Taipei: The Ministry of Culture (MOC) on Wednesday rejected the Gwangju Biennale Foundation's claim that Taiwan's National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (NTMoFA) applied to participate as an institution, stating the claim was "clearly incorrect."

According to Focus Taiwan, the MOC's statement came amid a dispute over the South Korean organizer's unilateral renaming of the "Taiwan Pavilion." The issue surfaced after the foundation removed "Taiwan" from its promotional materials for the upcoming biennale, replacing it with "NTMoFA," which triggered strong protests from Taiwan. The foundation maintained that NTMoFA signed an agreement with the organizer on January 12 to participate as an institution and was therefore identified by its museum name instead of the "Taiwan Pavilion."

In its explanation, the foundation detailed that it categorizes Pavilion participants as either national pavilions or institutional pavilions. It stated that participants wishing to present as a national pavilion must submit an official letter of approval issued by the relevant embassy or ministry of culture.

However, the MOC contended that NTMoFA submitted its proposal under the name "Taiwan Pavilion" and received official confirmation of approval on April 2, followed by an agreement signed on April 23. Subsequent communications between NTMoFA and the biennale foundation continued to reference the "Taiwan Pavilion" regarding the venue and exhibition arrangements, the ministry noted.

The MOC reported that it was not until June that the South Korean organizer began referring to the exhibition as the "NTMoFA Pavilion," prompting repeated protests from Taiwan. The foundation denied any political censorship in the renaming, describing it as an administrative issue related to participant classification and naming conventions.

"Framing or disseminating the matter as an act of censorship by the foundation may affect the reputation of not only the Gwangju Biennale Foundation, but also the countries and institutions participating in the Pavilion project," the foundation stated.

The MOC emphasized that the foundation's explanation contradicted the documentary record of the proposal, its approval, and subsequent communications between the two sides. The ministry stated that it, along with Taiwan's representative office in South Korea, had repeatedly addressed the issue with the organizer and Gwangju authorities, but had not received a positive response.

Taiwan will persist in its demand to participate under the name "Taiwan Pavilion," the MOC asserted, adding that it would take necessary action if the organizer unilaterally violates the agreement. The 16th Gwangju Biennale is scheduled to run from September 5 to November 15.