Following allegations that the General Association of Chinese Culture has attempted to block President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) from becoming its new president by deliberately adjourning a meeting yesterday slated to review new members’ applications, association president Liu Chao-shiuan (劉兆玄) said that the association has not received subsidies from the government since 1991.
The association has historically been subsidized by the government.
In the past, the incumbent president led the association to help promote cultural affairs and bridge the gap between the president and cultural circles.
Photo: Hu Shun-hsiang, Taipei Times
Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) broke with tradition by appointing Liu to head the association after the former premier stepped down from government in 2009.
Sources said a failure to approve Tsai’s membership application yesterday means that she can not be elected association president on Nov. 21.
Sources speculate that Liu and the other 285 members approved under Ma’s administration are trying to turn a quasi-governmental organization into a private one.
Confirming that Tsai was among 624 people applying for membership, Presidential spokesman Alex Huang (黃重諺) yesterday called on the association to follow tradition, adding that blocking Tsai from the association was divesting the nation of its rightful resources.
However, the association said that despite planing the extraordinary meeting a month ago and confirming schedules with members, the member turnout yesterday was still insufficient.
During a news conference yesterday afternoon, Liu said that the 624 membership applications were said to have been politically influenced and that the association was designated a social legal entity in 1991 and that the government has not paid the association since then.
“From another point of view, if the government was trying to influence a cultural organization without going through proper procedures, it could be seen as the government seizing private assets,” Liu said.
Liu said the association’s NT$30 million (US$943,367) has been raised through campaigns or membership fees, adding that the “association is not an organ of the government.”
Liu said the past seven years of his life had been quite enjoyable, because the organization is non-governmental and he was not required to appear before the Legislative Yuan.
As for the tradition of the association’s president being doubled by the head of state, Liu said that late president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) had not assumed the position during his presidency, adding that Ma had only accepted the position for one year and stepped down in 2010.
Liu has been president of the association since 2010.
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