The Council of Indigenous Peoples (CIP) denied yesterday that it had ignored the well-being of a tattoo-faced Aboriginal centenarian and her family.
The woman, Lin Yin-mei (林銀妹), a respected elder of the Atayal Aboriginal tribe, died on Sept. 19 at her home in Hsinchu County’s mountainous Wufeng Township (五峰).
She was 102. Lin was considered a “living national treasure” because of her seniority, the elaborate tattoo ingrained on her face and her knowledge of the Atayal language, which is on the verge of extinction.
A local daily newspaper reported yesterday that Lin’s grandson, Lin Ying-chieh (林英傑), was so poor that he had no money to buy a coffin for his grandmother, and that the government, including the council, was ignoring the Lin family’s plight.
CIP Minister Chang Jen-hsiang (章仁香) has instructed the council’s Vice Minister Wang Chin-fa (王進發) and other CIP officials to attend Lin’s funeral, the council statement said, adding that the council had asked the Hsinchu County Government to send indigenous consultants to visit Lin’s family and offer financial aid to her survivors.
Chang said that he had also instructed the council to gain a better understanding of the situations of other “living national treasures,” the statement said.
Atayal tattoos cover almost the entire face.
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