Ambassador Michel Ching-long Lu Interview

get excited about the budai xi [sic] glove puppetry and want to know more about the company and the tradition.

12. How does the work with Chen Hsi-Huang Traditional Puppetry Troupe teach audience members about Taiwan?

One reason I particularly like about puppetry, is that it can so beautifully bring to life a culture.

Walking through our museum, there are so many universal themes, and yet the particular way that these themes are expressed is culturally unique to the time and place in which the work was created. The Chen Hsi Huang Troupe’s work is also interesting in that Mr. Hsi-Huang Chen has learned the craft from a long lineage of masters so his work is both of the present and the past.

13. Are perceptions of Taiwan changed through collaborations of this sort?

There is no digital substitute for seeing artists live on stage creating a beautiful work of art. The energy of that space allows for transformation and growth. I do believe that anyone not currently familiar with Taiwan will emerge from a performance with a greater understanding and

appreciation of Taiwan’s art and people.

14. Do you believe audience interest in Taiwan will increase as a result of seeing Chen Hsi-Huang Traditional Puppetry Troupe?

I hope it will! We had a demonstration by a Japanese Master several years ago. In the audiences was a puppeteer who was so inspired by his work that she applied for a scholarship to go study with him in Japan. It was transformational for her and she is planning another trip to Japan this year. You never know who is in the audience and who might be inspired by the work onstage.

15. Do you imagine future collaborations with Taiwanese puppet troupes?

We would love to work with TECO again and invite another Taiwanese puppet troupe in the future. I recently met the Puppet and Its Double’s Artistic Director Chen Chia-yin in Montreal at the Festival de Casteliers and I think the artist residency she has created in Taiwan is very exciting for international artis9ts and their perception of Taiwan as a leader in the field.

16. What makes puppetry a good tool for cross-cultural collaborations?

Often the puppet can express so much without words. This power to express ideas without words allows us to break down language barriers and connect as human beings.

7.2 Ambassador Michel Ching-long Lu Interview

Interview with Ambassador Michel Ching-long Lu 2019-03-28, 4:00-4:51pm

1. Based on your experience of serving as a diplomat, what do you think about soft power, public diplomacy and cultural diplomacy?

It is always interesting to talk about cultural diplomacy. When speaking you try to have mutual understanding between your country and others, both in public and private. Mutual

understanding is a top priority. With better mutual understanding there is concrete improvement in bilateral relations. The world is changing. For diplomacy this is normal. Diplomacy is no

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longer limited to the banquet of the season. Diplomacy is now a wide and varied rich field in which people try to communicate.

For our country Taiwan and for China, 1912 [founding of the Republic of China] is a distant thing now. We say we are still there [China] and we are here [Taiwan] so there is no need to interpret. This is why Taiwan is a unique situation in the international community. On one hand we are a normal country with all the portions of daily life. On the other hand Taiwan is not like a normal country because we are under political pressure from Mainland China. This is a crucial fact.

Certainly this is why for the diplomat there is a clear mission trying to promote good relations with the international community. For example with diplomatic official exchanges, there is no limit to promote ourselves and all means could be useful. I believe with mutual understanding, in the age of international cooperation and globalization, that there is no other way.

When I became a diplomat I served abroad. I was sent by the government to Paris. I studied French in Taiwan. I was sent to Paris in 1980 for 4 years. Then I transferred to the Netherlands for 2.5 years which was another country with another culture. I was sent back to Paris in 1991. I went to France to serve and found so many curiosities in front of me. In Haiti I saw colorful paintings, dance, Western and African culture. When I was there I had good contact with local troupes. Haiti’s financial situation is not so well. Taiwanese groups went to Haiti to have contact and promote cultural understanding. I was chief of mission in Paris 2007. In July 2015 I came back to Taiwan.

2. As a country that enjoys de facto sovereignty but only has formal diplomatic relations with 17 countries worldwide, does cultural diplomacy play a more important role for Taiwan’s diplomacy?

The answer is very positive. If Taiwan is to survive, cultural diplomacy is crucial diplomacy.

Taiwan does not accept the PRC conditions. There is no reason people will accept the unilateral imposed [by China]. Our argument is very simple. If you were Taiwanese would you accept such an imposition? Taiwan today has become a purist society, there is no more taboo, everything can be debated and discussed. Why should Taiwan accept this imposition from the PRC?

This was my argument when I was invited to roundtables by think tanks and different institutions.

There are two possibilities between the PRC and Taiwan. First-we should entrust time to find an acceptable resolution that both sides accept. The solution is not limited to one solution. Second-entrust competition by different systems. The systems are different in the PRC and Taiwan. Next year we have another election for president. China doesn't have that and it causes a headache.

Taiwan performs as a democracy, it is our life. We have diplomatic pressure and intimidation from the PRC on our head and shoulders.

If there is no economy then Taiwan will be marginalized. If we want to survive we should be strong enough to communicate that Taiwan is a qualified partner of the international community.

Taiwan is the 18th exporting country at 1.8percent., 19 importing country at 1.40 percent.

Taiwan is not a big country but it is bigger than more than 40 countries. It is more populated than many other countries in the world so don’t say Taiwan is a small country. After WW2 many

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countries tried to develop. Taiwan is a good example if we work hard we will have a successful and developed economic life. Taiwan is one of the best in life expectancy and social security, not worse than others.

We have enough rights to seek our national security. We need to find an efficient, strategic way to communicate with the international community. [In regards to] PRC pressures-if you can’t support Taiwan explicitly please understand our situation because it will continue. You can enjoy the stability of different points of view. Politically speaking it’s very hard. Our attempts at

national defense and attempts to improve people’s quality of life will continue.

Taiwan is a unique situation. We enjoy the confidence of the people, no matter the elections, our daily life continues. Culture is very very important. The budget for cultural diplomacy, culture budget is more than 1 percent for the first time in a long time. It is important for the government to invest money in cultural diplomacy

3. You have been praised as one of the best ambassadors of Taiwan for the way you conduct diplomatic work to promote the country, both as a whole and focusing on

traditional and local cultural identity. As the newspapers widely reported, you were invited to give a speech at the Oscar d’ille et vilaine in Paris, 2015, where you took the chance to impress the French audience by performing with Taiwanese traditional glove puppets.

Could you share why you decided to use Taiwanese glove puppetry for delivering your speech on this specific occasion and at other events?

It’s my creation. For diplomacy you need creativity and imagination. People ask where I learned to play the puppets. I didn’t learn it officially. I was born in the sugar refinery in Chiayi in 1947.

My father worked in the sugar plant. We did not have a privileged life at that time. At that time the sugar refinery plant regularly organized cultural performances. Mainly opera troupes performed in public institutions for the army and navy. There were performances of Peking Opera and Taiwanese acrobats. The sugar refinery cultural center could accommodate 200 people at once. At local festivals and anniversaries at temples in Chiayi we had activities with puppets. Religious activities always accompanied with puppets. In Taiwan we tried to follow performances. There were no smart phones back then. We boys tried to learn to imitate the puppet shows. We had Taiwanese Opera that we also enjoyed. Black and white TV and before that radio helped us to learn the dialogues [of the puppet and opera shows]. When I was in primary school I went to these shows which taught me to appreciate cultural performances. For Taiwanese people we have our own culture. As a boy we had contact with Chinese cultures in a larger sense. This contact was limited with Taiwanese culture.

Diplomacy means there is no fear between two cultures. This [his puppet show] helped to facilitate the communication. I enjoyed the challenges of connecting Taiwan and French people.

4. Do you believe Taiwan can gain more representation on the world stage through

international artistic collaborations between Taiwanese and foreign organizations? For my research on Taiwanese glove puppetry, do you believe cross-collaboration puppet shows can be used for cultural diplomacy?

How are you going to promote international exchanges, send young artists to overseas to international communities, send invitations to others to come to Taiwan? Cultural diplomacy is

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costly. You need a financial committee from the government sector. Each year we have students going abroad, 75,000 foreign students are studying in Taiwan. They play a very important role in international communication. Working hard with cultural diplomacy is necessary.

I met with French students and Taiwanese studying abroad. I worked with the Ministry of Education to promote Taiwan and organize events for visiting students. And we noticed our French friends became interested in Taiwan culture. I enjoyed my mission over there and worked very closely with TECO Paris. We had 20 exhibitions in Paris and 150 performances, dancing and acrobatics for young students. Each year the richness of Taiwan’s culture helped a lot to communicate with the international community.

In France there are puppets but they are different than ours. In Taiwan it is our privilege to have such rich puppet culture. It was introduced from Fujian Province. We are very proud to preserve this traditional Chinese culture but we have new versions of puppetry. Golden Ray puppets, we have television programs appreciated by so many people in Taiwan. The poorest of society can still have appreciation of Taiwan puppetry.

Different associations preserve this tradition, this art is encountering challenges and disappearing.

There is risk of disappearing but with contributions from society and younger generations school children and foreign students learn how to play the puppets. In France

there is interest in our puppets. French students came to Taiwan to learn the puppets. There is no border with culture. This is interesting. We use Taiwan puppets to play the traditional classical opera and of Western opera with Taiwanese puppets.

5. In your view, can Taiwanese glove puppets be used for cultural diplomacy? Are there other forms of culture that would be helpful for Taiwan’s cultural diplomacy?

This is interesting because Taiwanese puppet clothes are very colorful and the sides are very easy to play. [to manipulate with the hands] The most important thing is I played with the puppets in France and then the dialogue is very interesting in French.

The story [for the puppets] would always be a couple. One puppet would be a young American man who studied in French. He and his new bride travel to Paris. The new bride is from my country. The two love Paris and talk about studying and working in Paris. They talk about how Paris is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. They are speaking in French and singing in French. They kiss and say our children will come to study in France to promote mutual

understanding with friends. The puppets are made in Taiwan and by starting such a dialogue in French you attract all the attention. This is the synergy of all our communication.

The puppet clothes are very well prepared. The clothing is so colorful and the composition is harmonious. Visually they are very cute. The matter of the head and face is very real, very authentic. If you have seen the movie Father (Hong He Zi), you can ask anyone this is a real story talking about the puppet master and his story. A great puppetmaster respected by the community, a national treasure. Because there are techniques to smoke, puppets can smoke. I’m not encouraging people to smoke but the finesse of performance techniques-preparing tea, writing calligraphy-fine techniques that you can appreciate this art. For me who is not a puppet professional, I attract interest in dialogue. With dialogue you can attract attention.

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There are ongoing cross-cultural arts collaborations with Taiwan and other countries.

We have a world famous comic festival. This started by my efforts in Paris. At the Angouleme International Comics Festival²⁸we have Taiwan artists participating. We have resident artist villages and mutual countries making art installations. This enriches cooperation not just between institutions but between communities and universities.

The National Taiwan of the Arts University has had more than 60 collaborations with different institutions. Academically speaking we are doing very well. We have professors and students coming back to Taiwan to train our younger generations. Each year we send troupes of artists to different countries. Taiwan culture is so important. By continuous efforts, Taiwan can be better understood by the international community.

6. What was audience feedback like when you performed with the glove puppets in France?

Taiwanese teachers and French teachers knew we would introduce Taiwan and start speeches with a puppet show. In Paris they were pleased with the puppets. I went to southern France and they expected puppets. They always expected Lu will come with his puppets. This was

confirmation that audiences appreciate the puppets and created dialogues with the public. The people began to greet Overseas Chinese citizens with my puppets. And people had never seen such a situation. The Overseas Chinese highly appreciated this and put me on Youtube.

7. One of the hotly debated and much discussed questions about cultural diplomacy is its effectiveness. In your view, how do you evaluate the effectiveness of cultural diplomacy?

The most important part of cultural diplomacy is the communication that happens with the presentation of a country like Taiwan. Economically speaking we not be the best country, but we didn’t neglect or ignore the importance of culture. Culture is continuing. It is not possible to cut or separate our culture because it’s part of our life. A country without a culture could not be a great country. It’s not about size, it’s about national capacity. On one hand it’s the freedom of the society, where are the creators, what creation is allowed, are new things allowed to come out?

Positive effects of cultural exchanges with the international community will indirectly strengthen the confidence of the people. Countries and culture are different but our country is not bad. So why not encourage people to move to international community? This is necessary today to enable and strengthen understanding and international cooperation in regards to Taiwan.

Cooperation of so called general interest emphasizes cultural exchanges. Different puppet groups in Taiwan-there are wider divisions, different flavors, could be different, cultural differences and preferences. This together helps exchanges. Public spectators have more choices. It’s like a democracy. There are different choices, different communication. It’s all very positive.