Worried that their tribe's culture and language may soon perish, Saisiat Aborigines yesterday demanded the government fulfill President Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) campaign promise on Aboriginal autonomy as soon as possible.
“We, the Saisiat, are facing a crisis in our language and culture because outside governments — from the Japanese to the Republic of China — have restricted our right to speak our own language,” Saisiat chieftain Chao Shan-yu (趙山玉) told a news conference at the legislature before marching to the Executive Yuan to deliver a petition with dozens of other Saisiat tribesmen.
“There are not many of us — less than 10,000 — but we're determined to preserve our culture and language, and we urge the government to respect our rights and take our demands seriously,” Chao said.
Chao Shan-ho (趙山河), the deputy speaker of the Saisiat Assembly, said while his tribe has been actively preparing for tribal autonomy since the Aboriginal Basic Act (原住民族基本法) — which provides a legal basis for Aboriginal autonomy — took effect in 2005, they were shocked when UNESCO listed the Saisiat language as “critically endangered” in a report released last month and they believe autonomy is now an urgent matter.
The Saisiat assembly was modeled on the traditional tribal decision-making mechanism and was set up more than three years ago. Last year, an election was held for the assembly's lower house and a Saisiat autonomy bill was drafted.
After being ruled by various governments, the Saisiats now realize that the only way to preserve their language, culture and social system is through autonomy.
“We are calling on the government to lend us a hand,” Chao said.
The Saisiat have been actively preparing for tribal autonomy, but they are not happy that the government has ignored their wishes.
“President Ma promised Aboriginal autonomy 'on a trial basis' and we've been working hard to prepare for it, yet we haven't heard anything back from the government,” assembly spokesman Obay a Awi said. “The government should listen to our voices and not make policy decisions from the top.”
The tribesmen later marched to the Executive Yuan and were received by officials who accepted their petition.
“We'll wait for a response from the Cabinet for a month. If nothing happens we will take other action,” Obay said after walking out of the Executive Yuan.
He said the Saisiat were considering coordinated action with other Aboriginal tribes seeking autonomy to pressure the government.
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