Legislative Yuan reviews Ministry of Culture budget, media promotion funds ultimately frozen by NT$8 million

(CNA Taipei, July 2) The Education and Culture Committee of the Legislative Yuan reviewed the Ministry of Culture's budget for the 115th fiscal year today. The meeting began with a heated debate over the Ministry of Culture's media promotion budget of NT$47.38 million, which lasted for the entire morning. Ultimately, the convener, Kuomintang legislator Luo Ting-wei, ruled to freeze NT$8 million, requiring the Ministry of Culture to submit a written report for committee approval before the funds can be disbursed.

The Ministry of Culture's media promotion budget includes expenses for the European "Year of Taiwanese Culture," the "Cultural Voucher" program, preparatory expenses for the National Children's Future Museum and the National Manga Museum, as well as Taipei Fashion Week and the Taiwan Creative Content Fest. Kuomintang legislator Weng Hsiao-ling proposed to delete the entire budget, while Taiwan People's Party legislator Tsai Chun-chu requested a reduction. Democratic Progressive Party legislator Wu Si-yao and others argued for discussing the details and opposed the deletion, leading to a fierce debate.

Weng Hsiao-ling questioned past concerns about media promotion funds flowing to specific media outlets, stating, "Government budgets are the hard-earned money of the people and should be spent where it's most needed." Kuomintang legislator Lo Chih-chiang proposed a reduction of NT$25 million, citing a report from the Legislative Yuan's Budget Center that indicated overlap in the Ministry of Culture's global outreach work. He also noted that the media promotion budget had increased from NT$36 million to over NT$43 million in five years, an excessive rise that warrants a comprehensive review.

Kuomintang legislator Ke Chih-en agreed with the Budget Center's observation of an "excessive increase" and requested the Ministry of Culture to provide a complete explanation of the budget center's recommendations, along with a clear itemized budget list. Kuomintang legislator Yeh Yuan-chih believed the budget was too vaguely compiled and asked the Ministry of Culture for further clarification. Legislator Tsai Chun-chu expressed support for strict oversight and requested the Ministry of Culture to provide a "summary table" of the media promotion funds, proposing a freeze of NT$10 million.

Democratic Progressive Party legislator Lin Yi-chin criticized Weng Hsiao-ling's proposal to delete the promotion budget as "arrogant and foolish," akin to declaring war on Taiwanese culture. Democratic Progressive Party legislator Kuo Yu-ching stated that film and television culture heavily rely on promotion, and a complete deletion would be a "killer proposal for culture." Democratic Progressive Party legislator Wu Pei-yi argued that a complete deletion was disproportionate and that items should be discussed individually.

Wu Si-yao stated that Taiwan faces diplomatic challenges, and cross-party consensus has called for fully promoting cultural diplomacy to leverage soft power for Taiwan's voice. She questioned whether significantly cutting the cultural diplomacy budget would be "self-castration" and whether the legislature would echo China and become its mouthpiece.

Minister of Culture Lee Yung stated that the media promotion budget was cut to zero in the 114th fiscal year, and the Ministry of Culture had to be creative under extremely difficult conditions. "I myself promoted through Facebook," he said, adding that the media promotion budget is "by no means a subsidy for specific media, but the cornerstone for promoting all business activities of the Ministry of Culture throughout the year."

Initially, in the absence of proposing legislator Weng Hsiao-ling, cross-party legislators including Ke Chih-en, Tsai Chun-chu, Wu Si-yao, and Chen Pei-yu engaged in negotiations, reaching a compromise consensus to approve the budget as listed and freeze NT$3 million. However, committee members still had differing opinions and continued intense communication even during the break. Ultimately, the convener, Kuomintang legislator Luo Ting-wei, ruled to freeze NT$8 million, requiring the Ministry of Culture to submit a written report for committee approval before the funds can be disbursed. (Editor: Li Heng-shan) 1150702

Stand with facts, your every donation is a force to protect press freedom.

Download the CNA "One-Stop News" APP for real-time updates.

Text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, publicly transmitted, or used without authorization.