By invitation
Radio Taiwan International -
course set for the challenges ahead
We live in a world of isolation and denial. Despite this, we need to search
for meaning in life as well as communicate different ideologies. All this
adds up to a range of work that Radio Taiwan International needs to do.
Just like other international broadcasters, Radio Taiwan International wants
to send the voice of the people in Taiwan through its short wave and
medium wave signals to the rest of the world, especially China, where the
free flow of information and knowledge is still impossible. We also want to
tell the stories of Taiwan’s velvet revolution that brought democracy in
less than a decade and the country’s economic developments in the last
half century to Chinese, expatriate nationals and people around the world.
The tasks is considerably huge facing one of the most populated country
across the Taiwan Strait and more than 35 million expatriate nationals
speaking in Mandarin, Cantonese,Amoy and Hakka living mainly in South
EastAsia, NorthAmerica and places in many other countries with relatively
small budget from the government.
Professionalism was the priority when I first took the position of the
Chairman of RTI three years ago and that will be the same for my next three-
year term from July 1st, 2003. Working as a journalist for 30 years, I know
my role is to lead the radio into a new era. It’s an era in which the radio
needs not only to concentrate on a more listener-friendly format but also to
be free from interference by political parties. RTI needs to develop into a
professional international media company and independent public radio
service that makes sense
of the programmes we
produce in light of
negligence or biased
perception in general about Taiwan from people in mainland China and overseas.
This vision must not be blurred if RTI is to accomplish its destined goal. In this
sense, RTI is in the first place is committed to be in the forefront of international
Chinese-language broadcasting.
Taiwan has been in the ring of international trade between Europe, South East
Asia, China and Japan since the first half of the 17th century when the Dutch
began to colonise the southern part of the island then known as Formosa, the
beautiful island. Today, Taiwan is still at the heart of global trade, only on a much
bigger scale in terms of quantity and revenue. Many people may know a little
about consumer items such as Sangean radio receivers and other products made
in Taiwan, but nothing more. RTI is the window on Taiwan for DXers. We are glad
and encouraged that our audiences
are surprised to find how far Taiwan
has gone in areas such as human
rights, ecological preservation,
partisan
politics,
media
developments, aboriginal affairs,
homosexual issues, international
human aid and so on. RTI is still
moving forward to the international
broadcasting stage. What is certain
is that our audiences will find a lot
Tien-ray Chou
, Chairman of AIB member Radio Taiwan International, sets out the
prospects for international broadcasting from the south-eastAsian country in the 21st century
Tien-ray Chou,
Chairman of Central Broadcasting
System, parent organisation of Radio Taiwan
International
Ancient and modern
- a traditional
Dragon Dance still performed in
Taiwan while Taipei’s skyscrapers point
to the future of Taiwan
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the
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