.DPP, KMT trade barbs over language

DIVERSITY: One lawmaker said that teaching local and foreign languages at school would help to preserve Taiwan’s uniqueness and promote a well-rounded worldview

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 06, 2019
By: Yang Chun-hui, Chen Yun and Jake Chung  /  Staff reporters, with
staff writer

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Deputy Secretary-General Lin Fei-fan, right, speaks at a news conference at the party’s headquarters in Taipei yesterday.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times

sparred over comments by Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu’s (韓國瑜) wife, Lee Chia-fen (李佳芬), that studying mother tongues in school is a waste of resources.

Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese) “is what I speak at home. Why then is it still studied at school?” Lee said on Sunday, adding that the Ministry of Education’s efforts to promote the language are a waste of time and resources.

Her comments echoed remarks last year by Han, the KMT’s presidential candidate, that it was a “waste of time” to include native-language classes in the 12-year national education program.

The DPP yesterday criticized Lee and Han, saying that they were discriminating against mother tongues.    [FULL  STORY]

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