President Ma Ying-jeou attended a ceremony on the afternoon of March 27 to hand out the 2011 National Youth Contribution Award to young persons selected by the Executive Yuan's National Youth Commission. Besides presenting the awards to 10 outstanding youth, the president, along with National Youth Commission Minister Yun-Jie Lee, Chinese National Federation of Industries Chairman Preston W. Chen, General Chamber of Commerce of the Republic of China Chairman Chang Pen-Tsao, and China Youth Career Development Association Chairman Chen Shih Ming jointly initiated the Youth Dreambuilding Project.
In remarks to the gathering, the president said that over the years, through his reading of Taiwan history and observations of Taiwan society, he has pinpointed six core values of Taiwan, namely integrity, kindness, diligence, honesty, enterprising spirit, and tolerance. These six core values can be seen in all the 10 award recipients, which shows that they are putting into practice the moral foundation that has long supported Taiwan society, he said.
The president remarked that Taiwan had a close connection to the Huanghuagang Uprising of 100 years ago in mainland China, because participants in the uprising included Luo Fuxing from Miaoli and Xu Zanyuan from Tainan. In addition, Lin Xiongzheng of Banqiao donated money so that Lin Juemin (famed posthumously as the author of "Farewell Letter to My Wife") could make the trip to Guangzhou and take part in the uprising. The aforementioned six core values are what figured in their decision to take part, he said. A century later, these values are once again being displayed by the recipients of the National Youth Contribution Award.
The president commented that the most common traits among people involved in volunteer work are a willingness to contribute one's time, energy, and wisdom. Some people choose to share their wealth, others their health, and yet others their life. A philosophy of sharing is gradually taking hold here, the president said, adding that 280,000 underprivileged children here and overseas are provided with financial sponsorship by people in Taiwan, while nearly 8% of Taiwan's population donates blood, which highlights the compassion of Taiwan society.
President Ma stressed that the ROC desires to be a provider of humanitarian aid to the international community and that the winners of this year's awards have put this objective into practice. The president added that the ROC government and private sector have donated over NT$2.4 billion in funds and over 200 tons of material goods to Japan in the wake of the disasters there, which demonstrates the compassion and soft power of Taiwan. This earns the nation respect, and makes it an inspiration to others. President Ma noted that we have already reached our goal during the ROC's centenary of being granted visa-free privileges by 100 nations. This constitutes a vote of confidence in the people of Taiwan and shows how Taiwan's soft power is yielding respect for the nation. The president said he hopes that the core values established by our forefathers will continue to be passed down and carried forward by the younger generation.