The Federation of International Human Rights Museums-Asia Pacific (FIHRM-AP) organized its annual conference in Taiwan for the first time. The conference is held in at National Taiwan University, running from Nov. 6 to Nov. 10.
With a focus on elevating cross-border and cross-disciplinary collaboration, this year’s theme centered around "Synergizing for Human Rights: Collaboration between Museums and Communities in the Asia-Pacific Region." It delved into strategies for museums and human rights organizations to raise public awareness on human rights issues. Scholars from Australia, Japan, Thailand, and Indonesia participated in the conference, sharing valuable experiences and insights.
Deputy Culture Minister Sue Wang (王時思) was present at the conference on Nov. 6. She mentioned that in terms of the education of the country’s history of authoritarianism as well as the preservation of difficult heritage, Taiwan has a long way to go in building the society’s consensus. However, she said, Taiwan still has great human rights achievements, such as the first Asian country to legalize same-sex marriage and the amendment of three laws addressing sexual harassment in response to the “Me Too” movement.
Hung Shih-fang (洪世芳), the director of the National Human Rights Museum and President of FIHRM-AP, highlighted the organization’s accomplishments despite the challenges posed by the pandemic. Established in 2019, FIHRM-AP has successfully conducted regular online workshop sessions, curated exhibitions, and launched an official website available in ten languages, connecting 42 institutions and 52 individual members. He hopes that FIHRM-AP could serve as a hub to promote international collaboration between human rights museums and organizations.
The International Coalition of Sites of Conscience (ICSC) was also invited to Taiwan to facilitate a half-day workshop. Led by the coalition’s veteran Linda Norris, the workshop worked on deepening the connection between the museums and the communities through compelling stories and narratives.
For more information, please visit the FIHRM-AP website.