Representative Rong-chuan Wu of the Taipei Mission in the Republic of Latvia made a presentation titled “Taiwan's Dynamic Civil Society" at the Center for Asian Studies of Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas, Lithuania on April 24, 2017. Presided by Professor Giedrius Janauskas, Vice Dean of the Faculty of Humanities, Mr. Wu's 90- minute lecture attracted more than 60 students and drew fervent discussion.
Professor Janauskas justified the invitation of Representative Wu to the Center's "2017 Asian Civil Society Lecture Series" by mentioning Representative Wu's previous experience as the Director General of Non-governmental Organizations International Affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taiwan. Mr. Wu firstly presented an insightful elaboration of Taiwan’s political-economic development and the development of its civil society in recent years. Then, he highlighted active international participation of Taiwan’s 2,000-plus NGOs and public issues initiated by Taiwan NGOS, such as environmental protection and same sex marriage. Taking Taiwan’s charity organizations “Taiwan Tse Chi Foundation” and “Taiwan Fund for Children and Families” as examples, Representative Wu stressed that due to Taiwan's incongruous status in international community, the burgeoning Taiwan's NGOs play an active role in the international arena and make tremendous contributions.
Present students responded Representative Wu's enlightening speech with various in-depth questions and learn much more about Taiwan and the contributions of its civil society.
Professor Janauskas introduces Representative Wu
Lecture scene
Students concentrate on listening