7-day hunger strike to save monastery ignored by Ministry of Culture

Lee Jung-tai (李榮台), an activist who has fought for the preservation of the Puantang Lay Buddhist monastery (普安堂), has begun a hunger strike in condemnation of the Ministry of Culture.

Following the forced demolished of Puantang monastery, supporters of the monastery entered the ruins to salvage a few cultural relics. As a mark of protest, the relics were then placed on exhibition at the Ministry of Culture’s offices.

Over the past few days, the Ministry of Culture, which has been in the process of relocating its offices, refused to acknowledge any responsibility for storing or preserving the century-old cultural relics, instead continually insisting that Puantang supporters immediately remove the items.

“We’ll protect these cultural relics together, but first move them outside,” said a spokesperson for the Ministry of Culture.

Day after day of sit-in protest and a hunger strike by Lee Jung-tai (李榮台) proved insufficient to force the Ministry of Culture to act in accordance with the Cultural Heritage Preservation Act.

The sluggish handling of the affair by New Taipei City’s Cultural Affairs Department caused the postponement of registering the area around Puantang monastery as a place of cultural and historical importance until January of 2014. As a direct consequence of this, and failure to implement Clause 101 of the act this year, on December 20, 2013, Puantang monastery was demolished.

Supporters of Puantang monastery are demanding that the grounds be formally designated, “Puantang Monastery Cultural Tragedy,” and that the ministry responds immediately.

7-day hunger strike to save monastery ignored by Ministry of Culture
URL:http://www.peopo.org/news/228141

(以下是中文對照)
文化部不理會李榮台絕食七天 普安堂要求指定「文資不作為慘案遺址」

照片

普安堂代言人李榮台絕食抗議文化部行徑。普安堂現址已拆除成如廢墟，聲援者將些許普安堂文物移至文化部展示。由於文化部近日正進行搬遷辦公室作業，官員完全不理會百年文物的去向與保存，不斷要求聲援者將普安堂文物搬走，並說：「文物大家一起保護，但是先把它們移到外面。」為此聲援者高喊：「文化部、沒文化，文化部、搬家部。」李榮台的絕食以及聲援者連日靜坐，都沒有使文化部依照文資法101條有所作為，甚至連新北市文化局應該要登錄普安堂四處為歷史建築都呈現龜速，要至明年一月再登錄。即使普安堂從12/20開始被拆除，聲援群眾向文化部申請普安堂全區為「新北土城普安堂文資不作為慘案遺址」，要求文化部盡速審理與回應。