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'TAIWAN SHOULD NEVER UNDERESTIMATE ITSELF': MINISTER

  • Date:2013-02-22
'TAIWAN SHOULD NEVER UNDERESTIMATE ITSELF': MINISTER

Taiwan's Minister of Culture Lung Ying-tai wrapped up her four-day visit in France on Friday, saying that the visit transcended diplomatic barriers and that she gained more confidence in the Taiwanese culture as a result.

Before departing for London, Lung said that 'the more sophisticated a country is, like France, the easier it is to overcome the restrictions of diplomacy and to have a dialogue in the language of culture.'

She said that several cooperation projects with France's cultural circles gave her more confidence in the Taiwanese culture and that 'Taiwan should never underestimate itself.'

Taiwan has an advantage in terms of Chinese-language culture and that the country should use that advantage to increase cross-country exchanges, she said.

After the four-day visit, Lung said the Ministry of Culture might draw ideas from how the National Library of France preserves and collects print arts, such as photographs.

In addition, Lung said that two recent Taiwanese college graduates will join an internship program at L'Association Relative a la Television Europeenne — a French-German TV network that promotes culture and arts — and that Le Centre National de la Cinematographie has also agreed to receive Taiwanese documentary filmmakers as interns.

Jack Lang, director of L'Institut du Monde Arabe (IMA) in Paris, said many bands and music festivals in France would like to include Taiwanese pop music in their programs, and Lung said Taiwanese cultural officers will work harder to reinforce exchanges with the Arab world through IMA.

Meanwhile, Lung said the establishment of her Ministry made a difference, adding that both official and unofficial organizations in France received her with openness during her visit in her capacity as Taiwan's first-ever Culture Minister.

The Minister was upgraded from the Council of Cultural Affairs as part of a Cabinet reorganization early last year.