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.”
Hong Kong singer Andy Lau’s (劉德華) concert in Taipei tonight has been cancelled due to Typhoon Kong-rei and is to be held at noon on Saturday instead, the concert organizer SuperDome said in a statement this afternoon. Tonight’s concert at Taipei Arena was to be the first of four consecutive nightly performances by Lau in Taipei, but it was called off at the request of Taipei Metro, the operator of the venue, due to the weather, said the organizer. Taipei Metro said the concert was cancelled out of consideration for the audience’s safety. The decision disappointed a number of Lau’s fans who had
Commuters in Taipei picked their way through debris and navigated disrupted transit schedules this morning on their way to work and school, as the city was still working to clear the streets in the aftermath of Typhoon Kong-rey. By 11pm yesterday, there were estimated 2,000 trees down in the city, as well as 390 reports of infrastructure damage, 318 reports of building damage and 307 reports of fallen signs, the Taipei Public Works Department said. Workers were mobilized late last night to clear the debris as soon as possible, the department said. However, as of this morning, many people were leaving messages
A Canadian dental assistant was recently indicted by prosecutors after she was caught in August trying to smuggle 32kg of marijuana into Taiwan, the Aviation Police Bureau said on Wednesday. The 30-year-old was arrested on Aug. 4 after arriving on a flight to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Chang Tsung-lung (張驄瀧), a squad chief in the Aviation Police Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Division, told reporters. Customs officials noticed irregularities when the woman’s two suitcases passed through X-ray baggage scanners, Chang said. Upon searching them, officers discovered 32.61kg of marijuana, which local media outlets estimated to have a market value of more than NT$50 million (US$1.56
FATALITIES: The storm claimed at least two lives — a female passenger in a truck that was struck by a falling tree and a man who was hit by a utility pole Workers cleared fallen trees and shop owners swept up debris yesterday after one of the biggest typhoons to hit the nation in decades claimed at least two lives. Typhoon Kong-rey was packing winds of 184kph when it slammed into eastern Taiwan on Thursday, uprooting trees, triggering floods and landslides, and knocking out power as it swept across the nation. A 56-year-old female foreign national died from her injuries after the small truck she was in was struck by a falling tree on Provincial Highway 14A early on Thursday. The second death was reported at 8pm in Taipei on Thursday after a 48-year-old man
RSS