TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – A budget for the establishing of a Taiwanese-language television station should be a priority for the Legislative Yuan next year, Culture Minister Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君) said Thursday.
Taiwanese, also known as Hoklo or Southern Fujianese, is the mother tongue of a majority of Taiwan’s residents, but during the Martial Law era from the late 1940s to the late 1980s, it was repressed in favor of Mandarin, leading to fears that it will die.
Presenting a report on the development of the language at the Legislative Yuan Thursday, Cheng said she would consult existing Hakka and Indigenous Peoples minority TV stations as a base for setting up a Taiwanese channel, the Liberty Times reported.
The government is submitting a proposal for a National Language Development Act this year which includes a clause to promote publications, movies and TV productions in Taiwan’s various languages.
Chinese Television System (CTS, 華視) and Public Television Service (PTS, 公視) have budgeted NT$60 million (US$2 million) and NT$26 million (US$886,000) on Taiwanese language programs respectively, the Liberty Times reported.
