Growing ties and exchanges as cultural ice across Taiwan Strait thaws
Nine years ago, cultural relations between Taiwan and the mainland could have been summed up by Beijing's ban on Taiwan's biggest pop star, A-Mei, for singing Taiwan's national anthem at the May 2000 inauguration of president Chen Shui-bian.
Since the beginning of Mr Chen's second term in 2004, the cultural ice across the Taiwan Strait has steadily thawed, a process which further accelerated with the mainland-friendly policies of Ma Ying-jeou, who completed his first year as president of Taiwan last week.
Museums from Taiwan and the mainland are lending each other artworks, TV and film producers are envisioning a unified market, and in music - aside from Taiwan's pop crooners increasing dependence on mainland audiences for their pay cheques - even indie rock bands are finding ways to play clubs and festivals in what was once the terra incognita of the other side.
Recently, the Taipei County Government issued a press release for a 'Cross-Strait Dumpling Exchange Banquet'. It seems that not even shui jiao are immune from the fervour.
One of the biggest official exchanges of culture ever will come in October, when Chinese museums, including the National Palace Museum in Beijing, will lend 37 pieces to a Taiwan exhibition on art and artefacts related to the Yongzheng Emperor, a Qing dynasty ruler of the 18th century. 'This is the first time we'll ever be exhibiting works on loan from the Forbidden City. This is a very big deal,' said Sylvia Sun, a public affairs officer at Taiwan's National Palace Museum.
Taiwan's National Palace Museum contains most of the priceless antiques amassed by the Qing emperors, which Chiang Kai-shek brought to Taiwan from the Forbidden City for safekeeping while warring against Mao Zedong's communist army in the 1940s. As a symbol of national patrimony and legitimacy for both Chiang's Republic of China and Mao's People's Republic of China, the collection has remained an awkward sticking point and reminder of that split.