Radio Taiwan International (Rti) celebrated its 95th anniversary with an event featuring remarks by Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on Tuesday, September 19.

Other speakers at the event included Legislative Speaker You Si-kun, Ambassador of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to Taiwan Andrea Bowman, and Rti Chairperson Cheryl Lai.

In her speech, President Tsai said that Rti has borne witness to important moments in the Taiwanese people’s struggles for freedom and democracy. She said that RTI has consistently fulfilled its role, from its former duty in broadcasting on democracy to chronicling Taiwan’s increasing global engagement, bringing Taiwan’s voice to the international airwaves. The president also noted that RTI has shown its commitment to the ideal embodied by this year’s theme for World Radio Day: Radio and Peace and has conveyed to the world that Taiwan is willing to do its part for world peace. She expressed hope that everyone at RTI will continue to use their expertise to bring the voice of Taiwan to the world and wished RTI all the best as it embarks from a new milestone. Tsai also said Taiwan’s ability to connect people all over the world was demonstrated by the many postcards received in various languages on display at the event.

Rti Chairperson Cheryl Lai also gave remarks at the event. Lai said Rti is Taiwan’s only public media company to broadcast in 20 languages across multiple platforms. Lai says Rti has been an important channel for people in Southeast Asian countries to understand Taiwan. She says the Indonesian, Vietnamese, and Thai language services have a long history at Rti, and are important resources for Taiwan’s new immigrants and migrant workers. Lai said that Taiwan also began a Ukrainian language social media service following the outbreak of the Russo-Ukrainian war. She concluded by saying that as Taiwan grows more vibrant and diverse, Rti will continue to spread Taiwan’s voices to all corners of the world.

Ambassador Bowman said in her speech that reaching 95 years of service is not an easy accomplishment to achieve. She said Rti represents an excellent model for how to spread the message of democracy and peace across the globe.

Here’s a translation of President Tsai’s remarks:

“This year RTI marked its 95th anniversary by hosting a postcard collection drive appealing for world peace, as well as by expanding its scope of activities, holding forums in Taiwan and Thailand on the outlook for Asia post-pandemic.

The forums were focused on the topics of “authoritarianism and democracy” and “addressing disinformation and information warfare around the world,” both of which reflect challenges currently facing democratic countries. As Taiwan stands on the frontline of the defense of democracy, and as we are facing an expansion of authoritarianism, we are willing and able to work with our global democratic partners to defend the values of freedom and democracy.

In recent years, Taiwan has continued to collaborate with democratic partners from around the world through the Global Cooperation and Training Framework, holding workshops to discuss various global issues, such as how to improve media literacy and counter disinformation. I am sure that this international conference held by RTI will also help Taiwan and our democratic partners share experiences on resisting authoritarianism and countering disinformation.

I want to thank RTI for its dedication. Founded 95 years ago, RTI has borne witness to important moments in the Taiwanese people’s struggles for freedom and democracy. In particular, RTI has consistently fulfilled its role, from its former duty in broadcasting on democracy to chronicling Taiwan’s increasing global engagement, bringing Taiwan’s voice to the international airwaves.

RTI has also helped connect Taiwan with its friends the world over. Guests with us here tonight and listeners around the world have sent in postcards in various languages to express their well-wishes for RTI as well as their hopes for world peace.

This year’s theme for World Radio Day is Radio and Peace. I would like to thank RTI for showing its commitment to this ideal. Through its efforts, RTI has shown that the power of broadcasting knows no borders. It has also conveyed to the world that Taiwan is willing to do its part for world peace.

Just now, listening to Anastasiia Palamarchuk, a student from Ukraine, recite a poem at the opening of this event, we can all understand that the commitment to democracy, freedom, and peace goes beyond borders, and that it is an important link between Taiwan and the international community. This link has become stronger as a result of everyone’s hard work. That is why I am confident that everyone at RTI, making an impact through radio, is proud to be a broadcaster.

Over the past few years, RTI has been more than a bridge linking Taiwan to other nations around the world. It has also provided friendly, real-time information services to new immigrants and foreign language speakers in Taiwan. Once again, I would like to thank everyone at RTI for your contributions. I hope that you continue to use your expertise to bring the voice of Taiwan to the world. I wish RTI all the best as it embarks from a new milestone.”