Although observers and lawmakers hold different views on the future of the Aboriginal autonomy bill, they still hope that the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would use its absolute majority to accelerate its passage.
"I'm not too pessimistic about the passage of diversity bills," Tamkang University public administration professor Shih Cheng-feng (施正鋒) said when asked to discuss the future of such bills.
"In the past, lawmakers could blame the slow progress in adopting the laws on conflict between the pan-green and pan-blue camps -- but now it's all the KMT's responsibility if the bills are again stalled," Shih said.
The KMT won a near three-quarters majority in the legislative election last month.
Shih said that if the legislation is adopted by the KMT-controlled legislature, the party would get the credit for it and may gain more votes in future.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Ying (
"The KMT government never made any move toward allowing autonomy for Aborigines during the decades it was in power, so I'm quite skeptical about whether they will really make an effort to pass it," she said.
"Kung Wen-chi (
Kung is a KMT legislator from the Atayal tribe who has also been pushing for Aboriginal autonomy.
The Aboriginal autonomy bill was first drafted and submitted to the Legislative Yuan for review by the Cabinet in 2003, following a promise by President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) during the 2000 presidential campaign that he would give the nation's Aborigines autonomous status.
The Cabinet version of the draft bill would allow the nation's Aboriginal tribes to create one or more autonomous regions, according to the geographic location of communities belonging to the same tribe.
The plan stipulates that each Aboriginal autonomous region would be granted the right to make decisions on its political, economic and cultural development, as well as enjoy financial independence.
The bill did not pass the legislative review as lawmakers disagreed on some provisions.
After the bill was returned to the Cabinet, the Cabinet resubmitted another version with minor changes last year. But that draft was again not passed.
Council of Indigenous People minister Icyang Parod told the Taipei Times last week that the council would submit the bill to the new legislature for a third review and urged the KMT to "pass the bill quickly" as there are "no more excuses for its delay."
"The KMT seems to focus more on cultural autonomy, while the DPP cares more about the right to self-determination, which views [autonomous governments] as partners of the central government," Obay a Awi, a Saisiat autonomy activist told the Taipei Times by telephone.
"Ma supports autonomy for Aborigines," Kung said. "But he's been more careful and thinks that it may be better if we can pick one or two tribes to run their autonomous regions on a trial basis to see how it works."
Kung said the DPP leans more toward allowing autonomy to all tribes at once.
"[If] Ma is elected president in March, autonomy for selected tribes on a trial basis may be in place within two years," he said.
Obay was not so optimistic.
"If the KMT is really sincere about passing the bill, it can be passed very quickly," Obay said. "So far I don't feel their sincerity."
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at