Wednesday, May 22, 2019
Watch the opening remarks by Congressman Steve Chabot, Minister of Culture Cheng Li-Chiun, and Director Fu Yue:
Event summary:
On May 22, 2019, the Global Taiwan Institute, together with Congressman Steve Chabot’s office, held a film screening of the documentary “Our Youth In Taiwan” at the US House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs room. Taiwan’s Minister of Culture, Cheng Li-chiun, and the director of the documentary, Fu Yue also spoke at the event.
Congressman Chabot, who has been a prominent long-standing advocate for Taiwan, and served previously as the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, opened with remarks that were adamant about US support for freedom and democracy in Taiwan and emphasized the strong relationship between the United States and Taiwan. Congressman Chabot said in his speech: “Taiwan is a country and I don’t say that by accident—it is a nation. And it should be a role model around the world. It is, after all, called the beacon of freedom and democracy.” He also reminded all in the room that “this year is the 40th anniversary of the TRA, which shows the strong relationship between the US and Taiwan. The future of Taiwan should be determined only by the people of Taiwan: not the US or the PRC; only Taiwan.”
Minister Cheng, who previously served as a member-at-large of Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan for four years where she focused on educational reform and cultural governance, and the Minister of Taiwan’s National Youth Commission in 2004, was appointed Minister of Culture by President Tsai Ing-wen in 2016. Her remarks focused on the uniqueness of Taiwan culture that continues to foster a free and democratic way of life in Taiwan.”We hope to share the free, pluralistic, open and inclusive Taiwan culture with the world, let the world support Taiwan’s freedom and democracy, and let our next generation continue to develop a unique cultural outlook in Taiwan and continue to to write the story of democracy,” Cheng stated.
Director Fu Yue, whose film has won the Best Documentary at the 2018 Taipei Golden Horse Awards and the Taipei Film Awards focused her remarks on the uniqueness of individuality, and the impact each individual can have on the society. Describing her documentary, Fu Yue explained: “The sunflower movement was the largest social movement in recent decades in Taiwan. But the documentary is not only about the movement, but also about the experiences we have in our youth, and the mistakes we make along the way. […] I sincerely hope that more people will recognize that each person living in Taiwan is just like you—unique and special. No political entity can ignore our rights to exist.”
The documentary “Our Youth in Taiwan” tells a story of bidding farewell to one’s youth and focuses on three main characters, a Taiwanese student movement star who fights against China, a celebrity Chinese student who loves Taiwan, and a Taiwanese documentary filmmaker passionate about politics, and their dream of building a better country by rebelling against the establishment. The documentary also captures the 2014 Sunflower Movement, the biggest social movement that had taken place in Taiwan in 24 years.
It is important to note that this event marks the first time since 1979 where a Taiwan cabinet official openly attended an event held in Congress. Furthermore, Congressman Chabot was the sponsor of the 2017 Taiwan Travel Act, which has become US law, and is also the first Congressman to receive a Taiwan cabinet official at an open event held in Congress. This event not only marks a significant step forward in the strengthening of the US-Taiwan relationship but also demonstrates a steady improvement in high-level exchanges between the two countries.
Agenda:
5:00 – 6:00 PM Reception
6:15 – 8:30 PM Screening & Discussion
Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2172
The Global Taiwan Institute is pleased to present the film “Our Youth in Taiwan” in our ongoing series of social and cultural programs in Washington, DC.
Reception 5:00-6:00 PM
Opening Remarks
Rep. Steve Chabot, Co-Chair, US Congressional Taiwan Caucus
Cheng Li-Chiun, Minister of Culture, Taiwan
Fu Yue, Director
The film will start at 6:15 PM. Please contact GTI Program Associate Jonathan Lin at jlin@globaltaiwan.org if you have questions or concerns. Please RSVP by May 20.
THE FILM
We will be showing the film Our Youth In Taiwan, directed by Taiwanese director Fu Yue (傅榆).
Stories of bidding farewell to one’s youth and growing up are commonplace. The dream shared by the protagonists in the film is to build a better country by rebelling against the establishment. However, their fight becomes part of history in the turbulent relations between Taiwan and China.
A Taiwanese student movement star who fights against China, a celebrity Chinese student who loves Taiwan, and a Taiwanese documentary filmmaker passionate about politics clash but the three find the possibility of collaborating with each other in the social movement. After the biggest social movement in Taiwan in the past 24 years had taken place, they came close to realizing their goals but gradually they were let down again. Is it still possible for them to continue fighting for the ideals they had been pursuing?
https://https://youtu.be/UXeUiOqwSrc
GUEST SPEAKERS
Congressman Steve Chabot
Congressman Steve Chabot has served Ohio’s First Congressional District for 20 years. Since becoming a Member of Congress, Congressman Chabot has served as Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia from 2011-2012; and Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific from 2013-2014. Congressman Chabot, who has been a prominent advocate for Taiwan, sponsored the Taiwan Travel Act in 2017, which eventually became law. He has been the co-chair of US Congressional Taiwan Caucus since January 2019.
Minister Cheng Li-Chiun (鄭麗君)
Minister Cheng assumed the position in May 2016. Prior to that, she served as a member-at-large of Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan for four years where she focused on educational reform and cultural governance, and the Minister of Taiwan’s National Youth Commission in 2004. Appointed Minister of Culture by President Tsai Ing-wen in 2016, Minister Cheng has prioritized cultural preservation and development, as well as cultural governance, and has been instrumental in pushing forward cultural legislation. Minister Cheng also served as chair and CEO of the Youth Synergy Taiwan Foundation, CEO of Taiwan Thinktank, a board member of the National Cultural and Arts Foundation, and an adjunct lecturer of political science at Soochow University.
Fu Yue (傅榆)
Born in Taipei, 1982, Fu Yue graduated from the Institute of Sound and Image Studies of Tainan National University of Arts in 2008, now worked in documentary film production. She mainly explores young people’s ideas and attitudes toward Taiwan’s political and economic landscape. Her films have received several awards at the youth film festival in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. “Dialogue between Blue and Green” won the Best Documentary at the 2013 First International Film Festival Xining. “A Perfect Crash ” won the Best Short Documentary at the 2016 Hong Kong Chinese Documentary Festival. “Our Youth In Taiwan ” won the Best Documentary at the 2018 Taipei Golden Horse Awards and Taipei Film Awards.
We are grateful to the Taiwan Academy, Ministry of Culture, Taiwan for providing resources to the GTI cultural programs series.
