Taitung County councilors have opposed the Siraya’s bid to be recognized as “indigenous peoples in plains areas,” as it might accelerate the Sinicization of indigenous people.
The Constitutional Court yesterday heard an oral argument for the case, whereby the Siraya, one of the Pingpu indigenous groups, requested to be recognized legally.
The Status Act for Indigenous Peoples (原住民身分法) does not recognize the Pingpu, who are unable to obtain indigenous status under the existing law.
Photo: CNA
Eight Amis, Paiwan and Puyuma councilors, as well as indigenous people from plains areas and mountainous areas, voiced their disapproval of the appeal in a joint statement issued yesterday.
Taitung County Council Deputy Speaker Lin Tsung-han (林琮翰) said that indigenous people were under legislative protection due to their unique culture, which would be obliterated if Pingpu groups that have already been Sinicized were hastily integrated into the existing categorizations of indigenous people.
The government should enact separate laws to recognize and protect Pingpu groups and establish a Pingpu Council to revive their culture, he said, citing the example of the Hakka Affairs Council.
Pingpu groups should not be included in the “indigenous peoples in plains areas” category, otherwise the lifestyles of existing indigenous peoples would be wiped out and “Taiwan’s indigenous people would soon disappear due to Sinicization,” he added.
Taitung County Councilor Lin Tsan-tien (林參天), who is Han Taiwanese, was highly supportive of recognizing the Pingpu as indigenous people, saying that historically they were “indigenous people’s brothers” so they should not be “left on the street.”
If indigenous people are worried that their resources would be diminished due to recognition of the Pingpu, the government could allocate a larger budget or increase the quota for legislators elected by indigenous peoples in plains areas instead of excluding the Pingpu, Lin Tsan-tien said.
Taking care of minority groups, such as passing the Indigenous Peoples Basic Act (原住民族基本法), can “bring harmony to Taiwan’s politics,” he said, adding that people in Taitung are working hard to improve the relationship between indigenous people and Han Taiwanese.
He called on indigenous people to “accept their brothers the Siraya.”
Civil society groups yesterday protested outside the Legislative Yuan, decrying Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) efforts to pass three major bills that they said would seriously harm Taiwan’s democracy, and called to oust KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁). It was the second night of the three-day “Bluebird wintertime action” protests in Taipei, with organizers announcing that 8,000 people attended. Organized by Taiwan Citizen Front, the Economic Democracy Union (EDU) and a coalition of civil groups, about 6,000 people began a demonstration in front of KMT party headquarters in Taipei on Wednesday, organizers said. For the third day, the organizers asked people to assemble
Taipei is participating in Osaka’s Festival of Lights this year, with a 3m-tall bubble tea light installation symbolizing Taiwan’s bubble tea culture. The installation is designed as a bubble tea cup and features illustrations of Taipei’s iconic landmarks, such as Taipei 101, the Red House and North Gate, as well as soup dumplings and the matchmaking deity the Old Man Under the Moon (月下老人), affectionately known as Yue Lao (月老). Taipei and Osaka have collaborated closely on tourism and culture since Taipei first participated in the festival in 2018, the Taipei City Department of Information and Tourism said. In February, Osaka represented
POOR IMPLEMENTATION: Teachers welcomed the suspension, saying that the scheme disrupted school schedules, quality of learning and the milk market A policy to offer free milk to all school-age children nationwide is to be suspended next year due to multiple problems arising from implementation of the policy, the Executive Yuan announced yesterday. The policy was designed to increase the calcium intake of school-age children in Taiwan by drinking milk, as more than 80 percent drink less than 240ml per day. The recommended amount is 480ml. It was also implemented to help Taiwanese dairy farmers counter competition from fresh milk produced in New Zealand, which is to be imported to Taiwan tariff-free next year when the Agreement Between New Zealand and
IDENTITY SHIFT: Asked to choose to identify as either Taiwanese or Chinese, 83.3 percent of respondents chose Taiwanese, while 8.4 percent chose Chinese An overwhelming majority of Taiwanese, 71.5 percent, think that Taiwan should compete in international competitions under the name “Taiwan,” a Taiwan Brain Trust survey published yesterday showed. Referring to Taiwan’s victory last month at the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s Premier12, the survey results showed that 89.1 percent of respondents said that Taiwan’s exceptional performance in sporting competitions furthers national unity. Only 18.8 percent of respondents supported Taiwanese teams’ continued use of the name “Chinese Taipei” in international sporting competitions, the survey showed. Among Taiwan’s leading political parties, the name “Team Taiwan” was supported by 91.1 percent of self-identified Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) supporters,
RSS