SWOT analysis
|
Beneficial |
Harmful |
Internal |
Strengths |
Weaknesses |
。The only remaining Pennsylvania style prison in Taiwan
。Comprehensively maintained
。Close to downtown Chiayi, convenient transportation, people can gather
。Maintained from time of Japanese rule, has existed for a long time, and the historical and cultural value cannot be overlooked
。The first prison museum in Taiwan, with the function of legal education |
。Too few related historical artifacts
。Lack of a specialized authority, unclear jurisdiction
。Difficult to repair wooden buildings
。There are various courses for repair; only a few of professionals are willing to conduct renovations
。If "prison" is used as a theme, curiosity can only attract people once |
External |
Opportunities |
Threats |
。It is possible for create a tourism axis with the other scenic spots and existing historical monuments in Chiayi City.
。Enhanced quality of tourism and the rebirth of historical monuments can attract people
。 As a result of globalization, more and more people now stress the manifestation of "localization." |
。Damp conditions and serious threat of termites
。Located on fault line with frequent earthquakes
。Large and close to downtown, has pressure from all sides that demand urban development
。Lack of funds
。Financial crisis has made people more frugal, and this may influence future development
。Serious theme, difficult to compete with historical monuments in other cities and counties |
Strengths
（Interviw with New Prison members）
（picture source：photo by this team）
The Old Chiayi Prison is the only remaining fan-shaped (Pennsylvania Style) prison in Taiwan. This is a unique type of construction, rare in the world. Preserving them may bring tourists and create another cultural asset for Chiayi.
Early on, in Taiwan there are other places with more complete fan-shaped prisons (five radial rows), but because these were very old, the prisons in Tainan and Ilan and other places were demolished. Now, there is only one in Ilan, but they were all demolished in Tainan; only the Chiayi Old Prison has a more complete fan-shape.
The Old Chiayi Prison and other local historical monuments of Chiayi city could be connected via the North Gate railway, and this would help Chiayi to implement a series of cultural tourist events. Old Chiayi Prison can also provide the real environment of a prison, so that tourists can truly experience what it is like to live in a cell.
The Old Chiayi Prison has been in Chiayi since Japanese rule; it has been there for a long time, and thus the general public has become more interested in the location, history, and age of the Old Chiayi Prison.
Weaknesses
（Interviw with New Prison members）
（picture source：photo by this team）
Due to the defeat of Japan after World War II, they destroyed and took away many artifacts, so there were only a few artifacts left in the Old Chiayi Prison to research evolution of the prison.
Structures in the Old Chiayi Prison were constructed from cypress from Alishan, and it seems even more difficult to preserve the original prison structure in this respect. Furthermore, now there are almost no professional repair personnel, but among these people, there are even fewer who are willing to conduct the renovations; renovation seems difficult.
The different goals of professionals have resulted in many conceptual misunderstandings. Before forming the prison museum, unimaginable problems may be encountered without first electing someone to integrate the opinions.
Opportunities
（Interviw with New Prison members）
（picture source：photo by this team）
Once the Old Chiayi Prison becomes a prison museum, and an axis of tourism could be formed along with all the other scenic spots in Chiayi County and City, it may bring lots of consumers, and at the same time motivate nearby commercial development, reinvigorating the economy of Chiayi. With the changes in time, the world is now a global village, so now people understand the concept of tourism – this is the opportunity to turn the Old Chiayi Prison into a prison museum. In addition, people have begun to pay more attention to the quality of tourism; people visit beautiful and cultural locations. This is a great opportunity for the Old Prison to change.
Threats
Taiwan is located in a subtropical zone, and wooden buildings could not survive too long in a humid environment. Humidity also attracts ants that create another major threat to wooden buildings! An important issue is how to make this into instructional materials that can be appreciated and cherished by people. Geographically it is on the fault-line between the Eurasia and Philippines tectonic plates with frequent earthquakes and it will be necessary to take into this into account in renovations.
In addition, Old Chiayi Prison is close to downtown Chiayi City, thus one concern is that it might affect urban development, and be pressured by other sectors of society.
Currently, the government has provided 220 million so far, and the same amount was to be provided each year until 2011. However, this is far below the funds necessary to renovate the Old Prison, and the government could not earmark more funds to renovate the Old Chiayi Prison. This is extremely different for the Old Prison as a wooden structure.
SWOT matrix |
Internal analysis |
Strengths |
Weaknesses |
External analysis |
Opportunities |
SO strategy
(Max-Max) |
WO strategy
(Min-Max) |
Threats |
ST strategy
(Max-Min) |
WT strategy
(Min-Min) |
- SO strategy: to use the principle of maximizing strengths and maximizing opportunities (Max-Max) to enhance strengths and use opportunities
- WO strategy: to use the principle of minimizing weaknesses and maximizing opportunities (Min-Max) to lower weaknesses and use opportunities
- ST strategy: to use the principle of maximizing strengths and minimizing threats (Max-Min) to enhance strengths and lower threats>
- WT strategy: to use the principle of minimizing weaknesses and minimizing threats (Min-Min) to lower weaknesses and lower threats
SO strategy for converting the Old Chiayi Prison to a prison museum
（Interviw with New Prison members）
（picture source：photo by this team）
1. Remaking the Old Chiayi Prison into an independently-run museum prison, one that can incorporate other historical monuments in Chiayi, and maybe this could enhance the cultural atmosphere in Chiayi.
2. Additionally, in order to make people understand the Old Prison more quickly, the Old Chiayi Prison would hold a series of events. If these procedures do not require the sponsorship and guidance from other institutions and corporations, it would make such promotions even more comprehensive.
WO strategy for converting the Old Chiayi Prison to a prison museum
1. As much as possible, find and preserve the artifacts from under Japanese rule. The historical monuments can then be connected into an axis of tourism; these combinations can realize the function of the prison museum, and further promote the culture of historical monuments.
2. Seek a number of managers and promoters who can enhance understanding of the Old Prison. After all, those who work at the Old Prison are the correctional officers, rather than cultural personnel who manage the prison museum. There may be small differences with the cultural workers in terms of concepts, but there may be significant problems when establishing the museum.
3. Manage the prison museum so that the central government can realize the significance of the Old Chiayi Prison. Providing better resources and assistance would allow individuals from the private sector to be willing to devote their efforts and funds to the sustainability of Old Chiayi Prison.
ST strategy for converting the Old Chiayi Prison to a prison museum
（Interviews with Ms. Chiu）
（picture source：photo by this team）
1. As long as the renovations at Old Chiayi Prison can begin soon and be conducted by professionals, it would be possible to prevent precious Alishan cypress from rotting and collapsing due to corrosion. It is important to further preserve, arrange, and exhibit the remaining artifacts, so that the public can more easily understand them.
2. The original environment and tourism can be used to form a tourism circle to deepen impressions. Tours should also be arranged so that people can understand the importance of the Old Prison; we should combine efforts from the private sector to pass on the culture of this place to the entire world.
WT strategy for converting the Old Chiayi Prison to a prison museum
1.Now, repairs of historical monuments in Taiwan must use modern engineering and technology. In this way, the building would be more earthquake resistant, termite resistant, humidity resistant, among others. These are necessary to maintain the condition and safety of historical monuments.
2. The formation of tourist parks along with other historical monuments could also bring tourists. Through the development of information technology, and promotion via the Internet, it would be possible to create a virtual reality on the Web, so that people can understand prison life online. It would also be possible to promote prison activities in schools, and begin early.
