Aborigines yesterday supported Executive Yuan spokeswoman Kolas Yotaka for her comments on the government not being involved in a ceremony dedicated to Cheng Cheng-kung (鄭成功) and called on members of the Cheng family to respect others’ historical views.
Cheng, also known as Koxinga, was a Ming Dynasty general who drove Dutch colonists out of Taiwan in 1662.
Kolas on Sunday said on Facebook that the government should not be involved in the ceremony to honor Cheng as such worship legitimizes “colonial thought and behavior.”
Photo: Tung Chen-kuo, Taipei Times
Cheng was, to Aborigines, no better than Columbus because he killed and pillaged the local population, Kolas said, adding that such practices should never again be repeated.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) canceled the practice of government officials attending the ceremony when she took office in 2016, turning the duties over to the Tainan City Government.
Kolas said in the post that she was speaking for herself and not for the government.
The Cheng family had protested Kolas’ comments as inappropriate and demanded her resignation.
The Central Taiwan Pingpu Indigenous Groups Youth Alliance yesterday held a news conference to support Kolas’ comments.
Alliance director-general Kaisanan Ahuan said the government should not take the lead in worshiping Cheng, who was a symbol of authoritarian power; that it should give Aborigines’ version of history due attention; and implement Aboriginal transitional justice.
The Cheng family’s protest is akin to rubbing salt in the wounds of the descendants of Cheng’s victims, Kaisanan said, adding that his people, the Taokas, were such victims.
Representative of the Papora people As Li-i Mali said it was well-documented in historian Lien Heng’s (連橫) The General History of Taiwan (台灣通史) that Cheng invaded and slaughtered the ancestors of the Pingpu, driving them off their land and into the mountains.
One incident almost wiped out the entire village of Shalu (沙轆) and there were only six survivors, As Li-i said.
Taiwan should be accepting of diverse opinions and all of its people should face up to history together, she added.
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
RSS