Keynote Speaker I: The Honorable Sherrod Brown

As a senior Democratic member of the House International Relations Committee, Congressman Sherrod Brown is the leading voice in Congress on issues important to Taiwan, including the effort to preserve its democracy and secure the island's independence.

Since Brown's first term, he has earned the respect of his colleagues and the international community for his steadfast support of Taiwan and its 23.5 million citizens. Brown is the author of an essay about Taiwan titled, "Congress Takes the Long View on Cross-Strait Issues," in the Public Policy Institute's new book, United States, China, and Taiwan: Bridges for a New Millennium.

Brown has championed a bipartisan effort to allow Taiwan's admission to the World Health Organization (WHO), from which it has been excluded since 1972. Brown said, "I find it troubling that our government tacitly supports a policy which ensures the Taiwanese people are denied access to the newest medical treatments and procedures. The denial of WHO membership to Taiwan is an unjustifiable violation of its people's fundamental human rights. Good health is a basic right for every citizen of the world, and Taiwan's admission to the WHO would greatly help foster that right for its people."
 

To affirm his strong support of Taiwan in the face of China's intransigence, Brown was a lead cosponsor of a resolution commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Taiwan Relations Act. This legislation has ensured that Taiwan maintains a credible military deterrent against China while maintaining peace and stability in the western Pacific region.

In addition, Brown has introduced a bipartisan resolution to express the sense of Congress that the United States should adopt a "One China, One Taiwan Policy," which reflects the present day reality that Taiwan and China are two separate nations. Brown's move provoked one Chinese lawmaker to comment that he "strongly condemns and firmly opposes" the resolution.

 

Keynote Speaker II: Chinese-American Film Producer Ms. Jenyng Wu

What does it mean to be a Chinese from Taiwan? Second-generation (culturally) Chinese American Producer, Jenyng Wu, who stands between the East/West divide is ready to look back to her parents' homeland to find her roots. Born in Taiwan, Ms. Wu has been raised in the United States since the age of four. Her parents uprooted the family to the States in hopes for a better future. However, in the process, through years of assimilation, their daughter has grown unfamiliar and unappreciative of her heritage.

Years of friction with her parents, caused by the chasm of cultural divide, Ms. Wu has come to realize that being Taiwanese Chinese is more than just an ethnic identity. It is a way of life, a code of conduct. It identifies where you come from, thus defining who you are. Looking eastward, Ms. Wu goes back to the beginning, her beginnings, to search for the Taiwanese/Chinese part of her.

In this journey of self-discovery, Ms. Wu seeks to understand what it means to be a Taiwanese Chinese. With the help of her family in Taiwan, she will travel back to her birthplace to find her identity. Through the medium of videography and storytelling, Ms. Wu hopes to capture the essence of the people of Taiwan.

This documentary serves as a bridge of understanding for first-generation immigrants and their second-generation children. As a historical vehicle, it explains the present through reflections of the past. It dispels any stereotypes and myths to what is real, human, and universal about the people of Taiwan and their culture.


    Sponsored by
Taiwanese United Foundation South California; Taiwanese American Foundation

 

 

 

 

Web Guru: Rachel Cheng
Created: September 30, 2001
Last Modified: October 3, 2001
Expires: November 1, 2001
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