Taiwan protests Gwangju Biennale name change of Taiwan Pavilion

Taiwan's Ministry of Culture has issued a formal protest against the Gwangju Biennale Foundation in South Korea for unilaterally changing the name of the “Taiwan Pavilion” to “NTMoFA” (National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts). The Ministry stated that the change violates the existing contract signed in April, which explicitly approved the “Taiwan Pavilion” designation.

The Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have reached a consensus that Taiwan will not concede on this matter and may take necessary measures to defend its rights. Officials noted that the foundation has failed to provide a positive response to repeated inquiries regarding the name change, which has impacted the ability of the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts and participating artists to proceed with exhibition preparations.

Critics and political groups in Taiwan have argued that the foundation's actions contradict the “Gwangju Spirit” of democracy and anti-authoritarianism. They contend that the unilateral renaming constitutes a form of political censorship that disregards the sovereignty and identity of the participating nation.