Performing a traditional exorcism ritual, a group of Thao Aborigines yesterday protested against a build-operate-transfer (BOT) resort project near Sun Moon Lake on Thao traditional lands, for which the government gave initial approval without consulting them.
Sprinkling self-brewed alcohol into the sky with her fingers while reciting spells, an elderly Thao shaman performed the traditional ritual to drive away evil spirits in front of the Executive Yuan.
“The evil is in there,” she said, pointing at the Executive Yuan compound.
Photo: CNA
Following the shaman were dozens of Thao Aborigines in their traditional dress, holding banners accusing the government of exploiting the Thao and urging the government to return their traditional domains to them.
“Sun Moon Lake and the surrounding areas are traditional territories of the Thao, but now the government is introducing Chinese capital to build a resort without having consulted us as the Aboriginal Basic Act [原住民族基本法] requires,” Thao National Assembly Speaker Banu Bagamumu told reporters.
While the government promised that the resort would bring jobs to locals, Banu Bagamumu said that Chinese tour agencies always bring along their own business partners and “the project will not benefit us at all.”
He called on the Executive Yuan to nullify its initial approval for the project and suspend all BOT plans before a program to revive traditional Thao culture is in place.
Indigenous Peoples’ Action Coalition secretary-general Omi Wilang, an Atayal, said that currently, there are only a few thousand Thao left in the country, who are struggling to keep their tribe and their culture alive.
“What the government should do for an ethnic group that is in such a disadvantaged position is protect, not to accelerate its peril,” Omi Wilang said.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇) said that besides assessing the impact of the development project on the environment, the government “should equally assess its impact on the Thao culture.”
The Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area Administration Office and the Nantou County Government are planning to work with a developer to build a four-star resort hotel costing more than NT$2 billion (US$66 million) near the lake.
The project is financed by Hong Kong’s Bonds Group. If it goes ahead as planned, the resort will be completed and opened in 2017.
Thao Aborigines and their supporters are expected to protest in front of the Environmental Protection Administration in Taipei on Friday.
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
REGIONAL STABILITY: Taipei thanked the Biden administration for authorizing its 16th sale of military goods and services to uphold Taiwan’s defense and safety The US Department of State has approved the sale of US$228 million of military goods and services to Taiwan, the US Department of Defense said on Monday. The state department “made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale” to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US for “return, repair and reshipment of spare parts and related equipment,” the defense department’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a news release. Taiwan had requested the purchase of items and services which include the “return, repair and reshipment of classified and unclassified spare parts for aircraft and related equipment; US Government
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from