Miaoli Wanbao Rural Camp Carries the Dreams of Youth

Miaoli Youth Association: we are a group of young people from Miaoli. As Yi Yi puts it: "There are so many things I don't know. So, what do you want to do later? I want to go and tell other people the things they don't know; to show others the things they can't see. That way, surely every day will be a lot of fun." Every story has its own thread of development, and we have decided to follow it, to feel out every step, and then tell everyone about the fun in it, the meaning in it.

A group of Miaoli people came together in the late spring of 2009, and through book clubs and lectures they gradually gathered and expanded their understanding of public affairs. Miaoli, unlike the big cities, cannot match them in bookstores, lectures, or events. Its simplicity is its lovely side, but the predicament of "having nothing at all" is the interpretation of another side. For this reason, we hope all the more to use discussion, gatherings, reading, and sharing to let us come to know stories beyond Miaoli, to know the stories of this beautiful island beyond the mountain town.

The Wanbao Rural Camp, to be held on February 6 and 7, was conceived at the late-summer youth consensus camp of 2010. In the discussion, high school students still in their budding stage expressed an earnest hope to be able to do something, something beyond books; the young people were eager to try, attempting every kind of method to give themselves and their hometown Miaoli a new layer of connection; and the middle-aged provided past experience and selfless sharing. After the meeting, it was resolved that through gatherings, book clubs, and the idea of founding a club in high school, participation in public affairs would continue without interruption.

I myself was born in Miaoli City, the main administrative center of Miaoli County, which is not even as developed as Toufen or Zhunan. At night it blends into a scene of black curtains, and the slightest rustle makes a person suspicious. After nine o'clock the streets are utterly dead silent; the only things still lively are probably the chain beverage shops and 7-Eleven. Few interesting things happen, and there are few places where we can gather to discuss. This is Miaoli; the splendid era that Huang Nan-qiu worked so hard to cultivate seems to be printed only in textbooks.

Both of my parents are civil servants. They firmly believe in administration according to law, as most people do. So when I began to tell them about the land expropriation protests, their faces filled with doubt, and some even wore an expression of disbelief.

I have seen several places under expropriation and have taken part in several interviews on the side. I have not yet made out any clear shape of the legal provisions or administrative procedures and can only know a rough outline. But from those few experiences, what I saw was overwhelmingly helpless people. Perhaps you would say the expropriated households are all just arguing over the price, but I also saw another group of people who truly cannot be separated from the land. Fei Xiaotong says in From the Soil: "Our nation is indeed inseparable from the soil. From the soil has grown a glorious history, and naturally we are also bound by the soil; at present there is very much a look of being unable to fly up to the sky." That is probably talking about that group of resolute people I saw.

I study in Tianlong Country, chased by legal codes every day, and even in sleep I chat happily with the Justices' constitutional interpretations in my dreams. This is my life and the shared life of the friends around me. The school is only a few steps from Ketagalan Boulevard, but my friends regard the people who often appear there as demons. I do not blame them. They are my good friends, friends who also spent a whole semester listening to me ramble on. They are not unconcerned about this world or this society; each of them carries ideals and has already planned to work at the courthouse across from the school in the future, cultivating that sense of justice in their hearts. But I sincerely hope to bring them something different. It is a pity that I am clumsy with words and can only win a little sympathy with tears.

So I thought: does participation in public affairs, caring about society, stepping out of books and stepping out of campus require a medium, require a push, and more than that require a starting point? During the camp, what we hope to bring everyone is not the indignation of hot-blooded angry youth cursing the government; after all, you and I are not expropriated households. Nor is it the poetic enjoyment of rural scenery like a literary youth; after all, this treasure island is beautiful everywhere. We hope we can serve as a medium, a relay station, so that everyone can try to lift their feet and step into the field of caring about public affairs.

Come here, meet new friends, get to know the land, and know yourself once again.

Mr./Ms. Hsu 0937182673 [email protected]