Tainan City Mayor Huang Wei-che held an online meeting with Edinburgh City Council Leader Cammy Day on August 8. Tainan City Government Department of Information and International Relations Director Su En-en, Cultural Affairs Bureau Deputy Director-general Chen Hsiu-cheng, Scotland Taiwanese Association Chair Jenny Chen, and Eden Social Welfare Foundation Tainan Branch Director-general Chang Meng-yi were also present. The cities talked about the possibility of forming an alliance in the future and potential cultural collaborations.
Tainan City Mayor Huang Wei-che thanked Edinburgh’s support for Taiwan and pointed out that interactions between Tainan and Edinburgh began back in the 19th century when Dr. Maxwell and William Burton came to Tainan and improved the local living quality. We can still see many traces of the early interactions in the city today. The Mayor also expressed that he looks forward to continuing the historical ties between the two cities and initiating more collaborations in culture and other areas.
Huang explained that the histories of Edinburgh and Tainan are closely related. He hopes to incorporate elements of Edinburgh into the events for Tainan’s 400th Anniversary and present the centuries of interactions between the two cities to more Taiwanese people. Lastly, the Mayor sincerely invited Mr. Day to visit Tainan and experience the city’s historical sites and unique characteristics.
Edinburgh City Council Leader Mr. Cammy Day remarked that he would like to see an alliance between Edinburgh and Tainan, and suggested that the two cities can start collaborations in the area of art and culture and then move on to smart cities and business. Edinburgh has always been friendly towards Taiwan and many Taiwanese performing groups have been invited to this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Day also hoped that after this video conference, Edinburgh and Tainan can look into more concrete collaboration projects that will benefit possible official partnerships in the future.
Cultural Affairs Bureau Deputy Director-general Chen Hsiu-cheng, expressed that every year Tainan uses the arts as a means to interact with the world. Events such as the Tainan Arts Festival, Nan Ying International Folklore Festival, and Tainan Wind Band Arts Festival are all wonderful platforms on which artists from Tainan and Edinburgh can work together. Chen also suggested that the cities can establish an arts and culture affairs contact window so that artists on both sides can interact often.
Cammy Day started his term as City Council Leader this May. Day proposed a motion titled “The Friendship Between Edinburgh and Taiwan” which prompted the city council to agree to keep on evaluating the possibility of signing an MOU between Edinburgh and Taiwan. The historical city is internationally known for its many arts and culture events, including The Edinburgh International Festival, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and Edinburgh Military Tattoo, which are all held in August.