Hakka council condemns China's choir name change

The Hakka Affairs Council has strongly condemned what it calls Chinese pressure that led to the unilateral renaming of the National Taiwan Hakka Children’s Choir. Organizers of the World Symposium on Choral Music, scheduled for Macau from Aug. 23 to 28, changed the choir's designation from "Taiwan" to "China Taiwan" on their website.

“

just as an individual has personal dignity, a nation has national dignity and neither should be trampled upon or diminished.

The council has demanded an immediate correction, warning that the choir will withdraw from the event if its original name is not restored. Minister Ku Hsiu-fei emphasized that national dignity, like personal dignity, should not be diminished. She stated that the choir's name represents its identity and autonomy, and called for respect from the symposium organizers.

“

The name National Taiwan Hakka Children’s Choir represents the institution’s identity and autonomy, she said, calling on the World Symposium on Choral Music to show respect and to restore the choir’s original name.

Ku described the National Taiwan Hakka Children’s Choir, founded in 2019, as the world's only Hakka children's choir, showcasing Hakka language and music. Despite the "unfair treatment" from China, she affirmed Taiwan's commitment to promoting Hakka culture internationally.

“

solemnly condemned Beijing for allegedly changing a Taiwanese children’s choir’s nationality from “Taiwan” to “Chinese Taiwan.”

Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council echoed the condemnation, calling the renaming a "malicious attack on national sovereignty" that occurred without permission. The council stressed that international organizations should respect participants' wishes and avoid imposing politics on cultural events.

“

The renaming, which was done without permission, is a malicious attack on national sovereignty and requires immediate rectification, it said.