Office of the President showcases gifts for Swaziland
President Tsai Ing-wen will lead a delegation from April 17 to 21 to the Kingdom of Swaziland, a Taiwan ally in Africa, where the president will present distinctively Taiwanese gifts to King Mswati III and Queen Mother Ntombi Tfwala. On the afternoon of April 12, the Office of the President called a press conference to showcase those gifts where Presidential Office Spokesperson Chang Wen-lan (張文蘭) described the gifts and their significance.
Spokesperson Chang stated that among the gifts to be presented to the king of Swaziland during this trip are five head of cattle, a warrior shield from the indigenous Puyuma village of Tamalrakaw, an antique wooden clapper, and an album of indigenous songs. The queen mother will receive three head of cattle and a lacquer painting of two orchids—the Indlovukati (a species named after the Queen Mother in Swaziland) and the Phalaenopsis amabilis (a species known as the "Taiwan Grandma" in Taiwanese).
Spokesperson Chang pointed out that agriculture and livestock husbandry predominate in Swaziland, employing 80% of its citizens. Cattle are a symbol of wealth, and can be used to purchase land or propose marriage. Giving cattle as a gift is an important tradition in Swaziland, but only healthy cows two to three years old qualify. After receiving the cattle, a Swazi court official in charge of livestock will hold them in quarantine for one week to ensure the cow is healthy before being released into the king's pastures. Giving a gift consistent with local customs shows that Taiwan respects Swaziland's traditional culture and considers it important.
Spokesperson Chang also stated that the traditional warrior shield from the Puyuma village of Tamalrakaw to be given to the king also has its counterpart in Swaziland's traditional culture. For the Swazi people, a shield is more than just a weapon. It is also a symbol of power that is usually kept in the custody of the king or a chieftain. During the annual Incwala festival, Swaziland's most important cultural event celebrating kingship, men don traditional garb and dance with shields in hand as a show of strength and valor.
Spokesperson Chang explained that the connection between Tamalrakaw and Swaziland can be traced back to 2008 when the Swazi ambassador to the ROC Njabuliso Busisiwe Gwebu—older sister of the queen of Swaziland—once visited Tamalrakaw and took part in the annual New Year Ritual there. Members of the Puyuma tribe welcomed her with a traditional shield dance and gave her a miniature shield inscribed with some of the tribe's totemic images. The spokesperson pointed out that shields from Tamalrakaw are not for sale. Normally kept in storage at the local palakuwan (young men's association), they are only taken out for shield dance performances at traditional festivals or other important occasions. The Office of the President and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are honored that the Puyuma people agreed to accept gifts from the Taiwan government in exchange for the Puyuma gifts that will be taken to Swaziland. [The government's gifts were delivered to Tamalrakaw village by Director-General Jeremy H. S. Liang (梁洪昇) of the ministry's Department of Protocol.] One of the Puyuma gifts is a warrior shield that the Puyuma people have traditionally used in ceremonies and youth training activities. This shield, which expresses a spirit of solidarity and fearlessness, symbolizes the lasting strength of diplomatic ties between Taiwan and Swaziland. It will also reinforce the connection between Tamalrakaw and Swaziland.
Spokesperson Chang then turned her attention to the wooden clapper. Traditionally, a Puyuma leader needing to transmit an important message to someone outside the local area would hand the clapper to a local youth. The latter would tie the clapper on his back and run to his destination, with the clapper sounding every step of the way. When the people of Tamalrakaw handed over their shield to Director-General Liang, they also gave the wooden clapper, a very old one that had long been kept in storage at the young men's association. Taken together, these two gifts convey the friendship and best wishes of the Puyuma people for the people of Swaziland.
The spokesperson said that in addition to Tamalrakaw's important cultural artifacts, Taiwan also wants to transmit the voices of the Tamalrakaw, and will do this by giving to the Swazi people a CD of old Puyuma folk songs. Puyuma youth from the Tamalrakaw recorded this album to preserve the valuable voices of their elders, and keep their history and culture alive. By lovingly collecting and recording the songs, they sought to reconstruct the life of their people. In the process, they turned out a warm and powerful album of Puyuma music.
Commenting on the gifts that will be presented to the queen mother, Spokesperson Chang noted that her lacquer painting depicts two different species of orchid. When King Mswati III visited Taiwan in 2015, he christened a new species of purple and white moth orchid. He chose to call it the Indlovukati, a Swazi word meaning "queen mother," the first moth orchid to be given a Swazi name. And because a Swazi Indlovukati, besides being queen mother, will invariably also be a grandmother, the lacquer piece also depicts the Phalaenopsis amabilis, an orchid species native to Taiwan and known as "Taiwan Grandma" in Taiwanese. The painting highlights Taiwan's status as a major "orchid kingdom," and also symbolizes the queen mother's position as the beloved "grandmother" of her people. At the same time, this beautiful work expresses Taiwan's wishes for a lasting friendship with Swaziland.
The artist who executed the lacquer painting, Wang Chun-wei (王峻偉), then took the microphone to explain the thought process behind his creation and how he made it.
Spokesperson Chang emphasized that the main criterion for selecting these gifts was that they should have an unmistakably Taiwanese character. Also taken into account was the fact that 2018 marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of official diplomatic relations between Taiwan and Swaziland. Swaziland's King Mswati III will celebrate his 50th birthday this year, and 2018 is also the 50th anniversary of Swaziland's independence. We want these gifts to have special significance for Swaziland, and hope that they will strengthen the bilateral friendship, she said.
Spokesperson Chang explained that gifts presented to heads of state are usually purchased in straightforward monetary transactions, but this case was an exception. Instead of buying the gift items with cash, the government obtained consent to give gifts in exchange for the Puyuma items to be taken to Swaziland, showing how the government and the people are working together to further Taiwan's diplomacy. Giving the lacquer painting as a gift, meanwhile, will encourage the younger generation of Taiwan artists to engage in traditional handicrafts while giving outstanding young Taiwanese artisans international exposure.