The 2023 Hakka Expo opening gala was held from August 11 to 13. Yiong Con-ziin, Minister of the Hakka Affairs Council (HAC), visited Taoyuan City Government to kickstart the event alongside Taoyuan City Mayor Chang San-Cheng. Minister Yiong stated that this opportunity to hold the Hakka Expo will hopefully help Hakka people gain fresh insights and knowledge on their culture, thereby bringing forth a new kind of Hakka people into the world.
Hakka people have borne great influence throughout different times and places across history. In the aftermath of the first Sino-Japanese War in the late Qing era, after the five major port cities became open to commerce with foreigners, many workers lost their jobs. This, in turn, led to the Taiping Rebellion, the first fatal blow to the late Qing empire. During the Xinhai Revolution, Hakkas from eastern Guangdong helped Sun Yat-Sen’s military government to gain a steady foothold. When Taiwan was ceded to Japan in 1895, Hakka people were at the heart of volunteer militias of the Republic of Formosa. Hakka soldiers were the elite and most iconic forces during the Japanese invasion of Taiwan. Hakka people in Southeast Asia established the first republic in the region, the Lanfang Republic, as they developed tin mining and rubber production there. It was a major world player alongside India in the Age of Imperialism. Hakka people have had a hand in the independence of Mauritius, the Cuban Revolution, and the independence of Jamaica and Suriname. What’s more, Suriname even had a Hakka president in its journey to becoming a republic. Lee Kuan Yew, a figure familiar to everyone, was also Hakka. These facts all bear witness to Hakka people’s willingness to meet nearly insurmountable challenges throughout major time periods in the world.
The opening gala for the 2023 Hakka Expo was themed “Hakka of Tomorrow Trilogy”. It included singing, drama, dance, and tech demonstration to convey the sub-themes of “flight of mountains”, “merging of rivers”, and “infinity of seas”. Major Hakka singers and other celebrities of different cultures were invited to participate in the gala. Even the cast of Gold Leaf joined in, making for a unique opening gala that comprised drama, singing, and dancing. For more information on the Hakka Expo opening gala, please follow the 2023 Hakka Expo official website and Facebook fanpage.
