The 2016 ICW-ECM was held from Nov. 14th through 17that the Grand Hotel in Taipei, Taiwan.
On Nov. 14th, the registration started at 8am and Linda Liu,
President of National Council of Women of Taiwan gave introductory remarks. It
was followed by Keynote Addresses. The first one was given by Hon. Pau-Ching
Lu, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Republic of China on “The
Achievement of Policy on Women’s Rights Promotion in Taiwan”. The second one
was on “Empowering Women, Changing Society” by Hon. Mervat Tallawy, Director
General, Arab Women Organization. She focused on women’s hidden roles.
Welcome ceremony consisted of a performance and a very special visit by
Her Excellency, President Tsai Ing-wen, Republic of China. Lots of cameramen
and flashes! Dr. Cecilia Koo, Honorary President, NCWT, and Dr. Jungsook Kim,
President, ICW also gave a very moving welcoming speech. Hon. Rene Baptiste,
Speaker, The Organization of Eastern Caribbean States Assembly also gave a
keynote address.
After lunch starting at 1:30 pm panel discussions were held on “Women
in Power Society in Transformation” and “Women’s Empowerment in the Changing
World” at the Auditorium. They lasted till 4:30 and four workshops followed
with the titles “Advancing Women in Decision Making”, “Promoting Gender
Equality in the Community”, “Transforming Society Through Women’s Empowerment:
Korean and Taiwan Experience” and “Empowering Women for an Innovative and
Inclusive Workplace”. The auditorium and the rooms on VIP floor were heated
with passion and idea sharing.
November 15th was the second day and from 10:30-12:20 there
were NCW reports at Song Bo Room on the 10th floor. Delegates were
well prepared with the reports on their own and we were running out of time for
City Tour. We were guided to the
beautiful Japanese restaurant called Shinyeh and well treated. We went to
Songshan Cultural and Creative Park which was initially constructed as a
tobacco factory and got changed to the cultural and creative park afterwards. Chiang
Kai-Shek Memorial Hall was the next visiting place and we were told that the
hall and square became the hub of events in the 1980s and early 1990s that
ushered Taiwan into its era of modern democracy.
We started the third day with Interfaith Service and Regional Council
meetings were held separately. APRC was focused on recommendation for 2018
Triennial Theme and ECICW was held until lunch time. At 1:30pm there was
Standing Committee and UN Rep. Meeting. Reports on NCW, Workshops and Standing
Committee and UN Rep. followed. We were also informed on General Assembly which
will be held in Indonesia in May, 2018. In the evening of the same day the guests
were invited to Gala Night and Closing, which was held on the 3rdfloor in the luxurious and ‘hot’ Regent Hotel Ballroom. Several performances
were given by a number of affiliated members of NCWT welcoming guests and
delegates. A friendly atmosphere was created when all the guests were dancing
on the floor with the performers hand in hand, and everyone was tremendously
happy and had an opportunity to meet, talk, and eventually build the strong
friendship during dinner.
On November 17th, there was an optional tour of Northern
Taiwan. We went to National Palace and looked around all the precious and
valuable remains and never missed time to pick up some souvenirs and handcrafts
from the BC. The afternoon ‘Sky Lantern
releasing’ was the most impressive and fun experience that most of us had ever
had. We sent our wishes on lanterns to the heaven. ‘Beijing Duck’ was the
finale of the whole day and we all were moved by the scrummy treat paid by the
NCWT members.
We congratulate on the wonderful achievement of ICW-ECM in November
2016, and really appreciate NCWTaiwan for its superb dedication to make this ECM
a grand success. All the things that we experienced during our stay in Taiwan
will be remembered as an unforgettable beautiful memory for a long period of
time.