In 2005, the Cabinet designated the first day of August as a memorial day for Aborigines to reflect changes in the Constitution in 1994 stating that the nation’s indigenous peoples should henceforth be called yuanzhumin (原住民, or Aborigines) instead of shanbao (山胞, or mountain compatriots) in recognition of their contribution to society.
Since its establishment in 1984, the Alliance of Taiwan Aborigines has promoted a “renaming” movement to help redefine the position of Aborigines in the country and educate the public about Aboriginal culture.
Along with the democratic developments in the country, the Aboriginal renaming movement has become more diverse. Following the success in changing their designation from “mountain compatriots” to “Aborigines,” the different Aboriginal tribes focused their efforts on renaming their own groups.
As a result, the Thao was officially recognized as a tribe in 2001, as were the Kavalan and the Truku tribes in 2002. The latest took place this year, with the official recognition of the Sedeq tribe.
The restoration of these traditional tribal names and their official recognition saw the number of officially recognized Aboriginal tribes in Taiwan increase from nine to 14.
In addition, Aborigines were given permission to register traditional personal names instead of Chinese names. These factors, coupled with the restoration of traditional Aboriginal names for Aboriginal villages, lands and bodies of water, allowed the Aboriginal movement in the country to gradually gain in significance.
People, tribes and countries all have their own names. These names are not only used to differentiate between people and places, but also represent individual identity.
The Aboriginal movement in the country was centered on renaming and these names were continuously promoted externally, in dialogue with the government and the international community.
This gave rise to the establishment of an Aboriginal consciousness, encouraging Aborigines to strive for self-recognition and fight for their position and status in Taiwanese society.
By looking at the significance that renaming has had on the Aboriginal movement, we can also realize the importance of the renaming movement in building up awareness among Taiwanese as a whole.
Taiwan’s renaming movement is a declaration of our respect for and belief in ourselves. It also shows that Taiwanese have made progress from recognition of identity on a personal level to recognition of identity on a collective level.
Renaming Taiwan is an attitude and a process of establishing a common group of people who are all dedicated to bettering the nation.
Taiwan belongs to the people of Taiwan. In order to stop Beijing’s constant bullying of Taiwan on the international stage and its insistence that Taiwan is part of China, we have to understand the significance of Taiwan’s renaming movement.
We must promote Taiwanese consciousness and identity step by step starting at the most basic level through education and culture and win the hearts and minds of the public to establish our own political, cultural, social, educational and economic systems, and show that Taiwan and China are indeed two countries on either side of the Taiwan Strait. In this way, Taiwan can pave a path for itself in the international community and gain recognition.
Chen Lung-chu is chairman of the Taiwan New Century Foundation.
Translated by Drew Cameron
Recently, China launched another diplomatic offensive against Taiwan, improperly linking its “one China principle” with UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 to constrain Taiwan’s diplomatic space. After Taiwan’s presidential election on Jan. 13, China persuaded Nauru to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Nauru cited Resolution 2758 in its declaration of the diplomatic break. Subsequently, during the WHO Executive Board meeting that month, Beijing rallied countries including Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Belarus, Egypt, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, Laos, Russia, Syria and Pakistan to reiterate the “one China principle” in their statements, and assert that “Resolution 2758 has settled the status of Taiwan” to hinder Taiwan’s
Can US dialogue and cooperation with the communist dictatorship in Beijing help avert a Taiwan Strait crisis? Or is US President Joe Biden playing into Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) hands? With America preoccupied with the wars in Europe and the Middle East, Biden is seeking better relations with Xi’s regime. The goal is to responsibly manage US-China competition and prevent unintended conflict, thereby hoping to create greater space for the two countries to work together in areas where their interests align. The existing wars have already stretched US military resources thin, and the last thing Biden wants is yet another war.
As Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu’s party won by a landslide in Sunday’s parliamentary election, it is a good time to take another look at recent developments in the Maldivian foreign policy. While Muizzu has been promoting his “Maldives First” policy, the agenda seems to have lost sight of a number of factors. Contemporary Maldivian policy serves as a stark illustration of how a blend of missteps in public posturing, populist agendas and inattentive leadership can lead to diplomatic setbacks and damage a country’s long-term foreign policy priorities. Over the past few months, Maldivian foreign policy has entangled itself in playing
A group of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers led by the party’s legislative caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (?) are to visit Beijing for four days this week, but some have questioned the timing and purpose of the visit, which demonstrates the KMT caucus’ increasing arrogance. Fu on Wednesday last week confirmed that following an invitation by Beijing, he would lead a group of lawmakers to China from Thursday to Sunday to discuss tourism and agricultural exports, but he refused to say whether they would meet with Chinese officials. That the visit is taking place during the legislative session and in the aftermath