Hsinchu, Taiwan, March 7 (CNA) President Chen Shui-bian said Sunday that the establishment of a Hakka culture college under National Chiao Tung University (NCTU) marks yet another step forward in his administration's efforts to preserve Taiwan's cultural diversity.
Addressing a ceremony marking the opening of the NCTU's College of Hakka Culture in Hsinchu County's Chupei township in northern Taiwan, Chen said his administration has adopted many measures over the past four years to promote Hakka cultural development. "We have created a Cabinet-level council in charge of Hakka affairs and a Hakka television station and have sponsored an annual Hakka culture festival to signify our concern about the well-being of the Hakka people and the preservation of Hakka culture, " Chen said. "And now we have overcome many difficulties to open a Hakka culture college."
Noting that the new College of Hakka Culture at NCTU will begin admitting students this autumn, Chen said the new college will help revive Hakka cultural legacies.
Because of the previous Kuomintang administration's Mandarin Chinese-dominated cultural development policy during its 55-year rule, Chen said, Hakka language and culture have almost fallen into oblivion. "We hope the establishment of the new NCTU college will help cultivate a new generation of Hakka scholars and artists to protect Taiwan's cultural diversity," Chen said.