Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (
Ma's comments, which several political observers yesterday described as "dumbfounding," were made on Dec. 8 during a campaign platform presentation in Sindian City (
"If you come into the city, you are a Taipei citizen; I see you as a human being, I see you as a citizen, and I will educate you well," Ma said, adding: "Aborigines should adjust their mentality -- you come to this place, you have to play by its rules."
The incident was exposed when an anonymous source sent video footage of it to Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times' sister newspaper) on Saturday.
In response to Ma's comments, Sijhou Community Self-Help Association executive director Osay Saoma told the Taipei Times last night that the Sijhou community felt "humiliated."
"The tribe is not happy. Does [Ma's statement] mean that we were not treated like humans before?" he asked.
More than 200 members of the Sijhou community have resided at their current location at the left bank of the Sindian River (
"The Amis people are heroes behind the modern development of cities like Taipei, being migrant workers and joining in its construction taskforce," Saoma said. "But now we are being kicked out of our homes in return."
When approached for his response, Ma's campaign spokesman Su Jun-pin (
He disputed Saoma's remarks and said Ma had always been well-received in Aboriginal communities.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit
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