Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2017-04-228
President Tsai Ing-wen has praised the upcoming launch of Hakka Radio as an important step in promoting the Hakka language.
The station, set launch in June, will broadcast Hakka language programming around
President Tsai Ing-wen (front, right) attends the opening ceremony of the annual Hakka Tung Blossom Festival Saturday. (CNA)
Taiwan. The Hakka language is the ancestral mother tongue of about 18% of Taiwan’s population, but has seen a decline among younger people.
On Saturday, President Tsai Ing-wen attended the opening ceremony of the Hakka Tung Blossom Festival, an annual celebration of Hakka culture and heritage. During the event, Tsai, who has Hakka ancestry herself, called Hakka a national language and said that it needs to be spread. The president said that with the opening of the radio station, Hakka language content will be available both on television and on the airwaves.
According the Hakka Affairs Council, the station will work to continue Hakka’s use as a mother tongue, elevate Hakka culture, and support Hakka people’s rights to media access and cultural expression. [SOURCE]
