American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Brent Christensen and AIT Kaohsiung Branch Chief Matthew O’Connor yesterday met with Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) to discuss his goals for the city, environmental protection, tourism and other topics.
At the meeting in Kaohsiung, Christensen asked Han about his priorities for the next four years.
They include developing the economy, helping disadvantaged groups and promoting bilingual education, Han said.
Photo: CNA
Selling agricultural and fishery products, and attracting visitors and talent are among the city’s most urgent tasks, he said.
In addition to developing its “love industry,” the city would promote medical tourism and military tourism, he said.
This year, the city government would be discussing ways to gain external resources and implement bilingual education at elementary and junior-high schools that have a low budget, he said.
Next, it would discuss the creation of English-language programs for radio or local television channels, he said.
In two years, government employees in Kaohsiung would be required to pass an English proficiency test to be promoted, he added.
Christensen asked Han about his planned visit to the US in the spring.
Apart from giving a speech at Harvard University, he is also considering traveling to Los Angeles or San Francisco to meet with overseas Taiwanese, Han said.
Separately, the AIT yesterday released a two-and-a-half-minute prerecorded Lunar New Year video.
In addition to this year being the Year of the Pig, the AIT is celebrating its 40th birthday and the 40th anniversary of the Taiwan Relations Act, Christensen says in the video.
“The US and Taiwan have never been closer, and I look forward to seeing what incredible accomplishments our next 40 years together bring,” he says.
AIT staff members then join Christensen and his wife lip-syncing and dancing along to US singer Bruno Mars’ song Just the Way You Are.
After a brief pause, the words “Wait! Did you think that was all?” appear on the screen, and staff from the AIT’s Taipei and Kaohsiung offices can be seen singing and dancing to a rendition of Taiwanese singer Lily Lee’s (李麗芬) The Bold and the Beautiful (愛江山更愛美人), with the lyrics altered to fit the Lunar New Year theme.
The Bold and the Beautiful attracted attention during the Taipei mayoral election in November last year after independent candidate Wu E-yang (吳萼洋) sang a portion of it in his closing statement during a televised debate.
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