For Ahronglong Sakinu, a Paiwan Aboriginal writer, learning the traditional wisdom of Aboriginal hunters and spreading this knowledge to children was a goal he had been working toward for many years.
Last year he realized his dream with the establishment of Taiwan's first Aboriginal hunting school.
At a recent seminar on Aboriginal cultures held by the Sung Ye Museum of Formosan Aborigines, Sakinu shared with the public his thoughts and experiences in establishing the school.
"If only one day, we could have a school where children could be taught the relationship between the land, nature and people," Sakinu said. "If only one day, we could dwell happily with nature ... Such a paradise can be found at the hunting school."
In his books The Sage Hunter and Man Who Goes With The Wind, Sakinu describes how he learned about hunting and its culture from his father.
Humans should reside peacefully with nature and learn ways to manage and use natural resources as hunters do, he said.
The school, established last November in Taitung County's Taimali Township (太麻里), is not a traditional school where students sit in class and learn from books.
The school incorporates a small village, much like the one seen in the movie The Last Samurai, said Chou Chia-hui (周嘉慧), the editor of Sakinu's books.
In the movie, the children of the samurai village were taught the way of the samurai as part of their daily life.
The students who attend the hunting school will live in a village and experience firsthand how it is to be a true Aboriginal hunter, with school life incorporated with everyday life, Chou said.
Several Aboriginal schools have already contacted the hunting school and sampled it, although not yet the essence of the hunting lifestyle, she said.
In the future, organizers hope that Aboriginal children would be able to acquire a basic education at other schools before attending the hunting school to learn the traditional aspects of Aboriginal hunting life, Chou said.
Chou said that the school is not just about "hunting", but about the hunting culture, the process of hunting and the relationship between mankind and nature.
Sakinu said that he hoped to generate interest in environmental and cultural issues in the younger generation.
Sakinu is the first Aboriginal author to have his works included in junior high textbooks in this country. His book The Sage Hunter, was made into a movie last year.
UPGRADE: The Kang Ding-class frigate is replacing its Chaparall missiles with Tien Chien II and Hua Yang VLS, which would provide it with long-range, 360° air defense Taiwan plans to produce 1,200 to 1,376 Hai Chien II missiles (海劍二, Sea Sword II) — also known as TC-2N — to serve as the standard air defense system of the navy’s surface combatant fleet, a source said yesterday. Last week, the Hai Chien II, the naval version of the Tien Kung II missile (天劍二, Sky Sword II), completed a live-fire test in waters off the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology’s Jiupeng facility (九鵬) in Pingtung County’s Manjhou Township (滿州). The MIM72 Chaparral and other dated air defense missiles that currently arm Taiwanese ships have inadequate range to combat Chinese
REASONS FOR TRAVEL: An assistant professor said that proposed amendments to penalize drivers if they used drugs overseas would not deter people from traveling People who operate a motor vehicle under the influence of marijuana would have their driver’s license revoked, even if they used the substance while overseas, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday, citing proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例). The amendments would also authorize the government to revoke the licenses of people determined to have used Category 1 or Category 2 narcotics, even if they were not operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs, as well as ban them from taking the license test for three years, the ministry said. People aged 18 or
Shih Hsin University President Chen Ching-he (陳清河) yesterday issued a public apology for comments made in his commencement speech last week, stating that he has asked the school to suspend his duties and halt his wages for two months as a show of contrition. At the commencement ceremony on May 30, Chen said, “If you don’t manage your time well, or your own emotions, or your health, then I am telling every one of you — put a quick end to ‘you,’ because the world has no need for ‘you.’” The comments have sparked significant controversy online, and Chen through an open
Johanne Liou (劉喬安), a Taiwanese woman who shot to unwanted fame during the Sunflower movement protests in 2014, returned to Taiwan last night after being deported from the US. She is to stand trial in Taiwan for charges involving embezzlement, fraud and drug crimes. The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said it took her into custody at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and would first question her before transferring her to the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. She was arrested upon disembarking a flight from San Francisco that landed shortly before 7pm. Liou absconded to the US in 2019 after jumping bail
RSS