Paris: The 29th Taiwan-France Cultural Award has been presented to Tamkang University's Wu Hsi-deh and Victor Louzon, an assistant professor of history at Sorbonne University. At a prize ceremony in Paris, Wu, a professor emeritus in Tamkang's Department of French, reflected on his journey, stating that after studying in Paris more than 40 years ago, he returned to Taiwan with the belief that "the homeland needs me."

According to Focus Taiwan, Taiwan's Ministry of Culture (MOC), which jointly organizes the award with the Acad©mie des Sciences Morales et Politiques of the Institut de France, highlighted Wu's contributions. Wu founded the Taiwan Association of French Teachers in 1996 and the Taiwanese Association of French Translators in 2014. He also initiated Taiwan's International Francophonie Day events and French translation awards. Wu emphasized that his work in French education, translation, and publishing continues to extend through knowledge-sharing across generations. He noted that Taiwan and France could benefit from deeper understanding and cooperation, with France finding inspiration and innovative power in Taiwan.

Meanwhile, Louzon's research has focused on the transformation of political power in Taiwan in 1945. He published the first French-language monograph examining the 228 Incident. The MOC stated that Louzon has also worked to bring French students to Taiwan for fieldwork, organize academic conferences, and launch translation projects on Taiwan's history. Receiving the award, Louzon expressed his dedication to researching the 228 Incident, driven by a question about the sacrifices made during the event. He advocated for Taiwan's history to be seen as a subject in its own right, rather than a minor part of global narratives.

Louzon shared his gratitude to his Taiwanese research partners for their welcoming and supportive environment, which he attributed to Taiwan's democracy and academic professionalism. He noted that Taiwan's mature nationalism stands out at a time when many admire authoritarian stability.

Taiwan's Culture Minister Li Yuan and Jean-David Levitte, president of the Acad©mie des Sciences Morales et Politiques of the Institut de France, also attended the ceremony, which concluded with a Chinese glove puppetry performance by Jean-Luc Penso. Established in 1996, the Taiwan-France Cultural Award honors those who significantly contribute to promoting Taiwanese culture in France, Europe, and Taiwan.