Department of Information and Tourism, Taipei City Government

To offer residents an opportunity to win mobile phones by writing short pieces of their impressions on Taipei, Department of Cultural Affairs (DOCA) has organized a special literature award for text messaging. Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin hopes that residents will take the time from their busy life by recording their thoughts and experience about the city in short text messages. During the press conference for the “Life in Taipei 66688” on April 4, Mayor Hau noted that text messaging has become a convenient tool in today’s society. He said that he himself dispatches an average of ten text messages each day to the officials of city government. This is the first time the city government has brought together local telecommunications providers to set up such an activity. As the final chapter of the 2006 Taipei Literature Festival, the activity focuses on “Literature at the City Corner,” and seeks to promote the spirit of reading. By combining modern technology and literature, the organizers hope that residents will take their time to record what they see and hear in Taipei using their mobile phones. Commissioner of Cultural Affairs Lee Yong-ping noted that as society evolves, literature takes on different forms. Literature is not something elitist, but more mundane. In light of the declining knowledge with the use of Chinese language among today’s younger generation, Lee remarked that one of the major objectives for the activity is to encourage youth participation. She pointed out that even though the message is limited to 70 Chinese characters, it takes a certain degree of mastery in the language to utilize it to the full extent. Lee encouraged residents to take advantage of this new medium to expand their creativity. Between April 4 and April 18, residents who forward a text message to the hotline at “66688” will have a chance to win a mobile phone! The message has to be between 30 to 70 Chinese characters. Top six winners of the competition will receive a Nokia 6131.Up to three text messages may be submitted by each phone number. For information about the activity, please visit DOCA website at: www.culture.gov.tw or call the activity hotline for Taipei Literature Festival at (02)2336-9926.