ROC was established in 1911 as the first republic in Asia, Ma said it underwent much hardship and challenges. After it relocated to Taiwan 61 years ago, it has seen Chinese culture develop with Taiwanese features, he said. Such features are the core values of Taiwan, he said. Ma defined them as integrity, kindness, diligence, honesty, initiative and tolerance.
The celebrations will begin on Oct. 10 — the founding day of the ROC — and run through Oct. 10 next year, Ma said. He said he hoped Taiwan would see many more 100 years to come.
Meanwhile, Council for Cultural Affairs Minister Emile Sheng (盛治仁) yesterday dismissed the possibility that Taipei and Beijing would jointly make a movie about Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙), known as the founding father of the ROC.
Ma has requested government agencies to make a documentary about Sun and Taiwan. Sheng yesterday said the council was open to different ideas, including filming a documentary or musical.
As long as private filmmakers are interested in the project, Sheng said the government would be happy to provide assistance.
However, both sides were unlikely to team up in the endeavor because the administration did not need “extra complications” to help the country celebrate its birthday, he said.
Sheng said he should know within the next month or two whether the government or private filmmakers would make the film.
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