tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5189370505125033122.post6140143805022941096..comments2023-11-02T05:04:02.912-07:00Comments on The End Times: a cli-fi newspaper that expires in 2500 A.D.: Retired Dutch diplomat in Taiwan, Menno Goedhart, 66, leaves Taiwan in a hurry without saying a long goodbye: What happened?Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5189370505125033122.post-23761985593888831672012-11-14T21:31:55.468-08:002012-11-14T21:31:55.468-08:00Departure of 'Mr. Taiwan'
2012/11/2012
...Departure of 'Mr. Taiwan'<br /><br />2012/11/2012<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> UPDATED<br /> <br />Former Dutch diplomat Menno Goedhart left Taiwan recently because of what his friends said was an inability to adapt to a culture in which "policies change when leaders change."<br /><br />Goedhart, who served as the head of the Netherlands Trade and Investment Office in Taiwan for eight years, was dubbed "Mr. Taiwan " for his love of Taiwan and familiarity with the country.<br /><br />He was also keen on tracing the footprints of his ancestors, who reigned over the Tainan area and other parts of Taiwan from 1624 and 1662. During that period, some Dutch citizens married local aborigines, mostly from the Rukai tribe.<br /><br />In 2009, Goedhart visited Pingtung County's Wutai Township along with nearly 40 Dutch people residing in Taiwan, leading them to meet the descendants of the mixed marriages.<br /><br />Because of his close friendship with the tribe, Goedhart was even made an honorary chieftain under the name Ama Daganau.<br /><br />He decided to stay on after his retirement from his post in August 2010 and settled in Xinhua District in Tainan, but he left for France recently.<br /><br />It is said that he paid three years of rent for his home in Tainan but lived there for just over a year. The landlord did not give Goedhart back the unused portion of the rental because of financial troubles.<br /><br />The following is an excerpt from the United Daily News on the former Dutch envoy's departure from Taiwan:<br /><br />Goedhart would not reveal too much about his reasons for leaving Taiwan, saying only that Taiwan would always be on his mind and that he would return should the chance arise.<br /><br />Diplomatic circles in Taipei were surprised to learn the news, but friends close to him said he left mainly because his research had not been going smoothly and because he did not feel respected by the Tainan City government and National Cheng Kung University (NCKU).<br /><br />Goedhart had wanted to cooperate with the Tainan-based university to set up a Taiwan Center for Dutch Heritage, but the plan never took off.<br /><br />The university asked him to serve as a paid scholar in residence last year, but the arrangement apparently left neither side happy because of different perceptions of budget issues.<br /><br />The school also asked him earlier this year to serve as a researcher with the school's Creativity, Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center, but he declined, and his cooperation with NCKU was disrupted.<br /><br />Goedhart's friends said he had difficulty with Taiwan's culture of "policies changing as leaders change."<br /><br />They said former Tainan Mayor Hsu Tain-tsair awarded Goedhart with an honorary Tainan citizen certificate, but incumbent Mayor Lai Ching-te never met with him after taking office in late December 2010.<br /><br />At the same time, NCKU's previous president promised to sponsor related research, but the school's incumbent president decided not to honor the pledge, they said.<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com